Re: Proposed patch: allow user to disable lockfile creation

[Dave Abrahams]

on Fri Jul 29 2011, Richard Stallman <rms-AT-gnu.org> wrote:

>     It's actually more than that.  The scheme is simultaneously
>     over-cautious and yet full of holes.
>
> So what?  It still does a very useful job, providing advance warning
> about simultaneous editing in many cases.
>
>       It's predicated on the idea that
>     everybody who might touch the file simultaneously is using Emacs,
>
> No such assumption is made, because Emacs does not depend on this
> feature to function every time.
>
> The advance warning feature functions if the other person uses Emacs.
> That's better than nothing.
>
>     Furthermore, Emacs is perfectly capable of telling me when that has
>     happened before I save... at least it seems to work pretty darned
>     reliably.
>
> That is why the advance warning feature does not need to be 100%
> dependable.  It is an added convenience.  It is convenient to get the
> warning before you start editing, rather than only when you try to
> save the file.

I'm sure that depends on your perspective about what's convenient.  The
advance warning feature may be convenient for you, but for me (and
apparently I'm not alone) it's a nuisance.  My patch simply allows
people to turn this feature off if they have the same experience as I
do.  Is there some reason it can't be accepted?

-- 
Dave Abrahams
BoostPro Computing
http://www.boostpro.com