Re: [MacPerl] Editors

["Alex K Suska" <aksuska@insideflyer.com>]

>> I used Alpha for a while, and it does have some nifty features,
>> but I found it slow to launch and run, the interface is confusing,
>> customization options are limited or not available.
>
>Oddly, these are precisely the reasons I avoided BBEdit. I found
>it painfully slow, odd user interface, and not very customizable
>(I was spoiled from using emacs on unix systems for several years).

Strange, BBEdit launches in half the time, and the delay between keystroke and
appearance is noticeably faster.  Certainly, Alpha may have an additional layer
or two, being built on Tk.

>> Also the auto-indent feature is annoying--automatically tabbing
>> in (tab set cannot be altered) whether you want it to or not.
>
>This depends on what mode you're in. I've always been able to
>turn it off, but perhaps in some modes it's not that easy. You
>can only define a tab width, not tab stops, per se, but you can
>certainly change the tab defaults...

I only tried the Perl mode, though I do C/C++ as well.  I did however find the
tab "width" (that *was* what I meant) preference under Global->Preferences->Gui.
 I suppose I didn't think that text settings qualified as "GUI".  As for the
automatic indent, I turned off all of the "electric" (!?) features and the
editor still tab-indented after a left bracket (after pressing return).  I may
be more nitpicky about how my code is displayed but I can't stand full-tab
indents.  I prefer to indent two spaces per level.  If I change the tab width
then it makes placing comments after code lines tedious.  In BBEdit, I can leave
the tab width as is, and the editor will let me specify my indent anywhere from
1 to n spaces, and maintain that indention until I choose to change it.

>> I could not get the function popup to work either, but I did not
>> delve deeply into the manual for instructions.
>
>Again, this depends on your mode. For standard modes like C, C++,
>perl, etc. it should be automatic when the file loads and you
>can force it to set the marks manually. For modes that are not
>defined or have limited definitions, you would have to tell
>Alpha how to identify a function with a complex regular expression
>and (unless you add code to your mode definition) it wouldn't be
>automatic.

Again, it is Perl Mode. I thought it should automatically know, but it doesn't. 
I tried clicking on the "{}" icon (and even holding it for a while in case it
was merely slow), and tried selecting Goto Func, but neither gave me a selection
of subroutines or jumped to any function.  Perhaps it doesn't like my syntax, or
it has something against BBEdit (which the files were created in).  I found a
preference that appears to contain the regular expression that Alpha uses to
identify functions, and my syntax "sub X {" should conform to it.  But alas . .
.

Alex

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