Re: Stop fiddling with my preferences

[Stefan Monnier]

> for these (mis)features.  Therefore what it feels like is actually
> happening is that when developers want to do something they just do it
> and claim that users want it.

Every release comes with different kinds of new defaults:

- New features that are immediately enabled.  These are typically
  enabled specifically so that users get to use it without having to
  hunt for it and discover that it's actually bundled with Emacs.

- Old features which have been repeatedly requested, and which we
  finally polished/refined/cleaned up enough that enabling them by
  default is deemed acceptable.
  Typical example: shift-select-mode, font-lock-mode.

- Old features I like and can't imagine Bob would like to turn off.

- Random features that will irk old-timers.

This last kind is not useful in itself (other than for comic relief) by
is used afterwards as a witness in our statistical analysis of
bug-reports and complaints to measure more precisely the resistance to
change, and adjust our expectations for the next release.


        Stefan