GNU bug report logs - #28569
25.2; dired-sort-toggle-or-edit vs. quote marks

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Message #5 received at submit <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson <jidanni <at> jidanni.org>
To: bug-gnu-emacs <at> gnu.org
Subject: 25.2; dired-sort-toggle-or-edit vs. quote marks
Date: Sat, 23 Sep 2017 19:18:29 +0800

User sees arguments with embedded spaces on
(info "(coreutils) Formatting file timestamps")
and tries one.

He types C-u s which runs the command dired-sort-toggle-or-edit
and at the prompt gives:

ls switches (must contain -l): -olt --time-style='+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S.%N %z'

Alas, it turns out if the string contains any kind of quote mark, the
entire dired screen will go blank, with the error

insert-directory: Listing directory failed but ‘access-file’ worked

Message #8 received at 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Eli Zaretskii <eliz <at> gnu.org>
To: 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson <jidanni <at> jidanni.org>
Cc: 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#28569: 25.2; dired-sort-toggle-or-edit vs. quote marks
Date: Sat, 23 Sep 2017 16:59:10 +0300

> From: 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson
> 	<jidanni <at> jidanni.org>
> Date: Sat, 23 Sep 2017 19:18:29 +0800
> 
> User sees arguments with embedded spaces on
> (info "(coreutils) Formatting file timestamps")
> and tries one.
> 
> He types C-u s which runs the command dired-sort-toggle-or-edit
> and at the prompt gives:
> 
> ls switches (must contain -l): -olt --time-style='+%Y-%m-%d %H:%M:%S.%N %z'
> 
> Alas, it turns out if the string contains any kind of quote mark, the
> entire dired screen will go blank, with the error
> 
> insert-directory: Listing directory failed but ‘access-file’ worked

Did you read the doc string of dired-listing-switches?  It explains
how to specify long options that include whitespace.  (Hint: Dired is
not a shell, so shell-style quoting is not necessarily appropriate.)

Oh, I see that Emacs 25.2 doesn't yet have that bit in the doc string.
Well, but what will become Emacs 26.1 does.  Here's that text, for
your convenience:

  Options that include embedded whitespace must be quoted
  like this: \"--option=value with spaces\"; you can use
  ‘combine-and-quote-strings’ to produce the correct quoting of
  each option.

Message #11 received at 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson <jidanni <at> jidanni.org>
To: Eli Zaretskii <eliz <at> gnu.org>
Cc: 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#28569: 25.2; dired-sort-toggle-or-edit vs. quote marks
Date: Sat, 23 Sep 2017 22:17:21 +0800

Maybe the docstring should remind that --option=\"value with spaces\"
won't work.

EZ>   Options that include embedded whitespace must be quoted
EZ>   like this: \"--option=value with spaces\"; you can use
EZ>   ‘combine-and-quote-strings’ to produce the correct quoting of
EZ>   each option.

Actually perhaps just parse the line like the shell does... And then
both would work.

Message #14 received at 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Eli Zaretskii <eliz <at> gnu.org>
To: jidanni <at> jidanni.org
Cc: 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#28569: 25.2; dired-sort-toggle-or-edit vs. quote marks
Date: Sat, 23 Sep 2017 17:25:14 +0300

> Date: Sat, 23 Sep 2017 16:59:10 +0300
> From: Eli Zaretskii <eliz <at> gnu.org>
> Cc: 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
> 
>   Options that include embedded whitespace must be quoted
>   like this: \"--option=value with spaces\"; you can use
>   ‘combine-and-quote-strings’ to produce the correct quoting of
>   each option.

Sorry, that should be

   "--option=value with spaces"

without the backslashes.

Message #17 received at 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson <jidanni <at> jidanni.org>
To: Eli Zaretskii <eliz <at> gnu.org>
Cc: 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#28569: 25.2; dired-sort-toggle-or-edit vs. quote marks
Date: Sat, 23 Sep 2017 22:36:31 +0800

I think the user should just be able to enter things to C-u s just like
he does in the shell. And C-u s should parse the arguments for him.
I don't see what the advantage of having him enter
"--option=value with spaces"
instead of
--option="value with spaces" is.
Both should work in my opinion, and whatever dirty work of parsing
should be done behind the scenes by the program.

Message #20 received at 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Eli Zaretskii <eliz <at> gnu.org>
To: 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson <jidanni <at> jidanni.org>
Cc: 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#28569: 25.2; dired-sort-toggle-or-edit vs. quote marks
Date: Sat, 23 Sep 2017 17:58:16 +0300

> From: 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson <jidanni <at> jidanni.org>
> Cc: 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
> Date: Sat, 23 Sep 2017 22:36:31 +0800
> 
> I don't see what the advantage of having him enter
> "--option=value with spaces"
> instead of
> --option="value with spaces" is.

Dired is not a shell, so what works and/or is equivalent for a shell
doesn't need to work the same in Dired.  Just follow the docs.

Message #23 received at 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Lars Ingebrigtsen <larsi <at> gnus.org>
To: Eli Zaretskii <eliz <at> gnu.org>
Cc: 28569 <at> debbugs.gnu.org,
 積丹尼 Dan Jacobson <jidanni <at> jidanni.org>
Subject: Re: bug#28569: 25.2; dired-sort-toggle-or-edit vs. quote marks
Date: Tue, 30 Nov 2021 16:08:30 +0100

Eli Zaretskii <eliz <at> gnu.org> writes:

>> I don't see what the advantage of having him enter
>> "--option=value with spaces"
>> instead of
>> --option="value with spaces" is.
>
> Dired is not a shell, so what works and/or is equivalent for a shell
> doesn't need to work the same in Dired.  Just follow the docs.

So there doesn't seem to be anything to fix here, and I'm closing this
bug report.

-- 
(domestic pets only, the antidote for overdose, milk.)
   bloggy blog: http://lars.ingebrigtsen.no

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