Re: [RFC] Document level property drawer

[Adam Porter <adam@alphapapa.net>]

Gustav Wikström <gustav@whil.se> writes:

> Hi,
>
> This patch introduces a document level property drawer. 
>
> This has been discussed previously in a larger context:
> - https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/emacs-orgmode/2019-06/msg00000.html
> - https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/emacs-orgmode/2019-08/msg00339.html 
> - https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/emacs-orgmode/2019-09/msg00010.html
>
> The patch is a somewhat modified version of what was included in the third 
> link above.

How does it differ from what was previously proposed?

> The following will be true for document level property drawers:
> 1) In the same way that one can have a property drawer for a heading, one
>    can have a property drawer for a whole document.
> 2) All existing commands that can work with property drawers will
>    (shall) work also on property drawers before the first heading.

What exactly does "will (shall)" mean?

> 3) Properties defined in a property drawer will have precedence over
>    properties defined as a property keyword, if the same property is
>    defined using both conventions.

That protocol seems unnatural and confusing to me:

- If precedence were to be defined by something other than file-order,
  it seems to me that those defined with #+ keywords should have
  precedence, because they are more visible, while those in drawers are
  hidden.
- However, it seems to me that the simplest, most natural protocol would
  be for later declarations to override earlier ones.

> 4) The position for the document level property drawer is:
>    - At the first line in a file that is not a comment or a keyword.
>
>      I.e. the following will work:
>
>      #+begin_src org
>        # -*- mode: org -*-
>        ,#+TITLE: Test
>        :PROPERTIES:
>        :CATEGORY: Test
>        :END:
>
>        Preamble 
>
>        ,* Some heading
>        Some content
>      #+end_src
>
>
>      but not this:
>
>      #+begin_src org
>        Some comment and/or empty line
>
>        :PROPERTIES:
>        :CATEGORY: Test
>        :END:
>
>        ,* Some heading
>        Some content
>      #+end_src

That feels unintuitive to me.  Document-level property keywords may
appear anywhere in a file, so it seems inconsistent for document-level
property drawers to be limited in this way, as if there were an implied
headline at the top of the file.  If it were so, I would expect to see
many mailing list posts by users asking why the properties defined in
their document-level property drawers aren't working.  Given that there
is no enforcement in Org's UI to keep such drawers in certain places, I
think the implementation should be tolerant of users' preferences and
mistakes (cf. Postel's Law).