Re: Display-based word wrapping

["Miles Bader" <miles@gnu.org>]

On Mon, Jun 23, 2008 at 11:03 AM, Stefan Monnier
<monnier@iro.umontreal.ca> wrote:
>> A similar argument applies to wrapping indicators:  For traditional
>> wrapping modes, it's Ok, and even useful, when wrapping indicators are
>> quite noticeable, because they usually indicate an exceptional
>> condition.  But for word wrapping, wrapping is the normal case, so more
>> care should be taken to make sure wrapping indicators [if any] are not
>> annoying.
>
> IOW, word-wrapping will be a big time sink?
> Yes, I definitely expect that: line-end indicators, visual-line
> movement, ... and I'm sure people will find more things to wish
> for afterwards (adaptive-fill-prefix anyone?)

I'm not sure what your point is .. if you mean that we should add a
"simple" word-wrapping feature to the display engine first, ignoring
other features which make it usable for regular use, maybe you're
right.  I think many of those "time-sink" features are necessary for
it to be really usable in a way users expect, though, so we should at
least make a tentative plan to add them.

[Display-time word-wrapping is probably a nice thing, but I don't
think it's quite as simple as people often seem to assume it is --
devil, details, etc.]

The visual movement stuff may not be be necessary for "display only"
use -- e.g. in a Gnus article buffer -- and we probably want to just
turn off wrapping indicators in such usage.

-Miles

-- 
Frank Lloyd Wright  - "TV is chewing gum for the eyes."