Bug#828154: RFP: spacemacs -- Emacs configuration to get best of Emacs and Vim
Package: wnpp
Severity: wishlist
Hi,
spacemacs was mentioned on the debian-emacsen list
(https://lists.debian.org/debian-emacsen/) multiple times, hence let's
make an RFP out of it as that's where people look for it first:
* Package name : spacemacs
Version : 0.105.21
Upstream Author : Sylvain Benner <sylvain.benner@gmail.com>
* URL : http://spacemacs.org/
* License : GPLv3
Programming Lang: Emacs Lisp
Description : Emacs configuration to get the best of Emacs and Vim
Spacemacs is a new way to experience Emacs -- a sophisticated and
polished set-up focused on ergonomics, mnemonics and consistency.
Just install it, launch it then press the space bar to explore the
interactive list of carefully-chosen key bindings. You can also press
the home buffer's [?] button for some great first key bindings to try.
Spacemacs can be used naturally by both Emacs and Vim users -- you can
even mix the two editing styles. Switching easily between input styles
makes Spacemacs a great tool for pair-programming.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
So far for the RFP and potential package description. Here are a few
citiations from the debian-emacsen list which show that there is
indeed some demand for this package including ideas how it could be
formed into a Debian package:
Thomas Koch wrote in https://lists.debian.org/debian-emacsen/2015/08/msg00002.html:
> Has anybody tried spacemacs?
> https://github.com/syl20bnr/spacemacs
>
> Is it good? Would it make sense to try to package it?
>
> Actually it's a collection of the best emacs modes with an
> opinionated config, isn't it?
Vincent Bernat wrote in https://lists.debian.org/debian-emacsen/2015/08/msg00005.html:
> It doesn't seem a fork. Just a bunch of regular Emacs Lisp configuration
> files. The installation instructions only say to clone in ~/.emacs.d.
David Bremner wrote in https://lists.debian.org/debian-emacsen/2015/12/msg00003.html:
> Sean Whitton <spwhitton@spwhitton.name> writes:
> > Then the question is what to do about init.el. The file is quite short
> > [3]. My ideas:
> >
> > 1. add the (patched) init.el to /usr/share/emacs24/site-lisp and suggest
> > in Readme.Debian that the user replace their ~/.emacs.d/init.el with a
> > `load-file' call to the Debian spacemacs-init.el.
> >
> > 2. put the whole (patched) init.el in Readme.Debian and suggest the user
> > put it in their home directory
> >
> > 3. provide a shell script spacemacs-activate which does (1) or (2),
> > perhaps backing up/restoring an existing ~/.emacs.d/init.el
> >
> > Since I'm new to Debian packaging I'd like to get feedback on these
> > alternatives before proceeding.
>
> What about a script called spacemacs that runs something like
>
> emacs --no-init-file --load /usr/share/emacs/.../spacemacs-init.el
This sounds like the right approach to me, btw.
> If that worked, then people could switch easily between emacs and
> spacemacs, which feels kindof important to me.
Yep.
There is already something similar in the FAQ at
https://github.com/syl20bnr/spacemacs/blob/master/doc/FAQ.org#try-spacemacs-without-modifying-my-existing-emacs-configuration
but unfortunately it works by modifying $HOME which is definitely the
wrong way for a package.
> Again assuming it works, we could also try to upstream such a script, to
> reduce the clash between debian and other systems
Good idea!
Regards, Axel
--
,''`. | Axel Beckert <abe@debian.org>, http://people.debian.org/~abe/
: :' : | Debian Developer, ftp.ch.debian.org Admin
`. `' | 4096R: 2517 B724 C5F6 CA99 5329 6E61 2FF9 CD59 6126 16B5
`- | 1024D: F067 EA27 26B9 C3FC 1486 202E C09E 1D89 9593 0EDE
Reply to: