(no subject)

[Luc Teirlinck]

`(emacs)Requesting Formatted Text' contains:

   You can add annotations for saving additional text properties,
   which Emacs normally does not save, by adding to
   `enriched-translations'.  Note that the text/enriched standard
   requires any non-standard annotations to have names starting with
   `x-', as in `x-read-only'.  This ensures that they will not
   conflict with standard annotations that may be added later.

   *Note Text Properties: (elisp)Text Properties, for more information
   about text properties.

But `enriched-translations' is defined in enriched.el with a
def_const_.  This suggest (maybe misleadingly) that the value should
not be messed with.  Also, if enriched.el gets (re-)loaded, any user
redefined value will be overridden again.  I believe that the defconst
should be changed to a defvar.  There seem to be unusually many
defconst's in enriched.el.  Do some other ones also need to be made
into defvar's?

There also is the problem that the text quoted above makes things look
much simpler than they are.  If one wants to successfully add
annotations for saving additional text properties, one will have to
(at least) read through three docstrings, two of which are rather long
and some parts of which assume at least some familiarity with Elisp
and with the text/enriched standard.  Depending on what one wants to
do, one might have to be able to write reasonably complex Lisp functions.
Remember that this is the Emacs (not Elisp) manual.

Do we want to keep the above paragraph in the Emacs manual?  It also
occurs in enriched.doc, where it more clearly seems aimed at a more
sophisticated audience:

    - You can add annotations for your own text properties by making
    additions to enriched-translations.  Note that the standard
    requires you to name your annotation starting "x-" (as in
    "x-read-only").  Please send me any such additions that you
    think might be of general interest so that I can include them
    in the distribution.

I personally believe that we should make `enriched-translations' into
a defvar, regardless of whether we keep the above text in the Emacs manual.

Sincerely,

Luc.