GNU bug report logs - #14356
24.3; Symbol's value as variable is void: help-xref-following

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Message #5 received at submit <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Vitalie Spinu <spinuvit <at> gmail.com>
To: bug-gnu-emacs <at> gnu.org
Subject: 24.3; Symbol's value as variable is void: help-xref-following
Date: Tue, 07 May 2013 01:20:24 +0200

I have noticed this issue for second time this week.

When trying to access emacs help (C-h f) I am getting the error:

    help-setup-xref: Symbol's value as variable is void: help-xref-following

I tracked it down to the warnign in *messages*

   Warning: defvar ignored because help-xref-following is let-bound


so the variable help-xref-following in help-mode.el is not getting
defined during the auto-load for the above reason.

Any ideas of how to debug this issue? It is not reproducible, it just
happens from time to time.

    Vitalie






In GNU Emacs 24.3.2 (i686-pc-linux-gnu, X toolkit, Xaw scroll bars)
 of 2013-04-29 on vitoshka-home
Windowing system distributor `The X.Org Foundation', version 11.0.11303000
System Description:	Ubuntu 13.04

Configured using:
 `configure '--with-x-toolkit=lucid''

Important settings:
  value of $LANG: en_US.UTF-8
  locale-coding-system: utf-8-unix
  default enable-multibyte-characters: t

Message #8 received at 14356 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Dmitry Gutov <dgutov <at> yandex.ru>
To: Vitalie Spinu <spinuvit <at> gmail.com>
Cc: 14356 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#14356: 24.3;
	Symbol's value as variable is void: help-xref-following
Date: Tue, 07 May 2013 03:41:46 +0400

Vitalie Spinu <spinuvit <at> gmail.com> writes:

> I have noticed this issue for second time this week.
>
> When trying to access emacs help (C-h f) I am getting the error:
>
>     help-setup-xref: Symbol's value as variable is void: help-xref-following
>
> I tracked it down to the warnign in *messages*
>
>    Warning: defvar ignored because help-xref-following is let-bound
>
>
> so the variable help-xref-following in help-mode.el is not getting
> defined during the auto-load for the above reason.
>
> Any ideas of how to debug this issue? It is not reproducible, it just
> happens from time to time.

Looks like a problem with a third-party package. Someone let-binds
`help-xref-following' somewhere.

Here's an old commit in auto-complete fixing that:

https://github.com/auto-complete/auto-complete/commit/75482c79c5d1a46f9097cc27b568aa66ef0add07

Message #11 received at 14356 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Leo Liu <sdl.web <at> gmail.com>
To: Dmitry Gutov <dgutov <at> yandex.ru>
Cc: Vitalie Spinu <spinuvit <at> gmail.com>, 14356 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#14356: 24.3;
	Symbol's value as variable is void: help-xref-following
Date: Tue, 07 May 2013 07:57:10 +0800

On 2013-05-07 07:41 +0800, Dmitry Gutov wrote:
> Looks like a problem with a third-party package. Someone let-binds
> `help-xref-following' somewhere.
>
> Here's an old commit in auto-complete fixing that:
>
> https://github.com/auto-complete/auto-complete/commit/75482c79c5d1a46f9097cc27b568aa66ef0add07

Would be nice to know where it is let-bound. For example, octave.el (in
emacs trunk) does this but I cannot reproduce this bug with it.

Leo

Message #16 received at 14356-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Katsumi Yamaoka <yamaoka <at> jpl.org>
To: Dmitry Gutov <dgutov <at> yandex.ru>
Cc: Vitalie Spinu <spinuvit <at> gmail.com>, 14356-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#14356: 24.3;
	Symbol's value as variable is void: help-xref-following
Date: Tue, 07 May 2013 09:28:38 +0900

Dmitry Gutov wrote:
> Looks like a problem with a third-party package. Someone let-binds
> `help-xref-following' somewhere.

> Here's an old commit in auto-complete fixing that:

> https://github.com/auto-complete/auto-complete/commit/75482c79c5d1a46f9097cc27b568aa66ef0add07

Sorry, I am at least one of the culprits.  I've committed a fix
to gnus-art.el in the trunk.  Please reopen this bug thread if
it doesn't solve the problem.

Message #19 received at 14356 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Glenn Morris <rgm <at> gnu.org>
To: 14356 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Cc: yamaoka <at> jpl.org, spinuvit <at> gmail.com
Subject: Re: bug#14356: 24.3;
	Symbol's value as variable is void: help-xref-following
Date: Tue, 07 May 2013 02:40:38 -0400

Katsumi Yamaoka wrote:

> Sorry, I am at least one of the culprits. 

I don't think you are, since your help-xref-following binding comes
after a describe-bindings call, and that causes help-mode to be loaded.
But nevertheless your change is a good one for the sake of clarity.

I don't see anything in Emacs 24.3 that could cause this, so probably
some external package.

Message #22 received at 14356 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Glenn Morris <rgm <at> gnu.org>
To: 14356 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Cc: Vitalie Spinu <spinuvit <at> gmail.com>, Dmitry Gutov <dgutov <at> yandex.ru>
Subject: Re: bug#14356: 24.3;
	Symbol's value as variable is void: help-xref-following
Date: Tue, 07 May 2013 02:41:05 -0400

Leo Liu wrote:

> Would be nice to know where it is let-bound.

Use grep. AFAICS, nothing distributed with Emacs can cause this.
The only possible candidate in 24.3 is gnus-art, and I think that usage
is fine (see my other message).

> For example, octave.el (in emacs trunk) does this but I cannot
> reproduce this bug with it.

I think you are saved by with-help-window using
with-output-to-temp-buffer, which runs help-mode-setup via
temp-buffer-setup-hook.

Message #25 received at 14356 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Leo Liu <sdl.web <at> gmail.com>
To: Glenn Morris <rgm <at> gnu.org>
Cc: Vitalie Spinu <spinuvit <at> gmail.com>, 14356 <at> debbugs.gnu.org,
	Dmitry Gutov <dgutov <at> yandex.ru>
Subject: Re: bug#14356: 24.3;
	Symbol's value as variable is void: help-xref-following
Date: Tue, 07 May 2013 14:59:14 +0800

On 2013-05-07 14:41 +0800, Glenn Morris wrote:
> I think you are saved by with-help-window using
> with-output-to-temp-buffer, which runs help-mode-setup via
> temp-buffer-setup-hook.

Thanks for that.

Leo

Message #28 received at 14356 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Vitalie Spinu <spinuvit <at> gmail.com>
To: Glenn Morris <rgm <at> gnu.org>
Cc: yamaoka <at> jpl.org, 14356 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#14356: 24.3;
	Symbol's value as variable is void: help-xref-following
Date: Tue, 07 May 2013 11:32:28 +0200

 >> Glenn Morris <rgm <at> gnu.org>
 >> on Tue, 07 May 2013 02:40:38 -0400 wrote:

 > Katsumi Yamaoka wrote:
 >> Sorry, I am at least one of the culprits. 

 > I don't think you are, since your help-xref-following binding comes
 > after a describe-bindings call, and that causes help-mode to be loaded.
 > But nevertheless your change is a good one for the sake of clarity.

 > I don't see anything in Emacs 24.3 that could cause this, so probably
 > some external package.

I have grepped all the packages I am using and except gnus-art.el only
smartparents do in a functionality that I have never used.

I clean started gnus and invoked describe-bindings, and indeed it was
not causing this problem. But when invoked through helm-descbinds-mode
it did.

Here is how to reproduce:

   Enter gnus article and press C-h b (helm-descbinds), then C-g to
   exit, the let-binding warning appears and help-xref-following is not
   bound.

After updating gnus everything is fine.

Thanks, 
    Vitalie
    

Message #31 received at 14356-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Katsumi Yamaoka <yamaoka <at> jpl.org>
To: Vitalie Spinu <spinuvit <at> gmail.com>
Cc: Glenn Morris <rgm <at> gnu.org>, 14356-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#14356: 24.3;
	Symbol's value as variable is void: help-xref-following
Date: Tue, 07 May 2013 19:27:56 +0900

Vitalie Spinu wrote:
[...]
> I clean started gnus and invoked describe-bindings, and indeed it was
> not causing this problem. But when invoked through helm-descbinds-mode
> it did.

> Here is how to reproduce:

>    Enter gnus article and press C-h b (helm-descbinds), then C-g to
>    exit, the let-binding warning appears and help-xref-following is not
>    bound.

> After updating gnus everything is fine.

Thanks for the confirmation.

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