jEdit plugin for newLISP

[TPJ]

Some time ago I started to work on a http://www.tprimke.net/public/LispMode.jar">jEdit plugin for newLISP (and, probably, other Lisp dialects) source files editing. The plugin is still in its alpha stage, and I'm still learning how to write jEdit plugins, but on the other side, some features are already working:

- functions' list is displayed (the list might be used to navigate the source file)

- smart indenting after the ENTER key was pressed

- forms are highlighted while the cursor is moved

- incomplete form brackets are also highlighted (in red) while the cursor is moved



The plugin still needs a lot of work to be completed. All the features have to be improved. Besides, so far my only motivation for developing this plugin was my need for such a tool. Thus, the plugin is adapted to MY personal needs and habits.



The good news is: you can use the plugin, if you'd like to.



The bad news:

- The plugin has been hardly tested. It shoudn't delete your files, nor crash you computer. It's possible, though, that the features won't be working as they should. (I'll appreciate any bug reports!)

- So far, I've had time to work on the plugin. Development take me more and more time, though. It's possible, that in the future I'll have to focus on other tasks, and I'll work on the plugin after hours. It'll slow down the development.



Anyway, if you like the plugin, and if you'd like to propose some features, please let me know.



Oh, and one more thing. Right now, the plugin works only for buffers which use the http://www.newlisp.org/code/jedit-newlisp-mode-generator.lsp.html">newlisp jEdit mode.



For all interested: to install the plugin, just download the linked file and place it in the directory, where jEdit keeps its plugins (if you use jEdit, you will know where it is).

[cormullion]

Cool. Might try it when I've lost my patience with Vim. :)

[TPJ]

Well, I used to use (g)vim for newLISP files too. The problem was I was missing features from DrRacket. And since (g)vim is written in C/C++ (I'm not sure, whether it's C or C++), and jEdit is written in Java, and since I like Java much much more than C/C++, I eventually decided to develop my plugin.



Right now, I have to stop development for a few days (I hope this pause won't get longer!), because I have other things to do (I'm going to test the plugin in that time). I set up the plugin's http://www.tprimke.net/blog_it/?page_id=66">page, I added some features, and options (so you won't have to deal with my default settings).



If you used only vim before, I really encourage you to try jEdit together with LispMode (and newlisp mode for files - right now it's neccessary for LispMode to work!). You'll get a convenient list of functions (and their subfunctions) for navigation, form highlighting, and better indentation. (Well - at least for me, but my usage of vim was always at the basic level...)



More features to come... as well as support for more Lisp dialects.