(set-macro-character ...

["Taiichi Yuasa" <yuasa@watson.ibm.com>]

>	Date: Wed, 24 Jul 91 16:03:01 EDT
>	From: Greg Sylvain (Lib 007a, x3929) <greg@cityzoo.acs.umbc.edu>
>	
>	
>		Hello all,
>	
>		I'm trying to modify the readtable of lisp so that [form] will be
>	read as (form) would be, but it doesn't work!!!  And I can't figure out why.
>	When I do the appropriate commands to set the macro character functions,
>	set-macro-character returns t.  And if I do a get-macro-character, it
>	comes back with the same #<compiled-function XXXXXXXX> numbers for both the
>	( & [ and )&] pairs. Also, the left bracket is translated into a left parens,
>	but I can't say the same about the right.  Even though I do the same for both.
>	If I type a ')', after or in place of a ']', the reader will return.

The function "XXXXXXX" associated with the macro character '(' reads until
it encounters the matching ')'.  That's why '[' matches ')', but not ']',
in your case.

-- Taiichi