Re: how to keep .emacs files in synch

[Tim X]

kj <socyl@987jk.com.invalid> writes:

> I regularly work on various systems, and it's a bit of a chore to
> keep my .emacs files in synch.  I've tried various approaches, none
> entirely satisfactory.  The two issues that give me the most
> headaches are 1) to automate the process whereby changes to one
> system's .emacs file gets reflected on the .emacs files on other
> systems; and 2) to manage those modifications that are applicable
> to only one or a subset of the systems.
>
> I'd be interested to read how others solve this problem.
>

I just use one emacs!

Actually, thats a bit of a lie. I use one emacs at work. All editing is
done through that emacs via tramp over an ssh connection. I run a separate
emacs at home. 

I do maintain only a single .emacs file, which is under version control.  I
have a SYSTEM_PROFILE environment variable, which is set to either home,
work, work-laptop, home-laptop (there is actually only one laptop, whihc I
may use at home or work). nearly all my emacs settings are constant, but I
do have some specific settings that depend on whether I'm at home, work or
on the laptop at home or work. For these profile specific sections, I just
put my bits of elisp inside an if, cond, unless etc test which looks at the
value of the envrioinment variable. Not very sophisticated, but it works
well and isn't so complicated as to break everytime something changes or
gets updated. 

The version control is a subversion repository which I can access from home
or work. When I make a change, I commit them to the repository. When I'm on
another system, I can update from the repository to get the latest
changes. 

Another approach I've used for environments where I don't have a dedicated
desktop or laptop is to NFS my home directory so that no matter what host I
log into directly, my home directory (and hence my .emacs) is there. Of
course, there are some risks and you need to keep in mind that NFS can be
slow and is not good for things like mail folders (probably ok for maildir
style, but not mbox). if the NFS export host goes down, then your pretty
much stuffed on all systems. 

Tim

-- 
tcross (at) rapttech dot com dot au