Re: Defaults for set-variable

[Juri Linkov]

> The change is ok, but please don't bother mentioning it in NEWS.
> It is below the threshold for mentioning there.  NEWS is already
> so big as to be inconvenient for the users, so lowering that
> threshold would be unfortunate.

Then what about documenting it in the Emacs manual?  Customization always
inserts the old value into editable fields in the customization buffer
(though, not as a Lisp expression that set-variable reads), so I think
this is a useful thing for users to know that set-variable can provide
the old value for editing too, via M-n:

Index: man/custom.texi
===================================================================
RCS file: /cvsroot/emacs/emacs/man/custom.texi,v
retrieving revision 1.90
diff -c -r1.90 custom.texi
*** man/custom.texi     5 Sep 2005 11:52:21 -0000       1.90
--- man/custom.texi     19 Oct 2005 07:27:38 -0000
***************
*** 790,796 ****
    The most convenient way to set a specific user option variable is
  with @kbd{M-x set-variable}.  This reads the variable name with the
  minibuffer (with completion), and then reads a Lisp expression for the
! new value using the minibuffer a second time.  For example,
  
  @example
  M-x set-variable @key{RET} fill-column @key{RET} 75 @key{RET}
--- 790,797 ----
    The most convenient way to set a specific user option variable is
  with @kbd{M-x set-variable}.  This reads the variable name with the
  minibuffer (with completion), and then reads a Lisp expression for the
! new value using the minibuffer a second time (you can insert the old
! value into the minibuffer for editing via @kbd{M-n}).  For example,
  
  @example
  M-x set-variable @key{RET} fill-column @key{RET} 75 @key{RET}

-- 
Juri Linkov
http://www.jurta.org/emacs/