GNU bug report logs - #62817
Extension request: Must-Recover flag for files with auto-save information

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Message #5 received at submit <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Johann Höchtl <johann.hoechtl <at> gmail.com>
To: bug-gnu-emacs <at> gnu.org
Subject: Extension request: Must-Recover flag for files with auto-save
 information
Date: Thu, 13 Apr 2023 18:42:15 +0200

[Message part 1 (text/plain, inline)]

Currently when Emacs crashes, it keeps a list of affected files in
auto-save-list. Alternatively when opening a file where auto-save
information is more current than the actual file, emacs will display a
message in the status buffer and keep the entry in messages.

However, for novice users, this helpful hint can be easily missed, eg. if a
verbose mode prints messages in the status buffer, like lsp-modes comes to
mind. In such a case the hint that a more recent autosave file exists is
displayed and will get quickly replaced with other messages. If the user is
not aware of recover-this-file, he will likely overwrite more recent
auto-save information with subsequent edits.

I propose that this is bad behaviour and a configuration exists which halts
any further processing until the user actively finishes what a manual
recover-this-file would offer him to do. This feature makes sense,
especially as of Emacs 29? auto-save-files can be reliably deleted by Emacs
itself.

As discussed on reddit
https://www.reddit.com/r/emacs/comments/z6ulwe/comment/iyb6bzm/?context=3

[Message part 2 (text/html, inline)]

Message #8 received at 62817 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Eli Zaretskii <eliz <at> gnu.org>
To: Johann Höchtl <johann.hoechtl <at> gmail.com>
Cc: 62817 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#62817: Extension request: Must-Recover flag for files with
 auto-save information
Date: Sat, 15 Apr 2023 11:23:17 +0300

> From: Johann Höchtl <johann.hoechtl <at> gmail.com>
> Date: Thu, 13 Apr 2023 18:42:15 +0200
> 
> Currently when Emacs crashes, it keeps a list of affected files in auto-save-list. Alternatively when
> opening a file where auto-save information is more current than the actual file, emacs will display a
> message in the status buffer and keep the entry in messages.
> 
> However, for novice users, this helpful hint can be easily missed, eg. if a verbose mode prints
> messages in the status buffer, like lsp-modes comes to mind. In such a case the hint that a more
> recent autosave file exists is displayed and will get quickly replaced with other messages. If the user is
> not aware of recover-this-file, he will likely overwrite more recent auto-save information with
> subsequent edits.
> 
> I propose that this is bad behaviour and a configuration exists which halts any further processing until
> the user actively finishes what a manual recover-this-file would offer him to do. This feature makes
> sense, especially as of Emacs 29? auto-save-files can be reliably deleted by Emacs itself.

I don't think delaying initialization is a good idea.  Instead, how
about using the warnings facility for showing these messages?  See the
"Warnings" node in the ELisp Reference manual for more details.  In
particular, we have a "delayed warnings" feature, which allows to
delay the actual display of the warnings till after the running
command finishes.

Would you like to work on a patch along these lines?

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