Re: Emacs learning curve

[Stephen J. Turnbull]

Tom writes:

 > So yes, you are right. The current UI won't keep the very
 > determined hackers away, but in my experience the question most new
 > users (and most new hackers) ask when encountering Emacs is: "Why
 > should I bother with it if it's so alien?"

My point is that it's not a question of determination.  It's that
users who think in terms of "alien" and "bother" won't convert to
Emacs hackers anyway, whether or not they are competent programmers.
They focus on other goals, and if Emacs were natural and effortless
for them, they would simply forget it, not invest the saved effort in
improving it.

Sure, there are reasons to support those users.  "They will become
Emacs hackers" simply isn't one of them.