Subject: bug#493: closed (Re: bug#493: describe-variable misleading origin)

From: [email-masked] (GNU bug Tracking System)
Date: Wed, 22 Feb 2012 01:06:02 +0000

Your bug report

#493: describe-variable to keep track of where vars were set; not just where they were defined

which was filed against the emacs package, has been closed.

The explanation is attached below, along with your original report.
If you require more details, please reply to [email-masked].

-- 
493: http://debbugs.gnu.org/cgi/bugreport.cgi?bug=493
GNU Bug Tracking System
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Subject: Re: bug#493: describe-variable misleading origin
From: Glenn Morris <[email-masked]>
To: [email-masked]
Date: Tue, 21 Feb 2012 20:03:37 -0500
List-Id: <debbugs-submit.debbugs.gnu.org>

I see no prospect of something like this being implemented.
Closed as wontfix.

>From [email-masked] Fri Jun 27 09:05:35 2008
To: [email-masked]
Subject: describe-variable vs. not necessarily soul origins
From: [email-masked]
Date: Sat, 28 Jun 2008 00:03:01 +0800

describe-variable shows e.g.,

  kill-emacs-hook is a variable defined in `C source code'.
  Its value is
  (w3m-arrived-shutdown
   (lambda nil
     (sleep-for 5))
   #[nil "\300\301!\207"
         [server-mode -1]
         2])

The problems are: Saying

  kill-emacs-hook is a variable defined in `C source code'.
  Its value is

is misleading, as it looks like you are saying "this is the definition
as found in the C source code" when in fact it has been modified
since.

So maybe say
  Its CURRENT value is

Or if you keep track of whether it has been modified or not, than say
two different things accordingly.

P.S., saying
   #[nil "\300\301!\207"
         [server-mode -1]
         2])
presents the user with unexplained octal gobbledygook.

And maybe even add a list of all the files that altered the variable,
so one can track down just what put that byte-compiled stuff there
(that one doesn't see with emacs -Q).