Re: use-package: load package on key prefix

[Marcin Borkowski <mbork@mbork.pl>]

On 2016-05-09, at 14:28, Stefan Monnier <monnier@iro.umontreal.ca> wrote:

>> I use the p4 (perforce) package which uses C-x p as a prefix for its
>> bound keys.  Can use-package be configured so that it loads the
>> package (which presumably assigns the key-bindings) when C-x p is pressed?
>
> I don't know if use-package supports it, but Emacs can definitely do
> that (it's called "autoloaded keymaps"), and if it makes sense for
> p4.el, than I'd argue that you should report a bug against p4.el saying
> that p4.el should do that (rather than dump that responsability on the user).

Interesting, I didn't know about autoloaded keymaps, thanks!

> This said, this feature of Emacs is mostly never used: when a package
> has a dedicated prefix key, it typically also has a menu-bar (sub)menu
> and that one can't be autoloaded (well, technically it can be
> autoloaded, but in practice the automatic load will happen much too
> early, i.e. the first time you look at any part of the menu).

Not necessarily "much too early": I practically _never_ look at _any_
part of the menu;-).

>         Stefan

Best,

-- 
Marcin Borkowski
http://octd.wmi.amu.edu.pl/en/Marcin_Borkowski
Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science
Adam Mickiewicz University