Re: Bikeshedding go! Why is <M-f4> unbound?

[Deniz Dogan]

2011/1/12 Drew Adams <address@hidden>:
>> > There is no reason for Emacs to bind Alt-F4 (or M-f4) by default.
>> > It should be kept for anyone to bind to anything.  (Just
>> > one more opinion.)
>>
>> On the other hand, it wouldn't be a big deal for Emacs to have a
>> default binding. Anyone who cares enough will be able to rebind it.
>>
>> There's always discussion about making Emacs a more well behaved
>> application on Windows and this seems like a low-hanging fruit?
>
> I respectfully disagree.
>
> 1. There's _no special reason_ to give _this_ key a default binding.
>
> 2. While it is true that a default binding can be overridden, that's not a 
> good
> enough argument for making a _particular_ default binding.
>
> 3. Default bindings tend to become sacrosanct in the eyes of many over time.  
> A
> library (or even a user) that binds one can be thought by some to be going
> against the grain (convention).
>
> 4. It's not because some key is unbound that we should give it a default
> binding.  If the argument that a default binding can always be overridden were
> sufficient for creating default bindings, then we would bind _every_ key by
> default.  Even a random default binding would be bound to please someone, and
> "Anyone who cares enough will be able to rebind it."
>
> 5. Slippery slope.  Windows uses key XYZ for blah, so we bind it.  Then 
> someone
> says "Hey, we respect the Windows binding by default for XYZ, why not also for
> UVW and RST and ...?
>
> "It wouldn't be a big deal for Emacs to have a default binding" - epitaph on a
> tombstone in Boot Hill, Tombstone, Arizona.
>

I'm neither for nor against this proposal anymore, but I'd like it if
we keep the discussion going, so here are my thoughts.

1. But there is a point to it! I may be wrong, but isn't M-f4 what
most desktop environments, e.g. KDE and Gnome, use to close a window
by default? To a new Emacs user, which we have to consider, M-f4 *not*
closing the window on a Windows system could potentially be confusing
and maybe even irritating. The new user maybe doesn't know that she
can make new key bindings herself and even if she knows she *can* make
new bindings, maybe she doesn't know what command to bind it to.
save-buffers-kill-terminal probably isn't what first comes to mind.

4. No one is saying we should bind M-f4 because it is unused. It's
just that it could have a very useful default binding for Windows
users which just happens to be unused today.

-- 
Deniz Dogan