Re: Adding major or popular language modes to Emacs distribution

[Philip Kaludercic]

Yuchen Pei <hi@ypei.me> writes:

> Hello,
>
> I notice some glaring omissions of modes supporting major / popular
> languages like php, haskell and wikitext in Emacs, though there are
> widely used versions available externally as packages.

See the thread "Re: NonGNU ELPA work" from today: I submitted patches
for NonGNU ELPA, the repository that has been enabled for Emacs 28+,
adding new major modes, so that they can be installed without any
further configuration.

> I feel it is important that Emacs support these languages natively.

Why natively? With packages like gnu-elpa, the user can be notified when
a major mode exists for a file they have opened. The advantage is that
bug-fixes and improvements are not tied to Emacs releases but can happen
concurrently. The disadvantage is that it requires an internet
connection.

> What is the process of adding these modes?  My understanding is:
>
> 1. Ask the maintainer of a mode to contribute the mode to Emacs.

And any significant contributor have to sign the FSF copyright
agreement.

> 2. If for some reason the maintainer is unable or unwilling to add the
> mode, someone writes the mode and contribute to Emacs.
>
> In step 2, is it conventional to add the mode to GNU ELPA first,
> before moving it into Emacs itself?
>
> I am asking because I am interested in working on some of these modes.

-- 
        Philip Kaludercic