Re: Suggestion: Let the help command load autoloaded functions etc

[Lennart Borgman (gmail)]

Richard Stallman wrote:
>     A little milder suggestion just because it is close to X-max: How about 
>     adding a link that loads the library, something like replacing
>
>       [Arg list not available until function definition is loaded.]
>
>     with
>
>       [Arg list not available, _click to load function library_.]
>
> That would be an ok feature, since it would not do anything automatically.

I forgot this, here is a path for it. Could someone please look at it 
and install it if it looks ok?

(The link created does not work using mouse-1 on w32, but that is AFAIK 
a bug in Emacs. Or did I misunderstand something there?)
2008-07-16 Lennart Borgman <address@hidden>

        * help-fns.el (describe-function-1): Add link to load library for
        autoloaded functions.

Index: help-fns.el
===================================================================
RCS file: /sources/emacs/emacs/lisp/help-fns.el,v
retrieving revision 1.122
diff -u -r1.122 help-fns.el
--- help-fns.el 6 Jun 2008 20:02:42 -0000       1.122
+++ help-fns.el 16 Jul 2008 10:19:34 -0000
@@ -104,7 +104,8 @@
    ((byte-code-function-p def) (aref def 0))
    ((eq (car-safe def) 'lambda) (nth 1 def))
    ((and (eq (car-safe def) 'autoload) (not (eq (nth 4 def) 'keymap)))
-    "[Arg list not available until function definition is loaded.]")
+    ;;"[Arg list not available until function definition is loaded.]")
+    "[Arg list not available, click to load function library.]")
    (t t)))
 
 (defun help-make-usage (function arglist)
@@ -417,7 +418,18 @@
                  (high (help-highlight-arguments use doc)))
             (let ((fill-begin (point)))
              (insert (car high) "\n")
-             (fill-region fill-begin (point)))
+             (fill-region fill-begin (point))
+              ;; Add load link for autoloaded functions.
+              (let ((here (point))
+                    (load-marker "click to load function library"))
+                (goto-char fill-begin)
+                (when (search-forward load-marker here t)
+                  (make-text-button (match-beginning 0)
+                                    (match-end 0)
+                                    'action `(lambda (btn) (interactive)
+                                              (load-library ,file-name)
+                                              (describe-function ',function))))
+                (goto-char here)))
             (setq doc (cdr high))))
         (let* ((obsolete (and
                          ;; function might be a lambda construct.