From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: news.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: Chong Yidong Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.devel Subject: Re: display-buffer-alist simplifications Date: Thu, 28 Jul 2011 11:57:37 -0400 Message-ID: <87vcumxury.fsf@stupidchicken.com> References: <87mxgem09k.fsf@stupidchicken.com> <4E2A7EBD.7050300@gmx.at> <87livooqt6.fsf@stupidchicken.com> <4E2B158B.1080101@gmx.at> <87wrf8iyse.fsf@stupidchicken.com> <4E2BEED2.5040608@gmx.at> <8739hvu6lh.fsf@stupidchicken.com> <4E2C50E6.3020103@gmx.at> <878vrnweju.fsf@stupidchicken.com> <4E2D34D7.4040002@gmx.at> <87r55cjvef.fsf@stupidchicken.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: lo.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain X-Trace: dough.gmane.org 1311868707 16539 80.91.229.12 (28 Jul 2011 15:58:27 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@dough.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Thu, 28 Jul 2011 15:58:27 +0000 (UTC) Cc: rudalics@gmx.at, emacs-devel@gnu.org To: Eli Zaretskii Original-X-From: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Thu Jul 28 17:58:23 2011 Return-path: Envelope-to: ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org Original-Received: from lists.gnu.org ([140.186.70.17]) by lo.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 4.69) (envelope-from ) id 1QmSyb-0004NI-VS for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Thu, 28 Jul 2011 17:58:22 +0200 Original-Received: from localhost ([::1]:38861 helo=lists.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1QmSyb-0002U2-5v for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Thu, 28 Jul 2011 11:58:21 -0400 Original-Received: from eggs.gnu.org ([140.186.70.92]:54491) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1QmSyX-0002KQ-Uu for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Thu, 28 Jul 2011 11:58:18 -0400 Original-Received: from Debian-exim by eggs.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1QmSyW-0000z4-Pb for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Thu, 28 Jul 2011 11:58:17 -0400 Original-Received: from vm-emlprdomr-05.its.yale.edu ([130.132.50.146]:54711) by eggs.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.71) (envelope-from ) id 1QmSxw-0000qm-RZ; Thu, 28 Jul 2011 11:57:40 -0400 Original-Received: from furball ([128.36.14.95]) (authenticated bits=0) by vm-emlprdomr-05.its.yale.edu (8.14.4/8.14.4) with ESMTP id p6SFvbRd029961 (version=TLSv1/SSLv3 cipher=DHE-RSA-AES128-SHA bits=128 verify=NOT); Thu, 28 Jul 2011 11:57:38 -0400 In-Reply-To: (Eli Zaretskii's message of "Wed, 27 Jul 2011 00:59:28 -0400") User-Agent: Gnus/5.13 (Gnus v5.13) Emacs/24.0.50 (gnu/linux) X-Scanned-By: MIMEDefang 2.71 on 130.132.50.146 X-detected-operating-system: by eggs.gnu.org: GNU/Linux 2.6 (newer, 3) X-Received-From: 130.132.50.146 X-BeenThere: emacs-devel@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.14 Precedence: list List-Id: "Emacs development discussions." List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Errors-To: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Original-Sender: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.emacs.devel:142453 Archived-At: Eli Zaretskii writes: > OTOH, we have the example of frame parameters alist, which supports > merging with the default-frame-alist, is quite self-explanatory, and > works quite well in practice, AFAIK. > > So why wouldn't display-buffer-alist be useful as an alist as well, > without any need for a plist? One difference is that frame parameters don't interact with one another. Each entry in default-frame-alist overrides any corresponding entry in initial-frame-alist, and is overridden in turn by any corresponding entry in window-system-default-frame-alist. Another difference is that in default-frame-alist, each stored value (i.e. the cdrs of an alist entry) has a straightforward meaning: it is a value of a frame parameter. In display-buffer-alist, each stored value is a _list_ of specifiers, and each specifier has its own no-obvious meaning. For example, in the specifier (reuse-window nil nil nil) each of the `nil's means something different, and you have to look up to docstring to figure out what it is.