On 04/12/2021 06:51, Tim Cross wrote:
Please, please can we stop trying to satisfy every edge case or extend the markup to satisfy every possible scenario. Org's big strength is in its simplicity. This comes at a price - limitations in what can be done. If those limitations are unacceptable, then use a richer markup format like Latex, XML, HTML etc.
It is ridiculous to throw away a nice tool and start to struggle with another bunch of problems when a small missed feature is really required.
The point about back end exporter support is very relevant.
Notice that this particular feature does not require extending of underlying intermediate representation. There may be some subtle points but generally export backends are ready to intra-word markup.
In 18 years, I've seen requests for inner word markup less than 4 times. this is not a feature we should even be considering adding to the markup syntax. Org provides a light weight markup, not a fully flexible rich markup designed to meet any need. It makes the easy stuff simple.
Different users wish to have different minor features. It would be great to have a way to include a fragment with more verbose markup that allows to express special needs unsupported by lightweight markup. I am discussing a more general solution, not syntax extension namely for intra-word markup.
