Re: customize-style

[Per Abrahamsen <abraham@dina.kvl.dk>]

Luc Teirlinck <teirllm@dms.auburn.edu> writes:

> If Per, who wrote Custom, does not understand the purpose of
> custom-local-buffer, how can we expect the average Custom user to
> understand? 

I don't believe the variable currently serve any purpose.  It was
introduced by RMS in with this ChangeLog.7 entry:

1998-06-24  Richard Stallman  <rms@psilocin.ai.mit.edu>

	* custom.el (custom-set-default): New function.
	(custom-set-variables): Use custom-set-default.
	(custom-local-buffer): New variable.
	(defcustom): Doc fix.

I grepped for any corresponding UI in the source, but didn't found
it.  I did, however, found this  ChangeLog.7 entry

1998-06-23  Richard Stallman  <rms@psilocin.ai.mit.edu>

	* cus-edit.el (custom-buffer-create-internal): New optional arg LOCAL;
	set custom-local-buffer locally to that.
	(custom-buffer-create): New optional arg LOCAL.
	(customize-local-variables): New function.
	(custom-default-value): New function.
	(custom-variable-value-create): Use custom-default-value.
	(customize-set-variable): Use custom-set-default.
	(customize-save-variable): Likewise.
	(custom-variable-set, custom-variable-reset-standard): Likewise.
	(custom-variable-save, custom-variable-reset-saved): Likewise.

My guess is that the UI was supposed to be the
customize-local-variables function.  The "customize-" prefix is
reserved for UI commands.  However, no such function is found in the
source.  Nor does custom-buffer-create have an optional LOCAL arg, or
customize-set-variable use custom-set-default.

The CVS log also shows that the above patch was not committed, at
least not on the specified day:

% cvs log cus-edit.el

revision 1.79
date: 1998/07/02 22:29:15;  author: rms;  state: Exp;  lines: +9 -9
(customize-changed-options): Clean up previous change.
----------------------------
revision 1.78
date: 1998/06/24 09:36:08;  author: schwab;  state: Exp;  lines: +2 -2
(custom-magic-show): Use `other' widget type.
----------------------------
revision 1.77
date: 1998/06/22 01:59:13;  author: done;  state: Exp;  lines: +28 -5
*** empty log message ***
----------------------------
revision 1.76
date: 1998/06/04 06:07:39;  author: kwzh;  state: Exp;  lines: +1 -1
(customize-group-other-window): Fix previous change.

In other words, custom-local-buffer is just a remaining fraction of a
much larger patch that was never committed.

I grepped my mail archives and googled, and found no references to
customize-local-variables outside Emacs ChangeLogs.

Unless we can somehow resurect the 1998-06-23 patch, I suggest the
best course of action is to undo the 1998-06-24 patch.