Re: Transient Mark Mode on by default

[Mike Mattie <codermattie@gmail.com>]

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On Mon, 24 Mar 2008 23:28:16 +0100
Sascha Wilde <wilde@sha-bang.de> wrote:

> "paul r" <paul.r.ml@gmail.com> wrote:
> > Most average developpers I know will simply never tweak any of the
> > piece of software they use.
> [...]
> > I think emacs customization process is already fairly good. But many
> > beginners will simply give up *before* even discovering M-x
> > customize
> 
> To be honest: I don't care to much about that kind of people.  There
> is a fair amount of software out there to suit there (limited?) needs
> -- please don't try to make Emacs just another one of these.
> 
> I like Emacs for being driven by "doing the right thing" and by that
> aiming to become the perfect tool from hackers for hackers[0].
> 
> By all means: educate those who are willing to learn:  don't make it
> unnecessarily hard for them and point them in the right direction,
> e.g. by pointing out that customization is crucial to make Emacs
> "yours".
> 
> But _pretty please_ don't choose the defaults on what joe average
> programmers would expect.

I second this as well. I also find the entire concept of a "average joe"
to be profoundly wrong. Some people may lack the initiative to search
for a better way, but that does not mean that they do not have the capacity
for it. Let Emacs be a refuge for progress, average is not a legacy.

"
Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed, to me:
I lift my lamp beside the golden door.
" - Emma Lazarus http://www.bartleby.com/59/6/givemeyourti.html

> cheers
> sascha
> 
> [0] btw. I think that a significant number of those folks you are
>     talking about will not know the meaning of the word "hacker" in
> the sense I'm using it here.  Coincidence?  I don't think so... ;-)

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