Re: Documentation for custom-file - is not (load custom-file) needed?

[Richard Stallman]

I read the various messages about custom-file, and this
is what I think we should do.

1. We should eliminate custom-file as a defcustom.

2. We should eliminate loading custom-file on startup.
   We should tell users that .emacs should load the appropriate file
   where custom values are stored.

3. Calling custom-set-variables in a file should add that file
   to a list of files that have done so.

4. Evaluating a custom-set-variables call in a buffer should not do
   any such thing.

5. When saving custom variables, if custom-file is set, save in that file.
   Otherwise, if they have only been loaded from one file, save in that
   file.  Otherwise, if they have been loaded from more than one file,
   save in the most recently loaded such file.

6. If the user wants to specify which file to save in,
   he can set custom-file or else just load that file.

7. Eventually, in the future, we might figure out some clean UI for
   specifying which custom files to use and load under which
   conditions, and for moving definitions between them, but that is
   something for later.