Re: Blunderbuss ".dir-locals.el" raises everything in its path!!

[Lennart Borgman]

On Sun, Jul 12, 2009 at 11:39 PM, Alan Mackenzie<address@hidden> wrote:
> I find myself opposed to the .dir-locals.el mechanism.  Unlike the file
> local variables mechanism, which is used for a definite purpose and is
> under the control of the hacker editing the file, .dir-locals.el takes
> control away from hackers, it's surreptitious (ls won't list it unless
> you give it -a, and often it's not even in the same directory), and it
> tends to lead hackers on a frustrating, time wasting search for why their
> Emacs is doing strange things, as it just has done for Jan.  Kudos to Jan
> for taking the time and trouble to track the problem down.

It looks to me that many want some kind of project settings and is not
that what .dir-locals.el is supposed to contain? (But why does the
name start with a dot?)


> I think project settings would be better done in the traditional manner
> by putting lisp functions into major mode hooks.  Both require elisp
> skills after all, so I can't really see what .dir-locals.el saves.

Maybe I do not understand what you mean, but is not the real trouble
that those things can be confused? Major mode settings and project
settings are of course two different dimensions. Orthogonal.

However Emacs does not impose that orthogonality. Kind of lack of
typing mechanism. I am surprised that anything local to a major mode
is placed in the project file, but that be just because I do not
understand exactly the things here.


> AARRRGGGGHHHH!!!  As if we don't don't have enough complexity as it is.

We are supposed to grow with it...