Re: [PATCH v2] POSIX ACL support

[Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org>]

> From: Glenn Morris <rgm@gnu.org>
> Cc: romain@orebokech.com,  emacs-devel@gnu.org
> Date: Tue, 04 Dec 2012 23:09:35 -0500
> 
> Eli Zaretskii wrote:
> 
> > While @pxref will work, it is better not to use it except in
> > parentheses. 
> 
> FWIW, I disagree

With which part?  I didn't say @pxref will not work.  If you think it
is better than "see @ref", please tell why.

> (and the Texinfo manual doesn't seem to agree with you
> either AFAICS).

That depends on the version of Texinfo.  The one for version 4.8
(which we support) still says

  8.7 `@pxref'
  ============

  The parenthetical reference command, `@pxref', is nearly the same as
  `@xref', but you use it _only_ inside parentheses and you do _not_ type
  a comma or period (or anything else) after the command's closing brace.

I don't understand why later versions now say

    In general, it is best to use `@ref' only when you need some word
  other than "see" to precede the reference.  When "see" (or "See") is
  ok, `@xref' and `@pxref' are preferable.

But they still say

  8.7 `@pxref'
  ============

  The parenthetical reference command, `@pxref', is nearly the same as
  `@xref', but it is best used at the end of a sentence or before a
  closing parenthesis.

IOW, the "parenthetical" part is kept, so saying it is preferable
outside of parens makes little sense to me.  (It makes even less sense
to work against my muscle memory, but that's another story.)

The problem is that people who use Texinfo only very rarely tend to
become confused about the precise use cases covered by each of the
*ref directives, and since 'p' stands for "parenthetical", telling
them to use it only in parens helps them remember.  And since both
forms work in this particular case, I think @pxref is better.