Re: TODO additions

[Richard Stallman <rms@gnu.org>]

    * Provide a means to display a background image in a window [miles
      started on this?] and extract image-relative coordinates from mouse
      clicks on images.  (Both needed for W3.)  Also useful for W3 and Gnus:
      allow scrolling images properly.

I see no need for background images.  Scrolling through images is very
important, and already listed in TODO.  I will clarify that item.

    * Convert the XPM bitmaps to PPM, replace the PBMs with them and scrap
      the XPMs so that the colour versions work generally.  (Requires care
      with the colour used for the transparent regions.)

Could someone explain what good this would do?  I don't know much
about these image formats.

    * Use automake and use autoconf fully, preferably avoiding src/{m,s}
      entirely.  [Maintaining the build process _is_ a major problem.]

I don't think this would make it easier.  It might be harder,
because it would require solving every problem in a general way.

    * Do something to make rms happy with fx's dynamic loading, and use it
      to implement things like auto-loaded buffer parsers and database
      access in cases which need more than Lisp.

The problem here is too fundamental to suppose it can necessarily be
solved.

The rest all seem desirable in principle at least, so I will
add them to etc/TODO.

    * Allow unknown image types to be rendered via an external program
      converting them to, say, PBM (in the same way as PostScript?).

    * Allow displaying an X window from an external program in a buffer,
      e.g. to render graphics from Java applets.  [gerd and/or wmperry
      thought this was feasible.]

    * Allow images (not just text) in the margin to be mouse-sensitive.
      (Requires recursing through display properties).  Provide some way
      to simulate mouse-clicks on marginal text without a mouse.

    * Implement Lisp functions to determine properly whether a character
      is displayable (particularly needed in XFree 4, sigh).  Use it to
      define useful glyphs that may be displayed as images or unicodes
      (with ASCIIfied fallback via latin1-disp).  Examples include
      box-drawing graphics in Custom buffers, W3 rules and tables, and
      tree displays generally, mode-line mail indicator.  [See work done
      already for Emacs 22 and consult fx.]

    * Do something to make rms happy with fx's dynamic loading, and use it
      to implement things like auto-loaded buffer parsers and database
      access in cases which need more than Lisp.

    * Extend ps-print to deal with multiple font sizes, images, and extra
      encodings.

    * Provide portable undumping using mmap (per gerd design).  [unexec
      _is_ a major headache.]

    * Replace gmalloc.c with the modified Doug Lea code from the current
      GNU libc so that the special mmapping of buffers can be removed  --
      that apparently loses under Solaris, at least.