Re: M-x compile should tell its status (a little bit better)..

[Richard Stallman]

    > This would do no harm, but mode-name is always supposed to be a string.

    Why?

That's how it's defined and documented to be used.
Maybe after the release we could consider whether it is
a good idea to change this.  For now, let's focus
on what needs to be done to make a good release.