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diff --git a/2020/info/08.md b/2020/info/08.md index f7e1241a..b099b877 100644 --- a/2020/info/08.md +++ b/2020/info/08.md @@ -57,3 +57,334 @@ Currently trying it, and also in-process of switching from Nix to Guix. - Reproducible development environment: <https://github.com/abcdw/rde> - Using Org-roam to demo how to config a Nix layer(?) - custom.el conflicts with Nix(?) + +# Transcript + +00:00:00.399 --> 00:00:36.399 +My name is Corwin Brust and I will be +talking about getting started with Emacs +today. I have been an Emacs user for a +long time. First of all, thanks and a +huge welcome to the conference from me +and and on behalf and back to the other +people that have been helping to +organize. It's been amazing just to be +involved with that and just, kind of, +see backstage. + +00:00:36.399 --> 00:01:33.759 +So I've used a lot of different editors +in my time. That's about 25 years as a +professional software engineer. And most +of that time I've been using Emacs. I'll +talk a little bit in a minute (if I can +ever find my slides) about how I got +into Emacs, but I think if you've used +Emacs and a lot of other editors for a +long time, something that you notice +right away is that you get good with it +in a way that stays meaningful. You +learn new things. Those things stick +with you. You learn how to make it do +new tricks and then keep doing those +tricks. + +00:01:33.759 --> 00:02:17.200 +I want to mention that this +conference--oops, this talk isn't about +how to adjust your configuration +specifically. I don't have a bunch of +good code samples in here. There are +other great talks at the conference, +particularly Andrew's, that I looked at, +that looked like they might be more +aimed at that "hey, I'm just getting +started with Emacs, what are some things +to try to make it more comfortable for +me starting?" This is about how to think +about the problem space. Hopefully, a +good warm up as we start thinking about +some of the lightning talks a little +later on. + +00:02:17.200 --> 00:02:29.680 +I'm just gonna quickly make sure I can +see my IRC buffer in case I run into +time. I didn't get my stopwatch started +for this one. So all right, let's dive +in. + +00:02:29.680 --> 00:02:53.519 +We assume that we want to install +packages and maybe configure some +features. This is particularly from the +perspective of where we're working with +a bunch of people on a team and we want +to get something done. Some of us +probably already have mature Emacs +workflows. Others are installing it for +the first time. + +00:02:53.519 --> 00:03:35.840 +So the first question is, you know, in +that context: what's the value +proposition? Why should I mess with my +machine, my mature Emacs configuration, +and impose my ideas over the way +somebody else is learning Emacs? Well, +it can be.. I'm off my slides here a +little bit. It can be a little bit +tricky to learn Emacs. One thing that +helps us a lot is if people that we're +working with can tell us, kinda, +keystroke for keystroke at times, what +to do and explain what everything is +doing. Using the same packages can +really help us working together on a +project. + +00:03:35.840 --> 00:04:54.840 +Speaking from my personal experience, it +took me decades to get to the point +where I was excited to program in Emacs +Lisp. I've programmed in a lot of +programming languages, but Lisp wasn't +on my list. I looked at my config that I +was copy-pasting around from generation +after generation of .emacs file or +recrafting it from hand and from +Internet searches, to get the things +that I needed when I would quickly go +install Emacs at some new job or +contract, and be able to to quickly get +through that workflow that caused me to +install the program. You know, just +little simple one-liners that that got +committed to memory over decades +eventually just led me to a sort of "hey +what's going on here." And I credit Jeff +Goff, my good friend who died earlier in +2020, for my lifelong love of Emacs. +Perhaps EriK and I will talk about that +a little bit more in another talk we +have scheduled, but Jeff was a huge +influence on us in a number of ways and +a huge contributor to the Raku +programming language which is very cool. + +00:04:54.840 --> 00:06:23.380 +So, understanding how to make a good +decision about splitting up +configuration in a way to share it +across people with really different uses +of Emacs... That's actually a +complicated topic and I want to sort of +back off and stare at it for a second. I +think Emacs is about people, so that +means it's about community. And +community means we're going to invite +disagreement. In fact, that disagreement +isn't necessarily a road-block to our +project. In fact, some of the work that +a community project can invite us to do +is to get closer to each other by +inviting those disagreements, by +learning from them--learning from +different people's styles and from how +they argue, and thinking about why they +have that perspective and what technical +benefits that perhaps radical point of +view might carry away. Some people are +really aggressive arguers, and others +are very passive and really couch their +ideas in distancing terms, to say, "well +probably, this is a good idea" or +"please double check me." Those don't +always necessarily indicate how certain +a person is, because we're different. We +have different ways of communicating +ideas like certainty or excitement. + +00:06:24.560 --> 00:07:29.039 +When we think about a bunch of really +diverse programmers approaching Emacs, +probably one of our our first really big +challenges is just to pick what we're +going to go after. There are a lot of +existing kit installs and things like +this. My argument is that you could +actually get pretty far just trading +files around. Maybe the more valuable +conversation to have is making the hard +decisions about, well, "should we have +vertical completion," should that be the +out of the box, and the people that want +the traditional splayed out over a +single line completion for example in +the mode line, those people are going to +add a line of config to their own setup? + +00:07:29.039 --> 00:08:16.240 +The way to get there? I mean, how do we +find out what works? We don't want to +slow down the people that are super +productive with Emacs by asking them to +completely break their workflows and +make it easier for new folks. At the +same time, we do want to make sure those +new people are excited by Emacs and not +turned off by having to learn the entire +jungle of Emacs history in the form of +its unique technical stylings for things +like frames, buffers, and other unique +Emacs viewpoints on important interface +concepts, especially. + +00:08:16.240 --> 00:09:04.800 +The encouragement here is to keep the +initialization for a project team +together as a crucible. Rather than +necessarily following our defaults of +finding the simplest configuration that +generally work and letting people +customize it, what if we tried to look +for fairly specific configurations that +we'll expect essentially all of our +developers to be using, at least when +they submit bug reports. In particular, +with this, I think that degree of +experimentation can drive back into the +Emacs development process. In the +development mailing list... + +00:09:04.800 --> 00:09:15.120 +I'm hoping I'll get a timing cue here. + +00:09:15.120 --> 00:09:50.720 +In the context of Emacs development as a +greater entity, we see some of these +struggles. Should we change this +default? Sometimes we can have the sense +that defaults in Emacs will never +change. The conversation is too +difficult. I think one thing that can +help us get there is evidence that says, +"hey my 30- to 40-person project is +using this set of bindings and here's +what we learned about brand new Emacs +users trying to come in and get work +done with that." (Amin: Yeah you still +have a couple more minutes) + +00:09:50.720 --> 00:10:02.000 +Oh, beautiful. Okay, great. I will try +to get through my last few slides that i +cut in my last walkthrough, but I think +i'm going quicker today, thank you. Thank +you. + +00:10:02.000 --> 00:10:43.040 +So let's just recap real quick: in +theory, Emacs works out of the box. That +means we're free to experiment. We can +throw it all away and start over. As an +organizational principle... I don't know +what I was thinking on that slide, +excuse me. Bringing it back around to +the free and open source software +community, our goal is to enable users +to unlock their computers, to do as much +with them as possible. + +00:10:43.040 --> 00:10:57.920 +That's the context to take with project +initialization, but sometimes it could +make sense to put some gloves on. I've +thrown up on the screen here just a +couple of other ideas, ways to maybe +think outside of the box. + +00:10:57.920 --> 00:11:29.120 +As you're putting together project nets, +my words of encouragement are to +experiment with it, try different +things, and think really specifically +about how different the development +users might be from each other as you +define standards for configuring the +user environment of Emacs specifically +for developing on a project. That's +pretty much my talk. + +00:11:29.120 --> 00:11:32.959 +If there's any time, I would take a +couple questions. + +00:11:32.959 --> 00:11:53.839 +(Amin: Thank you for your awesome talk, Corwin. +I think we have one or two minutes for a +few questions. Do you have the pad open +or would you like me to read the +questions for you?) + +00:11:53.839 --> 00:12:03.519 +Oh, I managed to close the pad and I am +trying to open it again. All right, +there it opened. + +00:12:03.519 --> 00:12:09.360 +Bringing it onto a screen where I can +see it. Will you read me the first +question while I drag windows around, +please? + +00:12:09.360 --> 00:12:15.600 +(Amin: Sure. It says, "do you use Emacs +as a community building tool?") + +00:12:15.600 --> 00:12:19.760 +Do I use Emacs as a community building +tool, or how do I? + +00:12:19.760 --> 00:12:22.182 +(Amin: It just says do you.) + +00:12:22.182 --> 00:13:14.639 +Yes, absolutely. I think Emacs is an +ambassador to the GNU tool chain. I +think that in the fullness of time, we +will see an Emacs that makes and that +makes iOS and Android and other +closed-source tools dream. That's why +they mock us and call Emacs an operating +system. It's because it could be, if we +cared for it to be. It's quite a +threatening product from the perspective +of how many problem spaces it can +address, how many types of users it can +satisfy, the things that we can do to +make it robust in those environments. I +mean, we're always thinking about the +weak points, but is Emacs a community +building tool? Heck yeah. + +00:13:14.639 --> 00:13:26.880 +(Amin: There's like one or two more +questions. I think they're more +long-form so it might be better if you +took them off stream so you could keep +the schedule on time.) + +00:13:26.880 --> 00:13:33.360 +I would love to take those questions +offline. I will respond to you in +writing if we don't get to it in a +breakout room. + +00:13:33.360 --> 00:13:38.000 +Thanks so much for joining us. I can't +wait to see the rest of the conference. +See you there! + +00:13:38.000 --> 00:13:42.800 +(Amin: Awesome. Thank you again so much, Corwin.) |