Re: [POLL] Use compat.el in Org? (was: Useful package? Compat.el)

[Daniel Mendler]

On 1/30/23 20:40, Greg Minshall wrote:
> i see, yes.  i'm just thinking that, for a given release CUR (like i
> know anything about org-mode release procedures!)  we would use whatever
> has been available in compat.el since release CUR-n (for whatever n we
> use -- 2?), and supplement that, in org-compat.el, with whatever other
> compatibility features *we* (org-mode) need to support releases [CUR-n
> .. CUR].
> 
> (and, presumably, contribute whatever might be appropriate from
> org-compat.el to compat.el, so we can prune it out from org-compat.el at
> some future point in time.)

Sounds good. But note that Compat will at some point have sufficient
coverage of the existing APIs, such that Org may not miss anything. From
then on new additions will only be made at the time of a new Emacs
release. The current Compat already supports many Emacs 29 APIs, which
is in time for the upcoming pretest. Compat won't add any APIs which are
still part of the unstable development master branch (before the branch
cut and feature freeze), which reduces the need for coordination.

If you are missing something right now, and want to introduce and use a
new backported function, e.g., something new from Emacs 29, instead of
going via the org-compat indirection, you could also make an addition
directly to Compat, a Compat release can be prepared a short while
after, and then you start using the new function in the Org development
version.

Daniel

Re: [POLL] Use compat.el in Org? (was: Useful package? Compat.el)

[Greg Minshall]

Ihor,

> >> 1. If compat.el happens to lack support of some function, we will need
> >>to contribute to compat.el directly and synchronize Org releases with
> >>compat.el releases.
> >
> > would a separate "org-compat.el" (in addition to compat.el) somehow
> > solve this?  (i worry about the synch'ing.)
> 
> That's what we already do.
> Using compat.el means that we can remove some of the functions from
> org-compat.el and instead rely on compat.el where the same functions are
> maintained more carefully.

i see, yes.  i'm just thinking that, for a given release CUR (like i
know anything about org-mode release procedures!)  we would use whatever
has been available in compat.el since release CUR-n (for whatever n we
use -- 2?), and supplement that, in org-compat.el, with whatever other
compatibility features *we* (org-mode) need to support releases [CUR-n
.. CUR].

(and, presumably, contribute whatever might be appropriate from
org-compat.el to compat.el, so we can prune it out from org-compat.el at
some future point in time.)

i'm *only* thinking of trying to de-couple org-mode development from
that of compat.el, in the mindset that "less cross-dependencies" ==
"less complication".  if that makes sense.

cheers, Greg

Re: [POLL] Use compat.el in Org? (was: Useful package? Compat.el)

[Ihor Radchenko]

Greg Minshall  writes:

>> 1. If compat.el happens to lack support of some function, we will need
>>to contribute to compat.el directly and synchronize Org releases with
>>compat.el releases.
>
> would a separate "org-compat.el" (in addition to compat.el) somehow
> solve this?  (i worry about the synch'ing.)

That's what we already do.
Using compat.el means that we can remove some of the functions from
org-compat.el and instead rely on compat.el where the same functions are
maintained more carefully.

-- 
Ihor Radchenko // yantar92,
Org mode contributor,
Learn more about Org mode at .
Support Org development at ,
or support my work at 

Re: [POLL] Use compat.el in Org? (was: Useful package? Compat.el)

[Greg Minshall]

Ihor,

> Cons:
> 
> 1. If compat.el happens to lack support of some function, we will need
>to contribute to compat.el directly and synchronize Org releases with
>compat.el releases.

would a separate "org-compat.el" (in addition to compat.el) somehow
solve this?  (i worry about the synch'ing.)

cheers, Greg

Re: [POLL] Use compat.el in Org? (was: Useful package? Compat.el)

[Kyle Meyer]

Ihor Radchenko writes:

> I have recently been contacted by the current compat.el maintainer
> asking if we are willing to adapt compat.el in Org.

I'm in favor of Org using Compat.  And grepping around emacs.git, there
are already two bundled packages (erc and python) with

  (require 'compat nil 'noerror)

so I don't expect there would be objections/questions from the Emacs
side.