Is haskellmode-vim dead?

Question

I just disabled haskellmode-vim from my plugin configurations. Basically this was for three reasons:

1. I prefer neocomplcache for my auto completion needs.
2. Apparently it wasn't updated since 2010.
3. It doesn't seem to be compatible with cabal

I hope that someone jumps in the pit and points out that I just have misconfigured the whole thing (as in I configured the most basic thing in the readme). To make this a question:

Is it possible to setup haskellmode such that ...

• ... it gets its configuration from cabal?
• ... it doesn't set `completefunc' so that neocomplcache still works?

Answer 1

Author here. I haven't had much chance to work with Haskell since 2010, so haskellmode for Vim has not been developed since then, either.

I used to think someone must have written something better since, or that my old code probably doesn't work with newer releases, but every few months, someone mails me telling that they are still using this plugin and it still works for them (which is a mix of pleasant surprise and uncomfortable reminder of the lack of development/maintenance).

Some of them have created clones on github (last time I checked, there were about a dozen), usually to accomodate the latest fashion in Vim plugin management (there may have been small hacks to make it build via cabal, but I recall no complete integration). Vim gives you a lot of control over the order of plugin loading, if you want someone else to override the completefunc.

I still expect haskellmode-vim to drop out of usage sooner or later. However, if someone were to step forward willing to take on maintenance for one of the github clones, that would be fine, too.

As long as credit is given, and modified plugins are marked as such, I'm also happy to see ideas from haskellmode-vim used in other plugins (there used to be a happy exchange of such ideas between vim and emacs haskell plugins), so more modern and active plugins could absorb any missing features from haskellmode-vim.