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bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref
From: |
Dmitry Gutov |
Subject: |
bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref |
Date: |
Fri, 25 Dec 2020 18:01:20 +0200 |
User-agent: |
Mozilla/5.0 (X11; Linux x86_64; rv:68.0) Gecko/20100101 Thunderbird/68.10.0 |
On 24.12.2020 19:44, Eli Zaretskii wrote:
There's only one rule: not to make backward-incompatible changes
without a very good reason. That is not limited to changes in
functions and APIs, key bindings are definitely included. In fact, I
think incompatible changes in key bindings are even worse than changes
in code, since they might go against muscle memory, and nothing can
fix that except a long and painful process of unlearning.
I'm pretty sure backward incompatible changes in code can be much worse.
They can break the code a user has been relying on for many years, and
the user might not have the technical ability to fix that code.
Adapting to a new binding is something that is within anybody's
capability, though. We shouldn't do those frivolously either, but I
believe it is something we should be less worried about.
I've reviewed all the NEWS since v24.1, and found only one
incompatible change in key bindings -- which started by declaring the
existing binding obsolete. So I think we change key bindings in
incompatible ways only very rarely and carefully, and that is a Good
Thing.
It has never been my impression that we are too careful about the
bindings. Let's review the history.
NEWS.27:
the function
'package-menu-filter-by-keyword' has been renamed from
'package-menu-filter'. Its keybinding has also been changed to '/ k'
(from 'f')
That binding was changes without an obsoletion period, whereas the
function itself still has an obsolete-alias. Both are good things, IMO.
NEWS.26:
*** 'vc-region-history' is now bound to 'C-x v h', replacing the older
'vc-insert-headers' binding.
The binding changed to a function with an entirely different behavior.
NEWS.25:
** The old 'C-x w' bindings in 'hi-lock-mode' are officially
deprecated in favor of the global 'M-s h' bindings introduced
in Emacs 23.1. They'll disappear soon.
This is probably the example you're referring to. Note that it talks
about a whole family of bindings, not just one, and that those bindings
almost certainly have had their users. They have probably been the main
way to use hi-lock-mode's functionality at some point in time.
NEWS.24:
** New Ibuffer `derived-mode' filter, bound to `/ M'.
The old binding for `/ M' (filter by used-mode) is now bound to `/ m'.
Bindings changed in an incompatible way (the previous binding had been
there for 12 years).
** Dired
*** The minibuffer default for `=' (`dired-diff') has changed.
It is now the backup file for the file at point, if one exists.
In Transient Mark mode the default is the file at the active mark.
*** `M-=' is no longer bound to `dired-backup-diff' in Dired buffers.
The global binding for `M-=', `count-words-region' is in effect.
** Ruby mode
<Lots of key binding changes without advance announcement>
I have omitted a few others too, where the changes have seemingly been
really critical and thus unlike the present issue.
To sum up, we don't change bindings often (in part because it's hard to
get everyone to agree on a new default, I guess), but we do that from
time to time. And out of all examples, there was only one when we
announced the obsoletion first.
Given the single precedent I found, I'm fine with declaring the
current binding of TAB obsolete and providing a replacement for it
('b'? 'q'?), so that we could replace it in some future version after
28, if that is okay with you and Juri.
Thank you, this is at least one path forward we can take, which is good
to have. But if that is what we have to do to change that binding, it's
pretty costly time-wise, so let's discuss some alternatives first.
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, (continued)
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Eli Zaretskii, 2020/12/25
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Dmitry Gutov, 2020/12/25
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Juri Linkov, 2020/12/27
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, martin rudalics, 2020/12/27
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Dmitry Gutov, 2020/12/27
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Juri Linkov, 2020/12/28
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Juri Linkov, 2020/12/27
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Eli Zaretskii, 2020/12/27
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Dmitry Gutov, 2020/12/27
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Juri Linkov, 2020/12/28
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref,
Dmitry Gutov <=
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Juri Linkov, 2020/12/23
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Eli Zaretskii, 2020/12/23
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Dmitry Gutov, 2020/12/24
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Eli Zaretskii, 2020/12/25
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Dmitry Gutov, 2020/12/25
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Eli Zaretskii, 2020/12/25
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Dmitry Gutov, 2020/12/25
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Eli Zaretskii, 2020/12/25
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, Dmitry Gutov, 2020/12/27
- bug#44611: Prefix arg for xref-goto-xref, João Távora, 2020/12/22