MIT Scheme with SLIME

[Philip Kaludercic]

Does anyone here use Emacs' SLIME?  I adapted this snippet from
swank-mit-scheme.scm, bundled under the contrib/ directory:

--8<---------------cut here---------------start------------->8---

(with-eval-after-load 'slime
  (defun mit-scheme-slime-init (file encoding)
    (format "%S\n\n"
            `(begin
              (load-option 'format)
              (load-option 'sos)
              (eval
               '(create-package-from-description
                 (make-package-description '(swank) (list (list))
                                           (vector) (vector) (vector) false))
               (->environment '(package)))
              (load ,(expand-file-name "contrib/swank-mit-scheme.scm" 
slime-path)
                    (->environment '(swank)))
              (eval '(start-swank ,file) (->environment '(swank))))))
  
  (add-to-list 'slime-lisp-implementations
               `(mit-scheme ("mit-scheme")
                            :init ,#'mit-scheme-slime-init)))

(defun slime-mit-scheme ()
  (interactive)
  (slime 'mit-scheme))
--8<---------------cut here---------------end--------------->8---

But it fails, because of this function:

--8<---------------cut here---------------start------------->8---
(define (swank:set-package _ package)
  (set-repl/environment! (nearest-repl) 
                         (->environment (read-from-string package)))
  (let* ((p (environment->package (user-env #f)))
         (n (write-to-string (package/name p))))
    (list n n)))
--8<---------------cut here---------------end--------------->8---

specifically the (->environment (read-from-string package)), that
apparently fails to correctly read a string and turn it into an
acceptable argument for ->environment:

--8<---------------cut here---------------start------------->8---
1 ]=> 
;Loading "format.com"... done
;Loading "load.scm"...
;  Loading "sos-unx.pkd"... done
;  Loading "geneqht.com"... done
;  Loading "generic.com"... done
;  Loading "genmult.com"... done
;  Loading "tvector.com"... done
;  Loading "recslot.com"... done
;  Loading "slot.com"... done
;  Loading "class.com"... done
;  Loading "instance.com"... done
;  Loading "method.com"... done
;  Loading "printer.com"... done
;  Loading "macros.com"... done
;... done
;Loading "swank-mit-scheme.scm"...
;The object #[package 12 (swank)], passed as an argument to ->environment, is 
not an environment.
;To continue, call RESTART with an option number:
; (RESTART 1) => Return to read-eval-print level 1.
--8<---------------cut here---------------end--------------->8---

I haven't contacted the SLIME developers yet (considered CC'ing their
mailing list, but apparently you have to sign up first), because I
assumed that someone here would have a better understanding of what the
problem on the Scheme side is.

Furthermore, I know about Geiser and I am not satisfied with the
package, which is why I am looking into this in the first place.

-- 
        Philip Kaludercic on peregrine