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RE: Rename `mini-' options
From: |
Drew Adams |
Subject: |
RE: Rename `mini-' options |
Date: |
Sat, 16 May 2009 01:24:44 -0700 |
> For better or worse, Emacs traditionally distinguishes "the
> minibuffer" from "the echo area", and resize-mini-windows
> applies to both. So a name which captures this subtlety
> is arguably better than one which lies
> a bit for the sake of convenient document searching.
And the name `resize-mini-windows' captures this subtlety just how? Is it
because it cleverly doesn't mention _either_ the minibuffer or the echo area?
That's supposed to help somehow?
You heard it from user Deniz: "Unless I had read your post I never would have
guessed `resize-mini-windows' deals with the minibuffer at all." Case closed.
(Or it should be.) Never would have guessed at all! Even with the name looking
us in the face - let alone the problem of finding that name in the first place.
As I said, use something like `minibuffer-echo-area-resize', if you're concerned
about "capturing the subtlety" that this option applies to both. I have no
problem with that. There's no need to "lie a bit".
Finding options and functions by name is important, and that is not just about
searching the doc. This is why `apropos' works as well as it does - conventional
naming.
> The variable in question _is_ existing practice -- it was introduced
> almost a decade ago, in Emacs 21.
There are lots of things introduced a while ago that could still merit
improvement.
The more important point is that this is an _exception_ to the rest of the
"existing practice". No where else does `mini-' occur. And it remains
unexplained, undocumented.
This is just a bug, no matter how long ago it was introduced. And in the grand
scheme of Emacs terminology, Emacs 21 is a relative newcomer. The terminology of
`minibuffer' and `echo area' have been with us since Day 1.
I apologize for not catching this bug sooner. (I don't use such resizing, myself
- I use a standalone minibuffer frame, with my own resizing code for that.)
- RE: Rename `mini-' options, (continued)
- RE: Rename `mini-' options, Drew Adams, 2009/05/15
- Re: Rename `mini-' options, Juanma Barranquero, 2009/05/15
- RE: Rename `mini-' options, Drew Adams, 2009/05/15
- Re: Rename `mini-' options, Juanma Barranquero, 2009/05/15
- RE: Rename `mini-' options, Drew Adams, 2009/05/16
- Re: Rename `mini-' options, Eli Zaretskii, 2009/05/16
- RE: Rename `mini-' options, Drew Adams, 2009/05/16
- Re: Rename `mini-' options, Juanma Barranquero, 2009/05/16
- Re: Rename `mini-' options, Stephen J. Turnbull, 2009/05/16
- Re: Rename `mini-' options, Miles Bader, 2009/05/16
- RE: Rename `mini-' options,
Drew Adams <=
- Re: Rename `mini-' options, Miles Bader, 2009/05/16
- RE: Rename `mini-' options, Drew Adams, 2009/05/16
- Re: Rename `mini-' options, Miles Bader, 2009/05/16
- Re: Rename `mini-' options, Stephen J. Turnbull, 2009/05/16
- Re: Rename `mini-' options, Stefan Monnier, 2009/05/17