Re: Issues with emacs

[Sivaram Neelakantan]

On Tue, Jun 26 2012,notbob  wrote:

> On 2012-06-26, Tom <adatgyujto@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>> But it's also a possible that a skilled developer could make a
>> permanent living from developing Emacs features.
>
> Does emacs REALLY need MORE features!?  It's already so complex, now,
> as to seem almost unfathomable to many.  What emacs needs is some
> refining, perhaps even some simplification.  I use slrn cuz it's much
> easier to follow, use, and config than gnus, even though they're
> basically the same utility.  Another thing that can't hurt is better
> documentation.  The only thing more arcane and vague than the official
> emacs manual are those geeky man pages.  One could also make some
> money off documentation.  I paid hard cash for the emacs O'Reilly books
> and consider it money well spent.  In fact, I need to buy the 3rd
> edition and probably will.
>

I don't get this better documentation part; tangentially, it might be
an asian thing.

When I started learning Emacs, I had to start internalising the
terminology used by Emacs. Frame, Window, Mark, Point etc.  When I
understood that, the manual started to make sense a little bit more.
The more I started missing things in Emacs compared to what I was used
to in other editors, this mailing list along with pointers to the
manual made things clear.

I was given Emacs and the manual, that's where I started and while I
did need help to bootstrap things, I don't know how the documentation
can be improved if the mental model that people have of an editor does
not correspond to the Emacs way of things.  

I mean, what's the point of doing Ctrl C/V (CUA mode?)/Vi keystrokes in
Emacs, if you're not willing to do things the Emacs way.  I think
there is no documentation of Windows HCI guidelines that Emacs
follows.  All I seem to see on the list, "documentation is not
helpful"; well about what?  No answer because I think some posters are
trying to fit the Windows model on this editor.

oh, that asian thing.  I don't/didn't even think of questioning the
way Emacs was built or designed when I first started.  

Emacs.  Learn it.  So I started learning.

This is starting to sound a bit racist and I don't think I got my
point across well too, so I'll stop.

 sivaram
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