Re: redisplay system of emacs

[Fabian Ezequiel Gallina <galli.87@gmail.com>]

2010/1/29 Stefan Monnier <monnier@iro.umontreal.ca>:
>
> So, yes, it's probably fairly easy to do an Emacs-like editor using
> another extension language etc... and the result is likely to be
> cleaner, more efficient, better maintained code in many ways.
> Actually such Emacs-like editors exist, using extension languages like
> CommonLisp, OCaml, Haskell, Python, younameit.
>
> The problem is that they're not Emacs, so they start with a small user
> community and it's hard for them to grow.  At some point, I've
> considered the possibility to switch to one of those (where the
> extension language is statically typed ;-), but ... they didn't have
> PCL-CVS, diff-mode, Gnus, ... so it was really an uphill battle.
> Maybe later.
>

I think Emacs Lisp is a great extension language. To be honest, when I
was changing my current programing editor and was testing VIM and
Emacs, I've choosen Emacs mainly because of Lisp (...and because I
hated switching modes in VIM).

I have to say also, that beign (mainly) a Python programmer I feel
Emacs Lisp very familiar in some places, and I guess it's true what
people say that is an enlightning language.

There is a really nice project which allows you to extend GNU/Emacs
using Python called Pymacs[0]. I guess that instead of changing Emacs
Lisp we should develop and encourage this kind of interfaces. This
will keep everyone happy, people who actually wants to learn Emacs
Lisp and people who don't want quit using their preferred language.

An example of an extension using Pymacs would be ropemacs[1] which is
a Python refactoring tool (that saves my life everyday).

[0] http://pymacs.progiciels-bpi.ca/pymacs.html
[1] http://rope.sourceforge.net/ropemacs.html


Regards,
-- 
Fabián E. Gallina
http://www.from-the-cloud.com