Re: Compile Mode and "host" Emacs

[Stefan Monnier]

So, IIUC your setup is:
- you have some kind of script that is run from Emacs.
- you have no control over how Emacs runs it (presumably via M-x
  compile, but could be M-! or anything else, and without any related
  Elisp package).
- this script needs to run Elisp code.
- you care about machines where a useful `emacs' can't be found in $PATH.

So, yes, you're probably out of luck.  If your script comes with some
Elisp package, you could have that package add whatever you need to
the environment, but without it, you're screwed.

Emacs does not itself look for its own executable, usually; and of
course, in the general case we can't find this file because it may not
even have a name any more (you can `rm' the file after Emacs is
started ;-).

This said, I've never encountered such a situation.  Maybe there's
a different way to attack the problem, tho.  E.g. distribute your
package via ELPA, so it can bundle a little Elisp that's automatically
run at startup.


        Stefan