Bind key to toggle config option

[lonix1]

How do I bind a key to toggle a config option?

I found the page which shows how to bind custom commands. But I can't figure out how to toggle a config option.

(What I'm trying to do: I found the wrapLinesInStagingView config option which is useful in files with long lines. But for some lines I'd like it on and for some off. I'm trying to understand how to bind a key to toggle it at runtime.)

[stefanhaller]

How do I bind a key to toggle a config option?

I suppose you could use sed or awk scripts to change the value. (However, note that we currently don't recognize config changes while in the staging view, so you'd have to escape out of staging and enter it again for the change to take effect.)

But I'd prefer to talk about the problem that you are trying to solve, and not about what you think the solution to that problem is:

But for some lines I'd like it on and for some off.

Can you describe this more? Does this depend on the type of file? In that case, we might consider providing a map of file extension to wrapLinesInStagingView value. Or do you really want to toggle it for one and the same file? Can you describe a situation where this is useful?

[lonix1]

sed/awk ...

Nice idea. Though I assumed it was possible to toggle it while the app was running, and it would reset to the config option on next start. But I suppose that's not supported.

describe more?

Our code files sometimes have long lines. When wrapped, it's hard to discern what's changed because it becomes a multi-line mess of red and green - it would be easier, in those cases, if the lines were unwrapped.

However, in most cases the changes are for lines which are not long. In those cases the wrapped view is nice because one doesn't have to scroll horizontally.

In summary: some files have long lines, some medium ones and some short ones. So both wrapping AND non-wrapping views are useful.

Consider other apps - e.g. midnight commander, htop, other ncurses TUIs - there is a wrap/unwrap toggle key which can be used at runtime. Both modes are useful.

[stefanhaller]

Our code files sometimes have long lines.

Personally, that's where I would start to address the problem. At work we have a hard rule to not allow code lines longer than 90 characters, and we have pre-commit and pre-push hooks that enforce this.

When wrapped, it's hard to discern what's changed because it becomes a multi-line mess of red and green

For this, I'd recommend to look into using a pager that highlights word changes, so that it's less of a mess. I recommend delta, it is very good at this:

In general, it's a good idea to start by describing the problem you have, and not by asking how to do what you think the solution to that problem is.

[lonix1]

not allow code lines longer than...

We used to work the same way. But it's not realistic in large codebases with many languages and tools, etc. This is especially the case for server-rendered html templates which mix code and markup, and splitting a "single" line (of code and markup) onto multiple lines just to observe an artificial line break makes the code much harder to maintain.

Also in earlier times I'd have agreed with you completely, but now I'm a firm believer in both horizontal and vertical alignment, especially due to wide screens. There is nothing more productive than unwrapping nested monstrosities of code into long lines which vertically align perfectly, so you can see what's different between them. It's a good visual/mental trick.

delta...

Looks cool, I'll investigate that. It's not as good as a "toggle wrapping" key, but it's still something. Thanks for the tip!