Allow removing quotes around links in *Help* buffers

* doc/emacs/help.texi (Help Mode): Document it.
* lisp/help-mode.el (help-clean-buttons): New user option
(help-xref-button): Use it.

diff --git a/doc/emacs/help.texi b/doc/emacs/help.texi
index 11ee9dc2b2fbbdc3e4308557fc121049d58bfc35..d206dee385917e45a8e3055c1e58905d9c8be9c5 100644 (file)
--- a/doc/emacs/help.texi
+++ b/doc/emacs/help.texi
@@ -542,6 +542,11 @@ previous hyperlink.  These commands act cyclically; for instance,
 typing @key{TAB} at the last hyperlink moves back to the first
 hyperlink.
 
+@vindex help-clean-buttons
+  By default, many links in the help buffer are displayed surrounded
+by quote characters.  If the @code{help-clean-buttons} user option is
+non-@code{nil}, these quote characters are removed from the buffer.
+
 @kindex n @r{(Help mode)}
 @kindex p @r{(Help mode)}
 @findex help-goto-next-page

diff --git a/etc/NEWS b/etc/NEWS
index 1a90cf15c096d183ffa0a05894c46db994e23672..bf154b4b9e863c489aa312d299d040e9ed25879d 100644 (file)
--- a/etc/NEWS
+++ b/etc/NEWS
@@ -581,6 +581,10 @@ or ':scream:'.
 
 ** Help
 
+*** New user option 'help-clean-buttons'.
+If non-nil, link buttons in *Help* will have any surrounding quotes
+removed.
+
 ---
 *** 'M-x apropos-variable' output now includes values of variables.
 

diff --git a/lisp/help-mode.el b/lisp/help-mode.el
index a50524253ba95cc1897317995f4acfd89abc38ca..a1b03700dbf3c608e232afe01cf14584d4d79edc 100644 (file)
--- a/lisp/help-mode.el
+++ b/lisp/help-mode.el
@@ -543,6 +543,12 @@ Each element has the form (NAME TESTFUN DESCFUN) where:
     and a frame), inserts the description of that symbol in the current buffer
     and returns that text as well.")
 
+(defcustom help-clean-buttons nil
+  "If non-nil, remove quotes around link buttons."
+  :version "29.1"
+  :type 'boolean
+  :group 'help)
+
 ;;;###autoload
 (defun help-make-xrefs (&optional buffer)
   "Parse and hyperlink documentation cross-references in the given BUFFER.
@@ -691,12 +697,26 @@ that."
 MATCH-NUMBER is the subexpression of interest in the last matched
 regexp.  TYPE is the type of button to use.  Any remaining arguments are
 passed to the button's help-function when it is invoked.
-See `help-make-xrefs'."
+See `help-make-xrefs'.
+
+This function heeds the `help-clean-buttons' variable and will
+remove quotes surrounding the match if non-nil."
   ;; Don't mung properties we've added specially in some instances.
-  (unless (button-at (match-beginning match-number))
-    (make-text-button (match-beginning match-number)
-                     (match-end match-number)
-                     'type type 'help-args args)))
+  (let ((beg (match-beginning match-number))
+        (end (match-end match-number)))
+    (unless (button-at beg)
+      (make-text-button beg end 'type type 'help-args args)
+      (when (and help-clean-buttons
+                 (> beg (point-min))
+                 (save-excursion
+                   (goto-char (1- beg))
+                   (looking-at "['`‘]"))
+                 (< end (point-max))
+                 (save-excursion
+                   (goto-char end)
+                   (looking-at "['’]")))
+        (delete-region end (1+ end))
+        (delete-region (1- beg) beg)))))
 
 ;;;###autoload
 (defun help-insert-xref-button (string type &rest args)