Subject: Re: site-start.el and lout-mode.el

From: [email-masked]
Date: 06 Aug 1996 16:49:20 -0400

If someone wants to write an "install-elisp" (there have been some
quite clever suggestions here) some time this week, I'll try and
include it in the 19.32-1 package. 

I wouldn't worry too much about "hundreds" of addon packages -- favor
robustness and simplicity over speed, if there are that many optional
packages we can change the emacs side of the mechanism (and the
*implementation* of install-elisp) without changing the interface.

Please include examples of how gnats, vm, w3, and possibly mailcrypt
would use the mechanism (should be a line or two for each, so this
isn't a major task) just to show that it is as general as what's being
done now (and to make it easier to convince those maintainers to
switch :-)

			_Mark_ <[email-masked]>
			The Herd of Kittens

---

From: [email-masked] (Emilio Lopes)
Date: Wed, 7 Aug 96 16:26 EST

>>>>> "eichin" == eichin  <[email-masked]> wrote:

eichin> If someone wants to write an "install-elisp" (there have been
eichin> some quite clever suggestions here) some time this week, I'll
eichin> try and include it in the 19.32-1 package.

I like the way is done in w3: all the commands necessary to (auto)load
the package are included in a new file, say w3-init.el, which is put
in the site-lisp directory. Than, a single line "entry" is put in
/etc/site-start.el. Something like:

(load "/usr/lib/emacs/site-list/w3-init" t nil nil)

Note that the optional arguments ensure that no error will be signaled
if the file does not exist.

The deinstallation can be done with a simple "grep -v" command.

Just my $0.02.

Ciao, Emilio.

-- 
                 Emilio C. Lopes <mailto:[email-masked]>
               Instituto de Fisica da Universidade de Sao Paulo
             Caixa Postal 66318, 05389-970 Sao Paulo - SP, BRAZIL
              Phone: (+55) (11) 818-6724 (Voice) / 818-6715 (Fax)