GNU bug report logs - #22587
"guix edit" name may be confusing

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From: Alex Kost <alezost <at> gmail.com>
To: myglc2 <myglc2 <at> gmail.com>
Cc: 22587 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: bug#22587: ‘guix edit’ & ‘M-x guix-edit' typo, rename, & mode change
Date: Mon, 08 Feb 2016 11:34:47 +0300

myglc2 (2016-02-07 21:04 +0300) wrote:

> From guix INFO:
>
> 6.2 Invoking ‘guix edit’
> [...]
> launches the program specified in the ‘VISUAL’ or in the ‘EDITOR’
> environment variable to edit the recipe of GCC 4.8.4 and that of Vim."
>
> TYPO:
>
> "edit" (last line above) should be replaced with "view", "inspect", or
> "examine".

Just to mention - I like "edit" name :-)

> RENAME:
>
> Calling these functions 'guix edit' and 'M-x guix-edit' implies that the
> user will be able to modify the recipe, but this is not actually the
> case. The functions should be given a more informative and accurate
> name, such as: 'guix view', 'guix inspect', or 'guix examine'.

Along with the package recipes that come with Guix, a user can also have
his/her own packages (specified using GUIX_PACKAGE_PATH env var), and
"guix edit my-super-package" opens a user's file with this package.  It
is highly likely that this file is editable, so "guix edit" is a perfect
name in this case I think.  IMO it's a user responsibility to understand
what files can be edited and what cannot.

But I agree that this may be confusing, so maybe we should clarify the
manual to explain in (info "(guix) Invoking guix edit") that store files
must not be edited.

> MODE CHANGE:
>
> In emacs, read-only .scm files should be opened in view-mode.

I don't agree.  For example, when you open "/etc/hosts" (or whatever)
file in Emacs, you get a message:

  Note: file is write protected

which indicates that it is opened read-only, but view-mode is not used
by default.  You can enable it manually if you wish.  The same thing
happens with package files.

-- 
Alex

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