Re: delete-selection-mode

[David Kastrup <dak@gnu.org>]

Juri Linkov <juri@jurta.org> writes:

>> Please, folks, lets keep to the topic as raised by Juri: `whether the
>> default should be d-s-mode or just t-m-mode'.
>
> Why not discuss other related questions at the same time?
> Or do you object for doing this without changing the Subject line?
>
>> That question is plenty big enough. We can still bring in questions
>> of who the default behavior (for this) should be most aimed at, and
>> other relevant questions that have already been broached.
>
> Maybe this question needs a poll.  I suspect the outcome will be
> something around 95% vs 5% ;-)

The German graphics card provider ELSA at one time produced high end
graphics cards.  Then they also provided more affordable cards.  Their
cards were renowned for driver support for whatever you threw at them:
X11, NextStep, OS/2, Windows (including NT which was quite different at
that time), DOS and so on, working well.

People in charge of acquiring computer parts picked them in spite of
having to fork over a few more DM.  Not all that much, but noticeably.
At least 95% of those cards ended up in Windows PCs.  While those making
the technical decisions often used other operating systems personally,
that's what the bulk of the deployed cards worked in.

Then the company decided to go optimize the expensive 5% away, compete
in the Windows-only market, with Windows-only support.

There was no real or virtual incentive left for paying the premium.
They went bust by focusing on the 95% exclusively.

If we focus on being attractive to those users who never read a manual
and never learn more than a few keystrokes, we will foster users who
don't care about anything, have no compelling reason, whether moral or
technical, to stay with Emacs, and will never reach the level where they
contribute back.

There is nothing wrong with that, but there is nothing right with that
either.  It is not an important metric.

-- 
David Kastrup