bug#8590: 23.3.50; Cannot modify whitespace-mode usefully per-file without switching off global-whitespace-mode

[Reuben Thomas]

I use global-whitespace-mode, but sometimes it’s not convenient. It
would be nice to switch it off e.g. in directory-local or file-local
variables, but setting whitespace-mode: nil there doesn’t work as
global-whitespace-mode is still active. Hence as soon as I have a single
buffer I don’t want to edit in whitespace-mode I have to turn off
global-whitespace-mode, which means that any new buffers I open don’t
get whitespace-mode turned on.

I’m a bit puzzled as to why global-whitespace-mode exists at all: why
doesn’t whitespace-mode just work like, for example, indent-tabs-mode?
This I can turn on or off globally, and easily customize per-buffer.


In GNU Emacs 23.3.50.1 (i686-pc-linux-gnu, GTK+ Version 2.24.4)
 of 2011-04-24 on canta
Windowing system distributor `The X.Org Foundation', version 11.0.11001000
Important settings:
  value of $LC_ALL: nil
  value of $LC_COLLATE: nil
  value of $LC_CTYPE: nil
  value of $LC_MESSAGES: nil
  value of $LC_MONETARY: nil
  value of $LC_NUMERIC: nil
  value of $LC_TIME: nil
  value of $LANG: en_GB.UTF-8
  value of $XMODIFIERS: nil
  locale-coding-system: utf-8-unix
  default enable-multibyte-characters: t

Major mode: Help

Minor modes in effect:
  diff-auto-refine-mode: t
  recentf-mode: t
  show-paren-mode: t
  savehist-mode: t
  minibuffer-electric-default-mode: t
  iswitchb-mode: t
  icomplete-mode: t
  global-auto-revert-mode: t
  desktop-save-mode: t
  nxhtml-menu-mode: t
  mouse-wheel-mode: t
  file-name-shadow-mode: t
  global-font-lock-mode: t
  font-lock-mode: t
  blink-cursor-mode: t
  auto-encryption-mode: t
  auto-compression-mode: t
  column-number-mode: t
  line-number-mode: t
  transient-mark-mode: t
  view-mode: t

Recent input:
C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-x 
o C-x 1 C-a <help-echo> q q q q C-_ <down-mouse-1> 
<mouse-1> C-a C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p 
C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p 
C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-p C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-k C-n 
C-k C-k C-k C-x C-s M-> M-< C-s N B E W <backspace> 
<backspace> <backspace> E W S C-s C-s C-a <down-mouse-1> 
<mouse-1> M-> <up> <up> <up> <up> <up> <up> <up> <up> 
<up> <up> <up> <up> <up> <up> <up> <up> <up> <up> <up> 
<down> <down> <down> <down> C-p C-k C-k C-x C-s C-h 
i m W h i t e <tab> <tab> <backspace> <backspace> <backspace> 
<backspace> <backspace> E m <tab> a <tab> <return> 
C-s w h i t e s p a c e C-a <return> C-n C-n C-n C-n 
C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n 
C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n C-n 
n u C-s w h i t e s a p c e <backspace> <backspace> 
<backspace> <backspace> p a c e - m o d e C-s C-s C-s 
C-s C-s C-a <up> <return> C-x k <return> <help-echo> 
C-h v C-c C-h v g l o b a l <backspace> <backspace> 
<backspace> <backspace> <backspace> <backspace> i n 
d e n t - t a b s - m o d e <return> C-x b <return> 
C-h C-g C-x h v C-j C-j C-_ C-_ C-_ C-c C-h v w h i 
t e s p a c e - m o d e <return> M-x r e p o r t - 
e m a c s - b u g <return>

Recent messages:
Searching subfile emacs-3...
Searching subfile emacs-4...
Searching subfile emacs-5...
Searching subfile emacs-6...
Searching subfile emacs-7...
Searching subfile emacs-8...
Mark saved where search started
Nothing found for ## pe...
Mark set [2 times]
Undo! [3 times]

Load-path shadows:
/home/rrt/local/share/emacs/nxhtml/util/rnc-mode hides 
/usr/share/emacs-snapshot/site-lisp/rnc-mode/rnc-mode
/home/rrt/local/share/emacs/nxhtml/related/php-mode hides 
/home/rrt/local/share/emacs/site-lisp/php-mode
/home/rrt/.emacs.d/elpa/dictionary-1.8.7/link hides 
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/dictionary-el/link
/home/rrt/.emacs.d/elpa/dictionary-1.8.7/connection hides 
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/dictionary-el/connection
/home/rrt/.emacs.d/elpa/dictionary-1.8.7/dictionary-init hides 
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/dictionary-el/dictionary-init
/home/rrt/.emacs.d/elpa/dictionary-1.8.7/dictionary hides 
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/dictionary-el/dictionary
/home/rrt/local/share/emacs/site-lisp/graphviz-dot-mode hides 
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/emacs-goodies-el/graphviz-dot-mode
/home/rrt/local/share/emacs/site-lisp/dict hides 
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/emacs-goodies-el/dict
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/css-mode/css-mode hides 
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/lisp/textmodes/css-mode
/usr/share/emacs-snapshot/site-lisp/ruby1.8-elisp/ruby-mode hides 
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/lisp/progmodes/ruby-mode
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/css-mode/css-mode hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/css-mode/css-mode
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/tex-info hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/tex-info
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/context-nl hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/context-nl
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/context-en hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/context-en
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/latex hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/latex
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/tex-mik hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/tex-mik
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/tex-buf hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/tex-buf
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/tex-jp hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/tex-jp
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/tex-bar hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/tex-bar
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/tex hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/tex
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/multi-prompt hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/multi-prompt
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/tex-fptex hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/tex-fptex
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/tex-font hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/tex-font
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/tex-fold hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/tex-fold
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/texmathp hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/texmathp
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/context hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/context
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/font-latex hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/font-latex
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/bib-cite hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/bib-cite
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/toolbar-x hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/toolbar-x
/usr/local/share/emacs/23.3.50/site-lisp/auctex/tex-style hides 
/usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/auctex/tex-style

Features:
(shadow sort mail-extr emacsbug info rect jka-compr find-func cus-edit
diff-git diff-mode vc vc-dispatcher message sendmail ecomplete rfc822
mml mml-sec password-cache mm-decode mm-bodies mm-encode mailcap
mail-parse rfc2231 rfc2047 rfc2045 qp ietf-drums mailabbrev nnheader
gnus-util netrc time-date mm-util mail-prsvr gmm-utils mailheader
canlock hashcash mail-utils time-stamp multi-isearch pp help-mode view
parse-time vc-cvs tex-info texinfo tex sh-script executable inform-mode
autoconf autoconf-mode make-mode vc-git vc-bzr sha1 hex-util face-remap
filladapt flyspell cperl-mode completing-help recentf tree-widget
wid-edit uniquify paren savehist minibuf-eldef iswitchb icomplete
whitespace autorevert time as-external wrap-to-fill cus-start cus-load
desktop server nxhtml-autostart nxhtml-autoload majmodpri rnc-mode
nxhtml-menu web-autoload nxhtml-base php-mode etags cc-langs cc-mode
cc-fonts cc-menus cc-cmds cc-styles cc-align cc-engine cc-vars cc-defs
speedbar sb-image ezimage dframe lua-mode regexp-opt comint ring
ropemacs pymacs ffap ispell smart-quotes auto-dictionary-autoloads
c-eldoc-autoloads dictionary-autoloads diff-git-autoloads
dired-isearch-autoloads full-ack-autoloads guess-style-autoloads
kill-ring-search-autoloads magit-autoloads mv-shell-autoloads
tumble-autoloads http-post-simple-autoloads package reporter advice
advice-preload yasnippet help-fns derived edmacro kmacro easymenu assoc
cl cl-19 muse-autoloads emacs-goodies-el emacs-goodies-custom
emacs-goodies-loaddefs easy-mmode preview-latex tex-site auto-loads
tooltip ediff-hook vc-hooks lisp-float-type mwheel x-win x-dnd
font-setting tool-bar dnd fontset image fringe lisp-mode register page
menu-bar rfn-eshadow timer select scroll-bar mldrag mouse jit-lock
font-lock syntax facemenu font-core frame cham georgian utf-8-lang
misc-lang vietnamese tibetan thai tai-viet lao korean japanese hebrew
greek romanian slovak czech european ethiopic indian cyrillic chinese
case-table epa-hook jka-cmpr-hook help simple abbrev loaddefs button
minibuffer faces cus-face files text-properties overlay md5 base64
format env code-pages mule custom widget hashtable-print-readable
backquote make-network-process dbusbind system-font-setting
font-render-setting gtk x-toolkit x multi-tty emacs)

-- 
http://rrt.sc3d.org/