format-spec.el: feature wish

format-spec.el: feature wish

[Kai Großjohann]

Right now, it appears that the SPECIFICATION argument of FORMAT-SPEC
should be an alist where the keys are characters and the values are
strings.

WIBNI the values could be something else, too, which would then be
evaluated?

Since anything but strings as values aren't useful at the moment, this
would be upward compatible.

kai
-- 
A large number of young women don't trust men with beards.  (BFBS Radio)

Re: format-spec.el: feature wish

[Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen]

Kai.Grossjohann@CS.Uni-Dortmund.DE (Kai Großjohann) writes:

> Right now, it appears that the SPECIFICATION argument of FORMAT-SPEC
> should be an alist where the keys are characters and the values are
> strings.
>
> WIBNI the values could be something else, too, which would then be
> evaluated?
>
> Since anything but strings as values aren't useful at the moment, this
> would be upward compatible.

How would you use this?  I'm having difficulty envisioning what you
could express with this that you can't do (easier) with the specs
themselves...

-- 
(domestic pets only, the antidote for overdose, milk.)
   larsi@gnus.org * Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen

Re: format-spec.el: feature wish

[Kai Großjohann]

Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@gnus.org> writes:

> Kai.Grossjohann@CS.Uni-Dortmund.DE (Kai Großjohann) writes:
>
>> Right now, it appears that the SPECIFICATION argument of FORMAT-SPEC
>> should be an alist where the keys are characters and the values are
>> strings.
>>
>> WIBNI the values could be something else, too, which would then be
>> evaluated?
>>
>> Since anything but strings as values aren't useful at the moment, this
>> would be upward compatible.
>
> How would you use this?  I'm having difficulty envisioning what you
> could express with this that you can't do (easier) with the specs
> themselves...

(defvar silly-format-spec '((?t . (current-time-string))
                            (?l . (user-login-name)))
  "foo")

(defvar silly-format "%l on %t"
  "bar")

(defun silly-insert (msg)
  (insert (format-spec silly-format silly-format-spec)
          " " msg))

Well.  Hm.  Maybe this is indeed very silly, but I hope you get the
point.  With the current mechanism, I have to construct the format
spec on the fly, ie, on every invocation of silly-insert.  But with
my new proposed mechanism, silly-format-spec could be a variable.

kai
-- 
Simplification good!  Oversimplification bad!  (Larry Wall)

Re: format-spec.el: feature wish

[Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen]

Kai.Grossjohann@CS.Uni-Dortmund.DE (Kai Großjohann) writes:

> (defvar silly-format-spec '((?t . (current-time-string))
>                             (?l . (user-login-name)))
>   "foo")

"~(form (user-login-name))@" will give you pretty much the same
results, won't it?

-- 
(domestic pets only, the antidote for overdose, milk.)
   larsi@gnus.org * Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen

Re: format-spec.el: feature wish

[Kai Großjohann]

Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@gnus.org> writes:

> Kai.Grossjohann@CS.Uni-Dortmund.DE (Kai Großjohann) writes:
>
>> (defvar silly-format-spec '((?t . (current-time-string))
>>                             (?l . (user-login-name)))
>>   "foo")
>
> "~(form (user-login-name))@" will give you pretty much the same
> results, won't it?

I didn't know that.  Hm.  I guess it requires CL.

kai
-- 
Simplification good!  Oversimplification bad!  (Larry Wall)

Re: format-spec.el: feature wish

[Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen]

Kai.Grossjohann@CS.Uni-Dortmund.DE (Kai Großjohann) writes:

>> "~(form (user-login-name))@" will give you pretty much the same
>> results, won't it?
>
> I didn't know that.  Hm.  I guess it requires CL.

No, it's standard Gnus syntax.  :-)

-- 
(domestic pets only, the antidote for overdose, milk.)
   larsi@gnus.org * Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen

Re: format-spec.el: feature wish

[Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen]

Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@gnus.org> writes:

> No, it's standard Gnus syntax.  :-)

See the "Advanced Formatting" node.  I've now added an example.

-- 
(domestic pets only, the antidote for overdose, milk.)
   larsi@gnus.org * Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen