RE: How properly utilize the minibuffer and inactive minibuffer startup hooks?

[Drew Adams <drew.adams@oracle.com>]

> >> 1 My goal
> >> ═════════
> >>
> >>   My goal is to enable [smartparens] in the minibuffer
> >>   but only when calling `eval-expression'.
> >
> > If, by any chance, your goal is a subgoal of enabling smartparens
> > when evaluating some lisp expressions, I would recommand to use:
> > M-x ielm RET
> >
> > Usually, when I have to type M-: more than once
> > or if the expression is complexe enough to require paren matching,
> > I tend to use ielm.
>
> Good point as I'd been using eval-expression just like an IELM.

FWIW -

1. You _can_ reasonably use the minibuffer for evaluating complex sexps.

Michael H's email answers your question in this regard.  And I would
add the suggestion to change `M-:' from `eval-expression' to
`pp-eval-expression'.  It is generally more useful to examine a
pretty-printed result (this should be the default behavior in Emacs,
IMO, but it is not).

2. Another alternative to using ielm is to just use *scratch* or an
Emacs-Lisp buffer to evaluate sexps.

3. Personally, I have `M-:' in the minibuffer bound to
`icicle-pp-eval-expression-in-minibuffer', which just calls
`icicle-pp-eval-expression from a recursive minibuffer.

And the latter command is like `pp-eval-expression' but it respects
user options `icicle-pp-eval-expression-print-length',
`icicle-pp-eval-expression-print-level', and
`eval-expression-debug-on-error'.  (If you don't use Icicles then
you can get similar behavior wrt pretty-printing from library pp+.el.)

And personally I don't bother with `smartparens-mode' (but see
Michael H's solution for that).  I use only `show-paren-mode' (and
there is no problem with that in the minibuffer).