Re: scratch/tzz/auth-source-reveal-mode 4a7c98d 3/3: Create and document auth-source-reveal-mode

[Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org>]

> From: Ted Zlatanov <tzz@lifelogs.com>
> Cc: monnier@iro.umontreal.ca,  emacs-devel@gnu.org
> Date: Fri, 26 Jun 2020 13:52:26 +0000
> 
> EZ> Perhaps if you describe the difficulties you bumped into in more
> EZ> detail, we could help you overcome them?  AFAICT, you never actually
> EZ> described the specific problems you had.
> 
> No, I didn't. I spent several hours investigating and the lack of
> existing code that did this, plus the complexity of Emacs' display
> internals, were discouraging.

I'm not sure what is meant by "did this", but if you are talking about
hiding some text and displaying something else in its stead, then
Emacs is fill of examples of that.  So I'm quite sure it should be
possible to do what you want, if you show the code that you tried to
use.

> 1) the new minor auth-source-reveal-mode and the prettify-text
> library/API: that won't change and has no hard dependency on static
> compositions.
> 
> 2) the internal implementation of the prettify-text library/API: that's
> almost exactly like `prettify-symbols-mode', a part of the core. Your
> major concern there (accessibility and internationalization) is valid
> but it's equally valid against that existing part of the core.
> 
> So again, I propose merging as is, and then spending time on a proper
> reimplementation for both `prettify-symbols-mode' and the prettify-text
> code. I can work on that reimplementation with guidance from this
> mailing list. That will help me keep the changes smaller (the branch is
> getting hard to maintain) and more targeted.

I don't mind when will the dependency on static compositions replaced
by more appropriate features, as long as we agree that it should be
replaced.  (OTOH, I don't see why we should rush towards merging.)
Also, let's not call the library "prettify-text" or anything to that
effect, because that's not what it is supposed to do, it's supposed to
hide text by displaying something else in its stead.

Thanks.