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Re: Honoring traditional defaults - how to do it. [was: Transient Mark M
From: |
Alan Mackenzie |
Subject: |
Re: Honoring traditional defaults - how to do it. [was: Transient Mark Mode on bydefault] |
Date: |
Wed, 2 Apr 2008 11:15:36 +0000 |
User-agent: |
Mutt/1.5.9i |
Hi, Richard!
On Tue, Apr 01, 2008 at 10:53:59PM -0400, Richard Stallman wrote:
> > Making Emacs easier to learn is an improvement, in general. But
> > what use is there in having a different Emacs configuration which
> > is easier to learn, if it is not the recommended mode of use?
> It is useful if it makes it easier to get to the final result,
> getting there in two stages rather than going straight there - a
> bit like first teaching skiers to turn by skidding their skis on
> the snow, to give them confidence, then in the advanced classes
> getting them to edge their skis and get proper carved turns.
> I am skeptical that it will work this way. I think that most people
> will learn the easy-to-learn version and stop there.
We seem to have come full circle.
My proposal was to have several commands to start Emacs, in particular:
(i) "emacs-easy" would start Emacs with Transient Mark Mode enabled, and
display a message suggesting the newby change to "emacs".
(ii) "emacs" would retain the traditional default here.
You have endorsed making T-M-M on by default. I have argued that T-M-M
is objectively inferior to !T-M-M, particularly for experienced Emacsers.
Identifying "easy-to-learn version" with "T-M-M as default", I think
newbies are more likely to move to "traditional emacs" by my suggestion
than by the current state (T-M-M on by default).
--
Alan Mackenzie (Nuremberg, Germany).