From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Path: news.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: "Juanma Barranquero" Newsgroups: gmane.emacs.devel Subject: Re: defcustom and the stars. Date: Thu, 4 Jan 2007 18:39:56 +0100 Message-ID: References: NNTP-Posting-Host: lo.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=UTF-8; format=flowed Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Trace: sea.gmane.org 1167932414 5105 80.91.229.12 (4 Jan 2007 17:40:14 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@sea.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Thu, 4 Jan 2007 17:40:14 +0000 (UTC) Cc: emacs-devel@gnu.org Original-X-From: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Thu Jan 04 18:40:14 2007 Return-path: Envelope-to: ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org Original-Received: from lists.gnu.org ([199.232.76.165]) by lo.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 4.50) id 1H2WZZ-0003l0-Mu for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Thu, 04 Jan 2007 18:40:14 +0100 Original-Received: from localhost ([127.0.0.1] helo=lists.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1H2WZZ-0002FT-7d for ged-emacs-devel@m.gmane.org; Thu, 04 Jan 2007 12:40:13 -0500 Original-Received: from mailman by lists.gnu.org with tmda-scanned (Exim 4.43) id 1H2WZN-0002FD-T2 for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Thu, 04 Jan 2007 12:40:01 -0500 Original-Received: from exim by lists.gnu.org with spam-scanned (Exim 4.43) id 1H2WZL-0002CZ-Fq for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Thu, 04 Jan 2007 12:40:01 -0500 Original-Received: from [199.232.76.173] (helo=monty-python.gnu.org) by lists.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.43) id 1H2WZL-0002CV-DQ for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Thu, 04 Jan 2007 12:39:59 -0500 Original-Received: from [64.233.182.184] (helo=nf-out-0910.google.com) by monty-python.gnu.org with esmtp (Exim 4.52) id 1H2WZK-0002Iy-Ux for emacs-devel@gnu.org; Thu, 04 Jan 2007 12:39:59 -0500 Original-Received: by nf-out-0910.google.com with SMTP id h2so765130nfe for ; Thu, 04 Jan 2007 09:39:58 -0800 (PST) DomainKey-Signature: a=rsa-sha1; q=dns; c=nofws; s=beta; d=gmail.com; h=received:message-id:date:from:to:subject:cc:in-reply-to:mime-version:content-type:content-transfer-encoding:content-disposition:references; b=W8094aK7n1Xq6W5xa1dQarJ2NXyYQOT5A38C6OVWlaQPnXJCwagm2WvXf+iQBsiy9RUJgQkpOgCPRIR7YUkSa8dHxOdmWrZRDPnCHs338hbEEvg94VX97wLR/ji2syTAcDX69Qz9vTdE9x+ITpmNFe2OzcnFJgesTHFsrzIIdPQ= Original-Received: by 10.82.182.8 with SMTP id e8mr1609114buf.1167932398000; Thu, 04 Jan 2007 09:39:58 -0800 (PST) Original-Received: by 10.82.147.2 with HTTP; Thu, 4 Jan 2007 09:39:56 -0800 (PST) Original-To: "Drew Adams" In-Reply-To: Content-Disposition: inline X-BeenThere: emacs-devel@gnu.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: "Emacs development discussions." List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , Original-Sender: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Errors-To: emacs-devel-bounces+ged-emacs-devel=m.gmane.org@gnu.org Xref: news.gmane.org gmane.emacs.devel:64759 Archived-At: On 1/4/07, Drew Adams wrote: > Sorry, I don't understand. The variable with that doc string (beginning "**") _is_ a user variable. It is intended to be a user variable. Yes, I know. > You raise, I imagine, a different issue: how to prevent a variable from becoming a user variable (changeable with `set-variable') if its doc string begins with `*', as in your defvar: "*Completions* window blah blah.". No, I'm raising the fact that we have a convention that says: a variable whose docstring starts with "*" is a user variable. So for consistency, the docstring (without the asterisk) should *not* start with an asterisk. Otherwise, you have: (defvar my-var nil "**This* is a user variable.") and some day you hurriedly modify it to: (defvar my-var nil "*This* is not a user variable.") and get an unwanted result. I'm not talking about programming now, but about docstring conventions. > then I think it is not worth pursuing Not worth pursuing, how? As a convention, in elisp code, or how exactly? > people can rephrase the text to avoid starting with `*' if they don't want `*' to indicate a user variable. Yes, that's what I'm saying, only I'm adding that we should perhaps explain in the docs: "Please take care the docstring *contents* does not start with an asterisk." > (In my case, I _do_ want it to indicate a user variable.) I understood it the first time. In fact, I understood it on your previous message. I usually have no trouble understanding your messages. Pity the reverse is not true. Not your fault, of course. /L/e/k/t/u