Subject: RE: bug#17530: 24.4.50; `package-load-list': incorrect defcustom type

From: Drew Adams <[email-masked]>
Date: Sun, 15 Sep 2019 14:27:16 -0700 (PDT)

> > But at least in Emacs 26.3, the default is still
> > `(all)'.  For the record, this part of the problem
> > hasn't been addressed:
> >
> >> If someone does not customize this or does
> >> `package-initialize' in their init file before
> >> loading `custom-file' then they might be in
> >> for an unwelcome surprise, depending on what
> >> packages they have locally.
> >>
> >> The default value would be better as nil, IMHO.
> 
> A default of nil would mean that no packages are loaded.

No, just by default.  No packages loaded by default.

> So pretty much anyone installing packages

No, anyone who wants to _load_ packages.  You would
specify/configure which packages to load, yes.  Is
that outlandish or too restrictive?

> would have to customize it to `(all)' in order to
> get their packages working.  That sounds like a
> worse default.

Not to me, it doesn't.  Just because you've installed
some packages doesn't mean you want them to all to be
loaded.  That's a bit like automatically applying
`require' to everything you have in your `load-path'.

Why would we assume that, by default, users should
load the latest installed versions of all installed
packages?

Do I feel strongly about this?  No.  But it seems
wrong.