help links in Log for internal aliases (e.g. ribbon, blastpdb, mm, mousemode, functionkey ...)

[Elaine Meng]

If somebody uses an internal alias command like "ribbon" or "colordef" there is no help link for that command in the Log. Would be nice if possible to have help links on these and other internal aliases.

[Greg Couch]

Help links for aliases need to be done by hand. I've added links for: sequence dissociate, vop, mousemodes, color bfactor, colourdef, quit, sop, device vr, device vr button, device vr roomCamera, ribbon.

I don't see documentation for blastpdb, display, functionkey, mm, sop, nor vop, so they were not added.

[Elaine Meng]

Can’t they link to the corresponding command documentation even if the alias term itself isn’t documented?  (We don’t always want to encourage using the alias.)  Everything you mention is documented in terms of functionality:

blastpdb -> blastprotein
http://rbvi.ucsf.edu/chimerax/docs/user/commands/blastprotein.html

display -> show
http://rbvi.ucsf.edu/chimerax/docs/user/commands/show.html

functionkey -> ui functionkey (analogous to mousemodes)
http://rbvi.ucsf.edu/chimerax/docs/user/commands/ui.html#functionkey

mm -> matchmaker
http://rbvi.ucsf.edu/chimerax/docs/user/commands/matchmaker.html

sop <subcommand> -> surface <subcommand>
http://rbvi.ucsf.edu/chimerax/docs/user/commands/surface.html#sop
…goes to that whole section, and there’s also an anchor for each individual subcommand, e.g.
http://rbvi.ucsf.edu/chimerax/docs/user/commands/surface.html#cap

vop <subcommand> -> volume <subcommand>
http://rbvi.ucsf.edu/chimerax/docs/user/commands/volume.html#vop
…goes to that whole section, and there’s also an anchor for each individual subcommand, e.g.
http://rbvi.ucsf.edu/chimerax/docs/user/commands/volume.html#add

[Greg Couch]

They can link to anything you want, they just need to be added by hand.  
mm is short for mmaker, so that's already in place.  I'll add the rest.  
Send me email or file a ticket for any future aliases.

On 10/30/19 10:08 AM, Elaine Meng wrote:

[Conrad Huang]

I think Elaine's point, which I agree with, is that you know the command the alias expands to, so can't you point the alias link to the expanded command documentation? Not all aliases are for backwards compatibility. For example, "sequence dissociate" is an alias for "sequence disassociate", and I can see wanting both to be available.

[Greg Couch]

On 10/30/19 11:32 AM, ChimeraX wrote:
In the flow of command processing, it is much easier to log the help 
link registered with the alias, than to dynamically figure it out from 
the expanded alias.  Not sure if we want to dynamically figure it out 
from the expanded alias for help -- it could be multiple commands and 
there could be multiple levels of alias expansion. Will think about it.