RE: [External] : Re: Proposal: new default bindings for winner and windmove

[Drew Adams]

> > C-x 4 <arrow keys> are convenient to you for windmove
> > commands.  They'll be convenient to other users for
> > other commands in just the same way.  You're proposing
> > imposing your setup on everybody.  I'm against this.
> 
> I think "imposing" is overstating the case, given that anyone can
> easily unbind or rebind keybindings they don't like.

Defining new default bindings is an imposition
on Emacs itself, and all Emacs users, in spite
of the fact that users can override them (they
can override ANY bindings).

True, a default doesn't impose the behavior
absolutely.  But it does impose it as, exactly,
a default.  IOW, there's a real difference
between (1) a key not having default behavior
(not being bound) and (2) a key doing something
by default.

Let's not argue over meanings of "impose".  The
only question is whether to "waste" yet another
key by giving it a default binding.

"Waste"?  Yes, that may be strong.  But if we
give such keys _these_ default bindings then
we can't easily, and likely won't, give them
different default bindings at some point.

The question should be, "Is it important
enough to expend these (rare, precious)
undefined keys on these particular proposed
bindings, which will preclude (practically)
giving them other, better default bindings
at some point in the future.

In a nutshell, ask ourselves whether we
_have_ to define such default bindings now.
Is it really important to do so (now)?

IMHO, the right approach is to add the
commands and _not_ bind them.  Then after a
long period of time, see how users are
_actually_ binding them (if at all), and
decide THEN whether Emacs should spend some
default bindings for them.

That has the effect of letting _users_
decide, in practice.

That's generally the approach Emacs has
taken in the past.  But yes, it's true that
in some cases new commands have immediately
been given default bindings.

(And unfortunately, IMO, such exceptions
-- gratuitous immediate grants of default
bindings -- have been happening a bit more
frequently recently.)