Call for Discussion: Specification of package location via configure
We're considering simplification of the process of configuring the
location(s) for packages at ./configure time. Please direct comments
and use cases to XEmacs Design <xemacs-design(a)xemacs.org>, and CC Ben
Wing <ben(a)xemacs.org> (Reply-To is set).
We're interested in use cases for specifying package location. Given
that currently XEmacs usually attempts to autodetect packages based on
the location of the `xemacs' binary and the installation prefix, we
hope that it would be unnecessary.
The context is that Ben Wing has proposed a patch which provides
--package-prefix as a simple interface to --package-path. That is,
--package-prefix=$dir is equivalent to specifying
--package-path=$early::$dir/site-packages:$dir/xemacs-packages:$dir/mule-packages
with the exact specification of $early under discussion (Ben specified
$early as ~/.xemacs, but that is probably incorrect.)
Here are some considerations that have been advanced in discussion so
far.
o Are multiple prefixes allowed?
o If not, does that mean we are deprecating multiple hierarchies?
o If not, we still need --package-path, don't we?
o Is it a good idea to enforce ~/.xemacs as the early-packages
prefix?
o If --package-prefix forces ~/.xemacs as the early-packages
prefix, we still need --package-path, don't we?
o How should --package-prefix interact with EMACSPACKAGEPATH?
o Should there be an EMACSPACKAGEPREFIX environment variable?
o What do --package-path and --package-prefix imply about where
package-admin should install packages?
o How should --package-prefix and --package-path interact with
--with-prefix=no?
o Does handling --package-prefix in the general case require changes
to the package-path-finding code?
We also should consider whether simplification of package location
specification interacts with longer term plans for the packages:
o Getting rid of the special treatment of mule-packages.
o Inverting the package hierarchy (ie, true run-in-place package
sources).
--
Graduate School of Systems and Information Engineering University of Tsukuba
http://turnbull.sk.tsukuba.ac.jp/ Tennodai 1-1-1 Tsukuba 305-8573 JAPAN
Economics of Information Communication and Computation Systems
Experimental Economics, Microeconomic Theory, Game Theory