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Re: if vs. when vs. and: style question


From: Dan Espen
Subject: Re: if vs. when vs. and: style question
Date: Wed, 25 Mar 2015 13:02:15 -0400
User-agent: Gnus/5.13 (Gnus v5.13) Emacs/24.4 (gnu/linux)

Drew Adams <drew.adams@oracle.com> writes:

>> Notice, that I asked the reader to compare the ease of input.
>
> Before I comment further, let me say that I agree with your point.
>
>> =>  super easy, two keys to type.
>> The unicode correspondance?  I would start typing C-x 8 RET double TAB
>> and not find it in the list.  So I would have to launch clisp,
>>    C-- slime RET clisp RET
>> wait for it to boot then type:
>>    (lschar :name "RIGHT_ARROW") RET
>> the search for double, and not find it, then copy and paste it from your
>> message, 
>>    (char-name #\⇒)
>> obtain the character name as "RIGHTWARDS_DOUBLE_ARROW", then type
>>    C-x 8 RET rightward double arrow RET
>> which, even if I had know it from the start, is still much more
>> difficult to type than just =>.
>
> Yes and no.  Yes, if you haven't used a particular Unicode char
> before or use it rarely.  No, if you use it often.
>
> If you use a particular Unicode character often, just give its
> insertion a command and bind that to a key.  If you have 30 such
> chars, put them all on a prefix key.  Or use completion on their
> command names (names you created, so easy for you to type, remember,
> complete to,...).
>
> IOW, it's not a big deal to insert Unicode characters, especially
> if you insert the same ones over and over.  You do not need to use
> `C-x 8 RET' each time.

Sorry, that scales up for more than 1 or 2 characters how?

I already have a little piece of oak tag paper that I've cut out
to surround the 6-key pad above the arrow keys.
The paper has the legend:

           UNDO
FRONT OPEN AGAIN
    -keys-
           COPY

Yep, even for 5 specially assigned keys, my mind sometimes goes
blank and I look at the paper.

A normal keyboard just isn't designed for a bunch of strange
characters.

Another poster described the issue well.
If we used some other kind of input device, those characters
might be a good idea.  Until then, not so much.

-- 
Dan Espen


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