Make embark-prefix-help-command work under which-key

[LemonBreezes]

Ok. I have been using this code change for over a year in my config. It makes it so C-h in which-key brings up the Embark prefix help. Very useful and nice!

[oantolin]

I'm not 100% sure but I think that the mere fact that the commit is coauthored by an LLM means I cannot accept it, since Embark is in GNU ELPA and they won't take any LLM-generated code. This is for copyright reasons: it seems likely that LLM code cannot be copyrighted, but anything in GNU ELPA needs to be copyrightable and have its copyright assigned to the FSF. I believe GNU hasn't made a final decision on this, but in the meantime GNU Emacs specifically is not taking any LLM-generated code contributions.

[LemonBreezes]

I'm not 100% sure but I think that the mere fact that the commit is coauthored by an LLM means I cannot accept it, since Embark is in GNU ELPA and they won't take any LLM-generated code. This is for copyright reasons: it seems likely that LLM code cannot be copyrighted, but anything in GNU ELPA needs to be copyrightable and have its copyright assigned to the FSF. I believe GNU hasn't made a final decision on this, but in the meantime GNU Emacs specifically is not taking any LLM-generated code contributions.

Oh, the LLM did not write the code. I had it in my config for over a year, before LLM was mainstream. I just asked the LLM to make a draft PR out of the code.

So the LLM did not write any code, it updated the README and copy-pasted my code then added whitespace, comments, and function documentation.

[oantolin]

I don't know if that changes the situation, I'll ask around.

[oantolin]

Okay, so the advice I received is that since you wrote the code, I can review the pull request in the usual way, but I should probably rewrite the change log entry to be safe.

[minad]

FWIW I am not fond of adding a which-key integration here. I don't even have it installed in my Emacs. Any reason why this code cannot go as well into the wiki? Embark even offers a better alternative to which-key.

[oantolin]

I used to feel the same way, @minad, but which-key comes with Emacs now, so I think which-key integration is reasonable (for people who don't recognize the superiority of embark-prefix-help-command 🤷). If which-key were not included with Emacs I would have immediately said "this should go in the wiki".

[oantolin]

I don't even have it installed in my Emacs.

How did you pull that off? 🙂

[LemonBreezes]

I figured instead of PRing the shim into Doom Emacs that 99% of people using Emacs enable which-key so a little glue for an edge case made sense. Basically, if you call which-key with a command explicitly then type C-h to bring up Embark, you need this code.

[oantolin]

Upon further reflection, it does feel a little odd to add support to switch from which-key to embark-prefix-help-command, which is an alternative to which-key. It feels similar to adding markdown syntax support to org mode or a command to vertico to switch to icomplete, which sound like strange things to do.

Maybe it would be better to make an embark-which-key package? You could also add the which-key indicator that's on the embark wiki to that package.

[LemonBreezes]

Upon further reflection, it does feel a little odd to add support to switch from which-key to embark-prefix-help-command, which is an alternative to which-key. It feels similar to adding markdown syntax support to org mode or a command to vertico to switch to icomplete, which sound like strange things to do.

Maybe it would be better to make an embark-which-key package? You could also add the which-key indicator that's on the embark wiki to that package.

Maybe as a separate file like embark-which-key in this repo? Those which-key commands like which-key-show-major-mode I do use and I use them with embark + grid view too.

[oantolin]

Yes, a separate embark-which-key.el file might make sense. I'll think about it a bit. What I use instead of which-key-show-major-mode is embark-bindings, which by default shows only commands bound in the local map and minor mode maps (i.e., commands from the major mode and enabled minor modes).

[minad]

How did you pull that off?

I use a stripped-down Emacs.

I used to feel the same way, @minad, but which-key comes with Emacs now, so I think which-key integration is reasonable.

Well, I maintain my opinion that not every addition to Emacs is or was reasonable. The amount of old cruft in Emacs is staggering.

Given that we have a better alternative here I don't see why one should not promote and recommend that instead.

In particular I disagree with the way the addition is made here via globally installed advices. This does not look like a clean addition to me.

[minad]

Note that there is also https://github.com/oantolin/embark/wiki/Additional-Configuration#use-which-key-like-a-key-menu-prompt. I think all of the which-key related code should go into a separate package, and not only minor integrations like this one. It could be part of this repository as embark-which-key.el, but then, Omar is not using which-key, so it won't go maintained, I guess?

[LemonBreezes]

Note that there is also https://github.com/oantolin/embark/wiki/Additional-Configuration#use-which-key-like-a-key-menu-prompt. I think all of the which-key related code should go into a separate package, and not only minor integrations like this one. It could be part of this repository as embark-which-key.el, but then, Omar is not using which-key, so it won't go maintained, I guess?

I can maintain it. I'm really awesome and I'm probably gonna use Emacs for another 60 years.

[minad]

I can maintain it. I'm really awesome and I'm probably gonna use Emacs for another 60 years.

That's good. But then the which-key integration should be "complete" and also contain this indicator stuff from the wiki. And it should be a separate file at least, or maybe a separate package.

To be honest, I had hoped that we could avoid the which-key discussion for a little longer, given that Embark still supports Emacs 29, so we would have to add a dependency here for which-key or make sure that it also compiles fine without which-key or distribute it as separate package or even put it in a separate repository.

[oantolin]

I think I would prefer if you made a separate embark-which-key package, @LemonBreezes, for integration. I just added a which-key-like embark-automatic-prefix-help-mode, so even more than before it feels like Embark is an alternative to which-key and thus an integration package between the two is sort of a niche concern.