Minor tweaks to the Lisp manual.

* syntax.texi (Parsing Expressions): Clarify intro.
(Parser State): Remove unnecessary statement (Bug#10661).

* eval.texi (Intro Eval): Add footnote about "sexp" terminology.

Fixes: debbugs:10657

diff --git a/doc/lispref/ChangeLog b/doc/lispref/ChangeLog
index 4103dea0f8e0076888b56814074afa3789d5dbcb..e2ea774fd48bda0c3395241c85c27657d585ad9a 100644 (file)
--- a/doc/lispref/ChangeLog
+++ b/doc/lispref/ChangeLog
@@ -1,3 +1,10 @@
+2012-01-31  Chong Yidong  <cyd@gnu.org>
+
+       * syntax.texi (Parsing Expressions): Clarify intro (Bug#10657).
+       (Parser State): Remove unnecessary statement (Bug#10661).
+
+       * eval.texi (Intro Eval): Add footnote about "sexp" terminology.
+
 2012-01-31  Glenn Morris  <rgm@gnu.org>
 
        * modes.texi (Defining Minor Modes):

diff --git a/doc/lispref/eval.texi b/doc/lispref/eval.texi
index fc18e503543186ffeabd2892f78e828685b74100..e81efd10892c2bc2a2cba6947ebf3f649751e081 100644 (file)
--- a/doc/lispref/eval.texi
+++ b/doc/lispref/eval.texi
@@ -39,12 +39,15 @@ interpreter.
 
 @cindex form
 @cindex expression
-  A Lisp object that is intended for evaluation is called an
-@dfn{expression} or a @dfn{form}.  The fact that forms are data
-objects and not merely text is one of the fundamental differences
-between Lisp-like languages and typical programming languages.  Any
-object can be evaluated, but in practice only numbers, symbols, lists
-and strings are evaluated very often.
+@cindex S-expression
+  A Lisp object that is intended for evaluation is called a @dfn{form}
+or @dfn{expression}@footnote{It is sometimes also referred to as an
+@dfn{S-expression} or @dfn{sexp}, but we generally do not use this
+terminology in this manual.}.  The fact that forms are data objects
+and not merely text is one of the fundamental differences between
+Lisp-like languages and typical programming languages.  Any object can
+be evaluated, but in practice only numbers, symbols, lists and strings
+are evaluated very often.
 
   In subsequent sections, we will describe the details of what
 evaluation means for each kind of form.
@@ -96,12 +99,12 @@ interpretation.  @xref{Command Loop}.
 @node Forms
 @section Kinds of Forms
 
-  A Lisp object that is intended to be evaluated is called a @dfn{form}.
-How Emacs evaluates a form depends on its data type.  Emacs has three
-different kinds of form that are evaluated differently: symbols, lists,
-and ``all other types.''  This section describes all three kinds, one by
-one, starting with the ``all other types'' which are self-evaluating
-forms.
+  A Lisp object that is intended to be evaluated is called a
+@dfn{form} (or an @dfn{expression}).  How Emacs evaluates a form
+depends on its data type.  Emacs has three different kinds of form
+that are evaluated differently: symbols, lists, and ``all other
+types.''  This section describes all three kinds, one by one, starting
+with the ``all other types'' which are self-evaluating forms.
 
 @menu
 * Self-Evaluating Forms::   Forms that evaluate to themselves.

diff --git a/doc/lispref/syntax.texi b/doc/lispref/syntax.texi
index 71742e37a5177c59f190fd55636a4b7eec51b979..3d153e43b2d810c57d7e58abd36d054a7b5e7d58 100644 (file)
--- a/doc/lispref/syntax.texi
+++ b/doc/lispref/syntax.texi
@@ -606,11 +606,13 @@ expression prefix syntax class, and characters with the @samp{p} flag.
 @section Parsing Expressions
 
   This section describes functions for parsing and scanning balanced
-expressions, also known as @dfn{sexps}.  Basically, a sexp is either a
-balanced parenthetical grouping, a string, or a symbol name (a
-sequence of characters whose syntax is either word constituent or
-symbol constituent).  However, characters whose syntax is expression
-prefix are treated as part of the sexp if they appear next to it.
+expressions.  We will refer to such expressions as @dfn{sexps},
+following the terminology of Lisp, even though these functions can act
+on languages other than Lisp.  Basically, a sexp is either a balanced
+parenthetical grouping, a string, or a ``symbol'' (i.e.@: a sequence
+of characters whose syntax is either word constituent or symbol
+constituent).  However, characters whose syntax is expression prefix
+are treated as part of the sexp if they appear next to it.
 
   The syntax table controls the interpretation of characters, so these
 functions can be used for Lisp expressions when in Lisp mode and for C
@@ -830,10 +832,6 @@ The value is @code{nil} if @var{state} represents a parse which has
 arrived at a top level position.
 @end defun
 
-  We have provided this access function rather than document how the
-data is represented in the state, because we plan to change the
-representation in the future.
-
 @node Low-Level Parsing
 @subsection Low-Level Parsing