Re: master 72b1379f079: Increase `emacs-lisp-docstring-fill-column` to 72

[Po Lu]

Stefan Kangas <stefankangas@gmail.com> writes:

>     Increase `emacs-lisp-docstring-fill-column` to 72
>     
>     Monitors are wider now than when these defaults were first set, and it
>     is useful to take better advantage of that, to fit text on fewer lines.
>     Yet, it has repeatedly been shown that overly long lines reduce
>     readability:
>        "A reasonable guideline would be 55 to 75 characters per line."[1]
>     
>     We also don't want to disfavor narrow displays, like mobile phones; a
>     more promising direction here might be to automatically word wrap
>     docstrings and make their maximum width customizable.  That might
>     require a new docstring format, however.
>     
>     Bumping it by 7 characters, from 65 to 72, seems a reasonable compromise

Generally speaking, 65 columns is already excessive for mobile phone
displays, but only just, and it is usually possible to infer partially
obscured words while reading doc strings without scrolling lengthwise.
Filling doc strings to 72 columns removes that ability, forcing readers
to scroll the display back and forth to uncover obscured words, so it
can't be more of a compromise between narrow and wide displays than 65
columns is.

>     for now.  Consideration was given to increasing it to 70 or 75, but 72
>     happens to be a commonly recommended maximum line width elsewhere (see
>     Fortran 66, Python docstrings, commit message recommendations, etc.),
>     and we might as well do the same.
>     
>     This change was discussed in:
>     https://lists.gnu.org/r/emacs-devel/2022-07/msg00217.html

You'll excuse me if I've overlooked something, but judging by the
referenced thread alone, the change originally proposed was barely
discussed, and certainly did not generate enough debate to establish its
merits and deficiencies with any degree of certainty, let alone those of
imposing a new value on all Emacs users.  For making decisions about a
far-reaching departure from an ancient configuration, an inconclusive
thread over a year in the past is not a source of sufficient input, even
more so when the change which prompted that thread would only have
affected ourselves.