Re: define-derived-mode again (was: Emacs design question)

[Miles Bader]

Richard Stallman <address@hidden> writes:
>       (defalias 'define-major-mode 'define-derived-mode)
> 
> The two macros should not have the same calling convention.
> define-major-mode should not have a parent argument.

Why?  It's certainly the case that some major-modes have `parent' modes,
and some don't; really, the fact that they're major modes seems far more
significant than that particular detail, so I'd think it would be _good_
that they use the same macro, as long as:

 (1) Its name is equally applicable in either case, and emphasizes
     what's important (that they're major modes); `define-derived-mode'
     falls down here because it emphasizes something that's (IMHO) a
     minor detail in the derived case, and arguably _false_ in the
     non-derived case.  `define-major-mode' has neither of these problems.

 (2) Using the same macro for both is not inconvenient for either case;
     personally I think an extra `nil' is not much of an inconvenience...

-Miles
-- 
"Whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that
 you do it."  Mahatma Ghandi