What is the difference between `current-word' and `word-at-point'?

What is the difference between `current-word' and `word-at-point'?

[Marcin Borkowski]

Hi all,

it seems Emacs has two functions with a very similar purpose,
`current-word' and `word-at-point'.  I understand some obvious
differences (like that `current-word' can treat "symbol" characters as
constituting a word or not, and `word-at-point' can give the current
word with the properties), but does anyone know

(a) why Emacs has both functions, and

(b) if/when their results can actually differ (apart from the obvious
cases like I mentioned)?

TIA,

-- 
Marcin Borkowski
http://mbork.pl

Re: What is the difference between `current-word' and `word-at-point'?

[Philip Kaludercic]

Marcin Borkowski <mbork@mbork.pl> writes:

> Hi all,
>
> it seems Emacs has two functions with a very similar purpose,
> `current-word' and `word-at-point'.  I understand some obvious
> differences (like that `current-word' can treat "symbol" characters as
> constituting a word or not, and `word-at-point' can give the current
> word with the properties), but does anyone know
>
> (a) why Emacs has both functions, and

I suppose that word-at-point is a simple extension of the thing-at-point
mechanism, that uses forward-word instead of the syntax table.

> (b) if/when their results can actually differ (apart from the obvious
> cases like I mentioned)?

One difference I could make out is that word-at-point respects
find-word-boundary-function-table (as it is implemented via
forward-word). This means that when something like subword-mode is
active and the buffer contains

       someCam|lCaseWord

where | is the point, (word-at-point) returns "Camel" while
(current-word) gives me "someCamelCaseWord".

> TIA,

-- 
	Philip K.

RE: [External] : Re: What is the difference between `current-word' and `word-at-point'?

[Drew Adams]

> I suppose that word-at-point is a simple extension of the thing-at-point
> mechanism, that uses forward-word instead of the syntax table.

<nit>The doc of `word-at-point' suggests that it
respects the syntax table.</nit>

Re: [External] : Re: What is the difference between `current-word' and `word-at-point'?

[Philip Kaludercic]

Drew Adams <drew.adams@oracle.com> writes:

>> I suppose that word-at-point is a simple extension of the thing-at-point
>> mechanism, that uses forward-word instead of the syntax table.
>
> <nit>The doc of `word-at-point' suggests that it
> respects the syntax table.</nit>

Uh, yes that was unclear. forward-word says

        The word boundaries are normally determined by the buffer’s syntax
        table and character script (according to ‘char-script-table’), but
        ‘find-word-boundary-function-table’, such as set up by ‘subword-mode’,
        can change that.

so obviously it falls back onto the syntax table.

-- 
	Philip K.