R. Bernstein wrote:
> In GNU Emacs there is Zip-Archive mode and from a directory list I can
> run (archive-extract) to view a member of the zip file. But I'd like
> to run an emacs commnad to open the member directly without going
> through the directory listing. (archive-zip-extract) seems to be
> close, but that seems require setup on the outside with buffers.

Hmmm, that reminds me of http://www.emacswiki.org/emacs-en/WishList#toc10

I've written a variation on that, which is attached.  To use it from
the command line to view bar.txt in ~/foo.zip:

emacs --eval '(extract-find-file "~/foo.zip" "bar.txt")

> The particular application I have in mind is a Python debugger where
> sometimes the positions will be a file and line number inside a zip
> file, specifically a Python egg.

(progn (extract-find-file ...) (goto-line N))

> Related to the above is the ability on the *command-line* to go to a
> specific location inside a zip file. Emacs follows a convention for
> editing a file and line number: FILE:LINENUM, but is there a
> convention or way to specify a position inside some sort of archive?

Don't you mean: a position (line number) within a file, within an
archive?

If you really do mean a line number within an archive, you would just
need to arrange for Emacs to visit the archive in Fundamental mode
instead of Archive mode (via auto-mode-alist).

> If so, I'd make sure to arrange the debugger to output backtraces and
> in that format.

-- 
Kevin Rodgers
Denver, Colorado, USA