RE: [External] : Re: Discuss new features/enhancements or large changes for users in emacs-devel [was My resignation from Emacs development]

[Drew Adams]

> > > > In bug thread 73853 I wrote this about it:
> > > >
> > > >   I don't understand why language-design discussions,
> > > >   even major ones sometimes, are carried out in
> > > >   debbugs and not always in emacs-devel@gnu.org.
> > >
> > > Bug#73853 was not about language-design decisions, it was about
> > > deprecating a macro.
> >
> > The bug might not have been about language-design,
> > but some of the bug thread was - which is the point
> > here.
> 
> That people participating in a discussion bring up arguments based on
> language design doesn't necessarily (and generally shouldn't) make the
> discussion to be about language design.  Language design is a tangent
> in a discussion about deprecating a macro.

Yes.

The bug was posted to deprecate a macro.  But the
discussion veered quickly into language design and
its process: whether and how mistakes were made in
this case, why, & how to avoid this in the future. 

And multiple macros were discussed when trying to
realize what went wrong and figure out the best
way to fix things.  It was no longer only about
whether to deprecate a particular macro.

The discussion became even more general: should
ad hoc design discussions be moved from the bug
list to emacs-devel more often - and would that
have helped avoid some of the problems discussed
wrt design of the *-let macros.

> > > And you were part of that discussion since its
> > > beginning.
> >
> > Once again, it's not about me.
> 
> You are one example of people who keep criticizing our decision-making
> process, so looking into your participation in that case is very
> relevant.

Can't wait till Santa Eli posts his complete lists
of the Naughty & Nice. ;-)

I _support_ the decision-making process in general.
And I most often _agree_ with the decisions made,
including those made by you.  Sometimes I say so
explicitly; more often I don't chime in just to
say that I agree.

In particular, I'll say again that I often agree
with a decision _not_ to make some change that's
been proposed.  Wrt continuity, deprecation,
backward compatibility, etc., I'm conservative,
and I appreciate your approach in such cases.

There are zillions of users who don't frequent the
Emacs "social media" spaces, and Emacs development
needs to - and generally does - keep them in mind,
even if some enthusiastic change-promoters speak
loudly and often.

And I often _don't_ chime in when I disagree.
You may think I "keep criticizing", but I submit
that that's long been ingrained in your mind and
your opinion of me.  That, despite the many times
I've explicitly posted saying I'm grateful that
you, in particular, maintain Emacs, and that I
think you do a very good job in general.

You also, however, can be very defensive and take
things personally - that's a weakness that works
against you, not for you.  It seems there's no
setting your mind at ease.  You've made your
Enemies List, and you can't help adding notches
to it each time you feel attacked.  No one's
perfect.