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Is learning emacs worth it? I see hardcore emacs users complaining about how bad e-lisp is and macros causing RSI.
I’ve fallen into the trap before of spending more time configuring my development environment then writing code in it. So I’d suggest you focus on what you’re comfortable in. If you’re finding specific complaints about your existing set up then by all means try something different. But if you’re happy but just experimenting because someone recommended something else, we’ll that might just be unfocused energy that’s b…
A better option would be to define your goal with emacs and then learn that. I use it for plaintext finances and learned enough lisp to get it working the way I like it and it’s been an amazing experience!!
The pitfall of “learning” emacs without a goal is that you won’t know when you have reached it, how far might you be from reaching it and so on. Do you know emacs when you can write elisp fluently? When you use org mode for everything? When you have replaced every other tools for emacs?
Emacs is a really fun tool with ridiculous amount of power, so enjoy the journey but get/make a map! It transforms aimless wandering into a journey :)
I like the emacs editor, but hardly use a large portion of its functionality. I like the macros (f3 to record f4 to playback)
That said, I don't really recommend Emacs for new programmers. The reason why is because ecosystem is pretty much the only thing that matters in computing, and the ecosystem has chosen a winner: Visual Studio Code. Your coworkers are likely to be using Visual Studio Code, and it has better support for any non-Lisp programming language than Emacs does, even with Emacs's LSP support. If you want to be productive and efficient as a programmer, Visual Studio Code is hands down the best choice as an editor.
Yes.
Especially now that you know vim. Using evil mode, in combination with leader keys (see Doom Emacs or Spacemacs) resolves the RSI issues that have caused emacs users so much trouble in the past.
A lot of folks will tell you that learning and using emacs will not make you a better programmer. I disagree - it will certainly make you a better programmer if you put the time into learning it.
Why? Not because it's magic or will make you more productive than using something like VS Code. It is not magic, and it won't make you noticeably more productive than someone using VS Code.
The reason emacs will make you a better programmer is that it really pushes you out of the "consumer" mindset and into the "creator" mindset.
When using something like VS Code, if something doesn't work the way you like, your first instinct is to look for an opaque plugin written by someone else. Or, not finding a suitable plugin, you just get frustrated and bend your work flow into what the good folks at Microsoft think it ought to be. In this scenario, you're a passive consumer, waiting for microsoft or others to solve your problems.
In emacs by contrast, the functions and documentation of the entire program are at your fingertips. You can read through the entire code base, change anything you like, or build new features that integrate seamlessly with the rest of the program. While this may seem like an academic point for nerds, it really isn't. What it means is that when something doesn't work the way you like, over time your first instinct is to read the documentation of whatever you're dealing with then code some new fix or feature.
This by itself is not a huge advantage. But what is a huge advantage is developing that creator mindset where your first instinct is to dive into the code and improvement rather than googling for some new feature that you hope someone somewhere built.
Emacs is certainly not the only way to develop this mindset, but it is a really good way and one I'd recommended.