Technology
Emacs 31.1 released with quality-of-life updates and unexec dumper removal
The latest release of the open-source text editor removes deprecated legacy code while adding automatic tree-sitter grammar installation and terminal UI improvements.
The short version
- Emacs 31.1 has been released with a focus on startup improvements, terminal enhancements, and incremental user interface features.
- The legacy unexec dumper, deprecated since Emacs 27, has been permanently removed in favor of the portable dumper.
- New features include automatic tree-sitter language grammar installation, automatic Lisp directory compilation, and default xterm mouse support in compatible terminals.
Key facts
- Emacs 31.1 removes the unexec dumper codebase, fully standardizing on the portable dumper.[Hacker News]
- The release introduces interactive prompts to download and install language grammars for known tree-sitter modes.[Hacker News]
- A new user-lisp directory feature automatically byte-compiles and loads custom Lisp files stored in configuration subdirectories.[Hacker News]
- Terminal builds now enable xterm-mouse-mode by default for compatible terminals and support child frames on TTY displays.[Hacker News]
- The legacy Emacs ctags executable is no longer built or installed by default.[Hacker News]
What remains uncertain
- A planned new garbage collector was omitted from Emacs 31.1 and postponed to Emacs 32.[Hacker News]
Sources
- What's new in Emacs 31.1Hacker News