Interface for other editors (was: vi-mode possible?)

[Marko Gronroos]

On Tue, 21 Dec 1999, Damien House wrote:
> EMACS is stupid!

I'm not aware about how the most recent version of KDevelop handles
indentations, but Emacs has an excellent and relatively easily configurable
syntax-based autoindent. I really enjoy making all the indentations
automatically just by pressing [TAB] once, and get them correctly done with
genuine tab-characters, not mixed with spaces.

Nevertheless, I think the KDevelop editor is quite fine in many respects,
although for example this indentation feature is not yet mature. Scripting and
macroing is always necessary. Not so much with source code, but mostly with
data files. But those can be handled with Emacs anyways, so that's not really
a problem.
  But then, many other features in the IDE have really poor keyboard support.
Jumping between source files and different panes is really slow.

> (sorry for the attitude, i just think people that want to stick to the old 
> way of doing things are old farts that have to much time to memorize stupid 
> key strokes and need to learn how to use the mouse)

And then there are those MS Windows kiddies who enjoy spending 10x time
(sometimes even many seconds) selecting some menu item with their little pet.
  Hmm, or maybe they are not MS Windows kiddies, but X kiddies, because even
MS Windows has always had much better keyboard control than *any* X software.
KDE is going to good direction in that respect. KLyX and StarOffice are also
rather good examples (although *Office is not even near as good as MSWord in
this respect).
  Trying to remember Emacs keystrokes can be hell, I know. But you don't
*have* to do that, you can always use the M-x commands, or nowaways menus. But
you *CAN* do that *when* you want it, perhaps to get that three-second speedup
for some mouse maneuver that you do some 100 times a day.
  It really looks funny that some people change window perhaps 1000 times a
day by clicking with a mouse. That makes almost 20 minutes a day. Well,
perhaps there's something Zenny there - like it is good patience-practice...

I really enjoyed the old Borland and old Microsoft IDEs, where you could do
everything with one or two keypress. In "modern" IDEs (including Emacs) you
can't even access different source files with Alt+num. Even m$ went to worse
direction in this respect with their Visual C++ 2.0. I know people who are
stuck with Visual C++ 1.5x because they hate the new mouse-only.

(Hmm, I suppose this keyboard topic is the only reason why I joined this
mailing list in the first place...)

-- Marko Grönroos, magi at iki.fi (http://www.iki.fi/magi/)
-- Paradoxes are the source of truth and the end of wisdom