Subject: Re: bug#58801: [PATCH] Autoload the `calc-eval-error' variable

From: Matt Armstrong <[email-masked]>
Date: Sat, 26 Nov 2022 08:58:53 -0800

Stefan Kangas <[email-masked]> writes:

> Matt Armstrong <[email-masked]> writes:
>
>> Note that in my case I had (require 'calc) in the file that used the
>> `calc-eval-error' symbol.  The info docs for calc state that (require
>> 'calc) loads nearly everything you need from calc.  I may not understand
>> something about the design constraints here, but it seems strange to
>> refrain from autoloading this symbol, since (require 'calc) already
>> (auto)loads a *lot* of stuff.
>
> So you are saying that if you have a file foo.el, that requires calc,
> and then tries to use calc-eval-error variable (documented as part of
> the external API), you get a byte-compiler warning?
>
> I agree that this doesn't sound very intuitive.

I regret typing about `require' at all, as my line of argument is
simpler than that.

Running "emacs -Q" comes with `calc-eval' autoloaded.  Since calc
documentation mentions `calc-eval-error' as a configuration variable for
the `calc-eval' behavior, it is makes most sense to autoload either
neither of them or both of them.

(In the particular case of the Calc package, dozens of functions and
variables are already autoloaded.  The omission of `calc-eval-error'
also seems more an oversight than intentional.)

> So I think we could install your patch.

Me too.  ;-)