GNU bug report logs - #77649
[PATCH] Add support for updating *Completions* as you type

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

From: Spencer Baugh <sbaugh <at> janestreet.com>
To: bug-gnu-emacs <at> gnu.org
Subject: [PATCH] Add support for updating *Completions* as you type
Date: Tue, 08 Apr 2025 11:17:17 -0400

[Message part 1 (text/plain, inline)]

Tags: patch


Add support for updating the *Completions* buffer as you type,
controlled by a new completion metadata symbol 'eager-update and
new defcustom completion-eager-update.

You can configure a completion category to update *Completions*
as you type by setting completion-category-overrides
appropriately; or set completion-eager-update to t to always
update *Completions* as you type.

This is similar to the recently added completion-eager-display.

In GNU Emacs 30.1.50 (build 2, x86_64-pc-linux-gnu, X toolkit, cairo
 version 1.15.12, Xaw scroll bars) of 2025-04-03 built on
 igm-qws-u22796a
Repository revision: e0d429965010d82a05225e53ba6fbb97bea23ae9
Repository branch: emacs-30
Windowing system distributor 'The X.Org Foundation', version 11.0.12011000
System Description: Rocky Linux 8.10 (Green Obsidian)

Configured using:
 'configure --config-cache --with-x-toolkit=lucid --without-gpm
 --without-gconf --without-selinux --without-imagemagick --with-modules
 --with-gif=no --with-cairo --with-rsvg --without-compress-install
 --with-tree-sitter --with-native-compilation=aot'

[0001-Add-support-for-updating-Completions-as-you-type.patch (text/patch, attachment)]

Message #8 received at 77649 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Juri Linkov <juri <at> linkov.net>
To: Spencer Baugh <sbaugh <at> janestreet.com>
Cc: Daniel Mendler <mail <at> daniel-mendler.de>, 77649 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#77649: [PATCH] Add support for updating *Completions* as
 you type
Date: Tue, 08 Apr 2025 21:33:31 +0300

> Add support for updating the *Completions* buffer as you type,
> controlled by a new completion metadata symbol 'eager-update and
> new defcustom completion-eager-update.
>
> You can configure a completion category to update *Completions*
> as you type by setting completion-category-overrides
> appropriately; or set completion-eager-update to t to always
> update *Completions* as you type.
>
> This is similar to the recently added completion-eager-display.

Thanks, now finally we'll have this long-needed feature.

The first question: should it depend on the value of
'minibuffer-visible-completions'?  OTOH, even when it's nil,
*Completions* can be displayed by non-nil completion-eager-display.

So the only problem is that when the *Completions* window is removed
(e.g. when no candidates remains), it never comes back to the display
(e.g. after deleting previous characters).

Or maybe this is not a problem, I have to test it more.

Message #11 received at 77649 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Spencer Baugh <sbaugh <at> janestreet.com>
To: Juri Linkov <juri <at> linkov.net>
Cc: Daniel Mendler <mail <at> daniel-mendler.de>, 77649 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#77649: [PATCH] Add support for updating *Completions* as
 you type
Date: Tue, 08 Apr 2025 15:00:35 -0400

Juri Linkov <juri <at> linkov.net> writes:

>> Add support for updating the *Completions* buffer as you type,
>> controlled by a new completion metadata symbol 'eager-update and
>> new defcustom completion-eager-update.
>>
>> You can configure a completion category to update *Completions*
>> as you type by setting completion-category-overrides
>> appropriately; or set completion-eager-update to t to always
>> update *Completions* as you type.
>>
>> This is similar to the recently added completion-eager-display.
>
> Thanks, now finally we'll have this long-needed feature.

Indeed.  BTW, I should have mentioned in my first email that this
depends, for performance, on the new lazy-inserting-into-*Completions*
functionality I added; that makes performance good even when there are
many completions.

> The first question: should it depend on the value of
> 'minibuffer-visible-completions'?  OTOH, even when it's nil,
> *Completions* can be displayed by non-nil completion-eager-display.

Right, or of course the user could just explicitly hit ? to display
*Completions*.  So I don't currently see a reason why we'd depend on
minibuffer-visible-completions.

> So the only problem is that when the *Completions* window is removed
> (e.g. when no candidates remains), it never comes back to the display
> (e.g. after deleting previous characters).
>
> Or maybe this is not a problem, I have to test it more.

The specific scenario of *Completions* disappearing when no candidates
remain has not been a problem for me.

But it is possible that we want to make other changes in this area
(maybe separate from this patch?)  *Completions* can be hidden for many
reasons, but maybe when eager-display behavior is enabled, *Completions*
should not be hidden as readily?  Maybe eager-display should cause the
behavior to be more like completion-auto-help=visible?

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