Subject: Re: bug#55301: 27.2; RFE: Auto-create defcustom for declared minor mode keymap

From: Lars Ingebrigtsen <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 09 May 2022 11:34:07 +0200

Phil Hudson <[email-masked]> writes:

> What I am proposing is something along the lines of this: when a mode
> (major or minor, it's strictly irrelevant) declares a keymap, part of
> the processing of the expansion of the mode definition should include
> a defcustom enabling the user to customize that keymap using the
> Customize UI, rather than (only) by writing elisp code.  In other
> words, where foo-mode-map is currently implemented (I assume) using a
> defvar, that should change to a defcustom.  That's really all I'm
> suggesting: change the defvar (or whatever) to a defcustom.

Emacs doesn't have a Customize UI to alter keymaps, so changing defvars
to defcustom isn't currently useful (because there's no :type that
could be used other than `sexp').

It would be possible to create such an UI, of course, but it would work
quite differently than all other Customize widgets.  I don't think
anybody wants to have the entire definitions of keymaps in their .emacs
files -- they want to add a keystroke or remove a keystroke or two, and
that's it.  (And, besides, they want to get new keystrokes that are
added to the maps.)

But it'd be nice to have; sure.

-- 
(domestic pets only, the antidote for overdose, milk.)
   bloggy blog: http://lars.ingebrigtsen.no