Re: Stability of core packages (was: Not easy at all to upgrade :core packages like Eglot)

[João Távora]

On Wed, Apr 19, 2023 at 10:58 PM Jim Porter <jporterbugs@gmail.com> wrote:
>

> As mentioned elsewhere in this thread, I just use the *Packages* buffer
> and 'package-menu-mark-upgrades' (bound to "U"). That works on older
> Emacsen too. In 29, 'package-update' would make it easier to update a
> single package though, and 'package-update-all' provides a programmatic
> way to do what I do interactively in 28.

No. Both are absent in Emacs 28.  I can't say what the the most
common method is, but M-x package-delete + restart + letting your
config run again is the method I use.

I didn't know about "U" until recently.  And that's because
the package menu is a very slow and unreliable command IME.

And besides, "U" _also does different things in Emacs 28 and Emacs 29.
 In 28 it _will_ upgrade Eglot to the latest (so they tell me). But
not in Emacs 29.

This _also_ deserved a fix, but is IMO, not as important as the
simple non-interactice package-install case.

And, for good measure, the new M-x package-update and M-x
package-update-all in Emacs 29 _also_ won't update Eglot.

> (Though now I wonder why we use both "update" and "upgrade"...)

There's a separate bug for that.

> > Other than that, think CI scripts, dockerfiles, VMs, or just the
> > casual user who trashes the packages dir to get a fresh set when
> > looking for a bug (like I do, and multiple people I've interacted with).
>
> If a user hasn't done anything to specify the release channel they want,
> then I think the current behavior is correct. "(package-install 'eglot)"
> just means "make sure I have Eglot". However, if the user pinned Eglot
> to GNU ELPA, I think it would make some sense for 'package-install' to
> install Eglot from GNU ELPA (i.e. it now means "make sure I have Eglot
> *from GNU ELPA*").

By default, Emacs comes with GNU ELPA configured only, I think.
And Eglot has always existed there.  I don't know what you mean
by "pin".  I do know some users _also_ had Eglot on MELPA to get
an even newer version, but I've never really recommended that.

João