Re: Summary and next steps for (package-initialize)

[Radon Rosborough]

> > Please explain what exactly needs to be done before the user init-file
> > is processed, and how doing this would allow both package.el
> > configuration and package configuration in the init-file without the
> > prescence of an explicit (package-initialize) call.
>
> AFAIU, packages need to be loaded before we run this fragment:
>
>   ;; Re-evaluate predefined variables whose initial value depends on
>   ;; the runtime context.
>   (mapc 'custom-reevaluate-setting
>         ;; Initialize them in the same order they were loaded, in case there
>         ;; are dependencies between them.
>         (prog1 (nreverse custom-delayed-init-variables)
>           (setq custom-delayed-init-variables nil)))
>
> This is so the defcustom's in the loaded packages are known to Emacs
> when the init file is loaded.  So my proposal is to call some
> package.el function that would do that before that.

AFAICT, customizing `package-load-list' and `package-user-dir' is no
longer possible with that approach. If such customization is put in
the init-file, it's too late; packages have already been loaded at the
point in startup.el that you mentioned.

How are you proposing to deal with that problem?