Re: The apropos-dialog

[bill@cambridge.apple.com (Bill St. Clair)]

>> Date: Fri, 28 Feb 92 10:55:31 EST
>> From: cornell@unix1.cs.umass.edu (Matthew Cornell)
>> To: info-mcl@cambridge.apple.com
>> Subject: Re: The apropos-dialog
>> 
>> Version 1.1 of CCL included a fancier apropos dialog as an example
>> file (smart-apropos-lisp).
>Yes, this is my fancy apropos!
> (It pays to keep those old disks,
>> sometimes!) Perhaps bringing this file back from the dead would
>> involve the least amount of work for people. I'd include it here but I
>> don't want to step on Apple's toes, and I'm sure they have it too :-)
>> It shouldn't be too hard to convert (defobfuns, etc.). If no one has
>> it I'm glad to redistribute it.
>Guillaume Cartier has offered to convert it to System 7.
>Grteat! Go ahead and convert it. Send me a copy and I'll verify that it 
>works like it use to plus pass on any other ideas I've had since.
>Then we can hand it over to Straz for CD-ROMing it. OK Straz?
>
>As I implied in my last note, apropos is really a functionality of the 
>inspector. It would be nice to integrate it in. The easiest way I can 
>think of is just to put an item on the top level inspect menu
>called "Symbols" that brings up the apropos dialog.
>
>There use to be a way to call apropos on the symbols of a package that 
>you were inspecting.
>But if you don't know what package the symbol is in, its better to have 
>an apropos that can look over > 1 package. It still could be 
>under package inspection and come up by default inspected the package 
>that you are inspecting, yet let the user choose additional packages. 
>That kind of buries the functionality though. 
>Whadda ya think, Bill?

I use the Apropos dialog only once or twice a week. I invoke the apropos
function in the Listener just about as often. The only new feature that
I would ever use would be the ability to limit output to fbound or bound
symbols. I'd also like to be able to control-click on one of the symbols
to edit its definition. I'm glad to hear that some of you are excited about
having a snazzier Apropos dialog, and look forward to seeing it appear
on our Anonymous FTP server and the MCL CD.