Re: suggestion for set-file-modes

[Juri Linkov <juri@jurta.org>]

>> `-rw-rwxr-x' seems easier to type than `a+r,ug+w,go+x'
>
> You needn't type that, of course; I'd probably use "ug=rwx,o=rx".
> Familiar, easy to type, and to understand.
>
>> but we don't need decide what notation is preferable as we can
>> support all of them.
>
> Why complicate the code to support the "-rw-rwxr-x" format though?  It's
> not used by any other software, and offers no obvious advantage in
> usability.

The only software I know that supports reading the "-rw-rwxr-x" format is
Wdired.  Supporting it in set-file-modes is not very necessary, but the
problem came from the patch proposed by Michaël where the prompt is
displayed as:

  File modes, octal or symbolic (current: -r-xrw---):

The string inside parentheses before the colon looks very like the default
value, so it invites the user to type a new value in the same format.

-- 
Juri Linkov
http://www.jurta.org/emacs/