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From: jimb@GNU.AI.MIT.EDU (Jim Blandy)
Newsgroups: gnu.emacs.help,comp.emacs
Subject: Poll: mode-line percentages
Message-ID: <9105060658.AA06781@pogo.gnu.ai.mit.edu>
Date: 6 May 91 06:58:01 GMT
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A user has asked us to change the meaning of the %p construct in
mode-line-format, and we would like to know what everyone else thinks
of his idea.

The %p construct puts a field in the mode line telling you where
top of the window is in the file.  If the top of the file is visible,
it says "Top"; if the bottom of the file is visible, it says "Bot"; if
both, "All."  If neither, it gives the percentage.

The proposal is to make this act more like the "more" program by
giving the position of the _bottom_ of the window.  The user writes:

      - It helps me decide whether I want to continue reading to see how
	much more I have to go.  On large screens/windows (e.g. 40-60
	lines), the difference in % location between the top and bottom of
	the displayed portion may be quite a bit, so the % above the top
	is not a very good approximation of % seen so far, especially on
	the first page.
      - The mode line is at the bottom of a buffer-window, so I find it
	natural to interpret figure shown as labeling the location of the
	bottom of the displayed text.

When at the top of a file, it should probably say "<percentage> (Top)"
or something like that.

PLEASE SEND RESPONSES TO ME; DON'T POST THEM.  Heh.