GNU bug report logs - #40671
[DOC] modify literal objects

Previous Next

Full log

View this message in rfc822 format

From: Dmitry Gutov <dgutov <at> yandex.ru>
To: Paul Eggert <eggert <at> cs.ucla.edu>
Cc: Michael Heerdegen <michael_heerdegen <at> web.de>, Mattias Engdegård <mattiase <at> acm.org>, 40671 <at> debbugs.gnu.org, Richard Stallman <rms <at> gnu.org>, ke.vigouroux <at> laposte.net
Subject: bug#40671: [DOC] modify literal objects
Date: Wed, 29 Apr 2020 02:36:58 +0300

On 29.04.2020 02:10, Paul Eggert wrote:
> The "do not touch" values are called "constants" in the documentation now, just
> as they are in the documentation for the other languages.

In other languages, constants are something you can't change.

> I don't see why values
> that should not change should be called "mutable".

Mutable values are ones the user _can_ change. It's a structural thing.

> And even if we called these values "mutable", I don't see why the documentation
> should distinguish among the various types of "mutable" values that should not
> change.

Because the user sees strings and conses in both cases. All mutable 
values, and yet changing some of them is a bad idea (even though Emacs 
will most likely let you).

> Generally speaking, the Elisp documentation should just say "you shouldn't
> change these objects", like it does for C/C++/etc.

Do you see me arguing against that?

Previous Next

GNU bug tracking system
Copyright (C) 1999 Darren O. Benham, 1997,2003 nCipher Corporation Ltd, 1994-97 Ian Jackson.