Re: M-x custom: *PLEASE*, someone, have it build an INDEX (as in *info*)

[Kevin Rodgers <kevin.d.rodgers@gmail.com>]

David Combs wrote:
> In article <mailman.1677.1263871922.18930.help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org>,
> Kevin Rodgers  <kevin.d.rodgers@gmail.com> wrote:
>> David Combs wrote:
>>> Unlike most everyone else, I find "custom" basically UNUSABLE.
>>>
>>> (Actually, I'd much prefer a super-LONG edit-options -- at least
>>> I could run M-x occur on it, see where things were.
>>>
>>> This custom thing -- I have no idea where things are, how far
>>> down I have to go.
>>>
>>> Maybe if someone could code it to draw one HUGE tree (lying on its
>>> side, of course), but the current scheme doesn't work for me.
>>>
>>> So, an INDEX would help -- each one being a LINK to the thing
>>> it's about.  Custom would make the index each time it started up.
>> 
>> Why not `M-x apropos-variable' to generate the *Apropos* buffer as a
>> virtual index?  Then click on one of the links to display the *Help*
>> buffer for any variable, which has a link to customize the variable.
> 
> You mean with a regexp like "."?  To get EVERYTHING?

No, I mean if you want to search the virtual index for "foo", type
`M-x apropos-variable RET foo RET'.

>    (everything that emacs knows about, anyway, at that time
>     I guess that custom works the same way -- if a .el file
>     hasn't yet been read in, emacs won't know any of its
>     variables?
> 
>    Or is that just plain wrong.  Isn't there something that
>   is predefined, and if referenced, it's then read in?
>   Or is that just for defuns?  Or not even emacs-lisp?)

There are autoloaded variables, just like autoloaded functions.

-- 
Kevin Rodgers
Denver, Colorado, USA