Re: Convert README.org to plain text README while installing package

[Stefan Monnier]

> Concerning point 2, the GNU ELPA machinery converts the Org source into
> an Info file.  (Those who install the package can access it with C-h i.)
> While I handle the export process into HTML.

Side note: elpa.gnu.org also converts the docs to HTML (both for Org
and for Texinfo docs), and puts a link to it under "Manual" as can be
seen on http://elpa.gnu.org/packages/modus-themes.html

[ This HTML isn't ideal, admittedly.  Help welcome.  ]

> This arrangement provides two viable options for users who (i) want to
> read the documentation yet (ii) do not wish to load org.el and its
> accoutrements.  A third option, in the form of a plain README, is a
> useful addition, provided it is done automatically by GNU ELPA.

I have the impression that there's a bit of misunderstanding here.  There
are two pieces of "docs" that elpa.gnu.org handles: the `:readme` and
the `:doc`.  One is meant for an actual manual that can be browsed with Info,
while the other is expected to be a short blurb, to help prospective
users understand what the package is about.
Both accept the Org format, but the `:doc` does not accept "plain text"
(nor Markdown).

Many packages currently use the same file for both (typically called
`README.org`), which tends to be suboptimal (it's often neither a great
`:readme` nor a great `:doc`), but works fine.


        Stefan