Re: cdlatex-mode in emacs

[Thibaut Verron <thibaut.verron@gmail.com>]

On 25/08/2022 12:41, uzibalqa wrote:
> ------- Original Message -------
> On Thursday, August 25th, 2022 at 8:08 AM, Thibaut Verron <thibaut.verron@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>> On 25/08/2022 08:53, wilnerthomas--- via Users list for the GNU Emacs
>> text editor wrote:
>>
>>> Aug 25, 2022, 06:33 by eliz@gnu.org:
>>>
>>>>> Date: Thu, 25 Aug 2022 06:20:09 +0000
>>>>> From: uzibalqa uzibalqa@proton.me
>>>>> Cc: help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org
>>>>>
>>>>>>> Date: Thu, 25 Aug 2022 03:20:04 +0000
>>>>>>> From: uzibalqa uzibalqa@proton.me
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Does anybody know when cdlatex-mode was introduced into Emacs? I am using Emacs 27.2
>>>>>> There's no cdlatex-mode in Emacs, only org-cdlatex-mode.
>>>>>> Is there texmathp.el in emacs, which is a Gnu Package.
>>>> No, not in Emacs.
>>> It is part of AUCTeX which is a Gnu Package. It comes with Emacs Support for writing
>>> Latex Files. Could the functionality be included in Emacs. cdlatex-mode is useful for
>>> rapid writing latex templates and symbols rapidly.
>>>
>>> Could improve using tex-mode and latex-mode immensely in Emacs.
>>
>> AUCTeX is on GNU Elpa, and cdlatex is on NonGNU Elpa, so both can be
>> directly installed with the package manager. In my opinion, it is the
>> right place for such packages, rather than emacs core: this way they can
>> release new versions without having to wait for the emacs release cycle.
>> (See: org-mode)
>>
>> tex-mode and latex-mode are extremely basic modes in comparison, I don't
>> know anybody using them. And it's unfortunate that they preempted the
>> tex- and latex- namespaces, forcing AUCTeX to capitalize its mode names
>> and variables -- but I digress.
>   
> I agree with your last evaluation Thibaut.  tex-mode and latex-mode are
> extremely basic modes.  Because (as you state) almost nobody using them,
> they should be beefed up using ideas from texmathp.el and cdlatex.  With
> the useful functionalities incorporated, emacs would not need to always
> pick up on every release of those packages.  But users can get them seperately
> for added functionality if they wish.

But what would be the advantage of doing that? Both packages are 
available on the "official" repository for emacs packages, and can be 
installed in a matter of seconds.

Right now the purpose of each package is clear: built-in basic support, 
auctex for advanced IDE-like features, cdlatex for quick math insertion. 
(Note that cdlatex is a minor mode, and can be used to insert maths in 
any emacs buffer.)

> I encourage that tex-mode and latex-mode stop being intertwined together, but
> developed seperately.  The syntax is so different that they produce choas when
> all functionality is put in a single file.

The file tex-mode.el which implements basic support for both tex, latex 
and doctex is less than 4000 lines long. The syntax may be superficially 
different, but a lot of concepts are common between the different 
languages of the family. Plus, one gets support for tex syntax in latex 
documents for free.

AUCTeX, too, builds support for latex on top of the support for tex.

Best wishes,

Thibaut