comparison lispref/variables.texi @ 39571:9b87a63bcb36

(Variable Aliases): New node.

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* Setting Variables::     Storing new values in variables.
* Variable Scoping::      How Lisp chooses among local and global values.
* Buffer-Local Variables::  Variable values in effect only in one buffer.
* Frame-Local Variables::   Variable values in effect only in one frame.
* Future Local Variables::  New kinds of local values we might add some day.
* File Local Variables::  Handling local variable lists in files.
@end menu

@node Global Variables
@section Global Variables

bindings offer a way to handle these situations more robustly.

  If sufficient application is found for either of these two kinds of
local bindings, we will provide it in a subsequent Emacs version.

@node File Local Variables
@section File Local Variables

  This section describes the functions and variables that affect
processing of local variables lists in files.

39571:9b87a63bcb36

* Setting Variables::     Storing new values in variables.
* Variable Scoping::      How Lisp chooses among local and global values.
* Buffer-Local Variables::  Variable values in effect only in one buffer.
* Frame-Local Variables::   Variable values in effect only in one frame.
* Future Local Variables::  New kinds of local values we might add some day.
* Variable Aliases::      Variables that are aliases for other variables.
* File Local Variables::  Handling local variable lists in files.
@end menu

@node Global Variables
@section Global Variables

bindings offer a way to handle these situations more robustly.

  If sufficient application is found for either of these two kinds of
local bindings, we will provide it in a subsequent Emacs version.

@node Variable Aliases
@section Variable Aliases

  It is sometimes useful to make two variables synonyms, so that both
variables always have the same value, and changing either one also
changes the other.  Whenever you change the name of a
variable---either because you realize its old name was not well
chosen, or because its meaning has partly changed---it can be useful
to keep the old name as an @emph{alias} of the new one for
compatibility.  You can do this with @code{defvaralias}.

@defmacro defvaralias alias-var base-var
This function defines the symbol @var{alias-var} as a variable alias
for symbol @var{base-var}.  This means that retrieving the value of
@var{alias-var} returns the value of @var{base-var}, and changing the
value of @var{alias-var} changes the value of @var{base-var}.
@end defmacro

@defun indirect-variable variable
This function returns the variable at the end of the chain of aliases
of @var{variable}.  If @var{variable} is not a symbol, or if @var{variable} is
not defined as an alias, the function returns @var{variable}.
@end defun

@example
(defvaralias 'foo 'bar)
(indirect-variable 'foo)
     @result{} bar
(indirect-variable 'bar)
     @result{} bar
(setq bar 2)
bar
     @result{} 2
foo
     @result{} 2
(setq foo 0)
bar
     @result{} 0
foo
     @result{} 0
@end example

@node File Local Variables
@section File Local Variables

  This section describes the functions and variables that affect
processing of local variables lists in files.