ess company-tabnine backend

[George9000]

company-tabnine is a completion backend for company mode. It provides completion based on a machine learning completer called TabNine

This backend works successfully in all modes except ess. Attempts to solve the problem included adding it as a company-backend to ess following the discussion in #565 or adding it to the list ess-r-company-backends. Completion is tested in the source buffer after starting an inferior R. However, the TabNIne backend completion is ignored in ESS. Switching to fundamental-mode immediately restores functionality.

Example of one configuration attempt:
(require 'company-tabnine)
(add-to-list 'company-backends #'company-tabnine)
;; Trigger completion immediately.
(setq company-idle-delay 0)

;; Number the candidates (use M-1, M-2 etc to select completions).
(setq company-show-numbers t)

;; Use the tab-and-go frontend.
;; Allows TAB to select and complete at the same time.
(company-tng-configure-default)
(setq company-frontends
'(company-tng-frontend
company-pseudo-tooltip-frontend
company-echo-metadata-frontend))

;; don't auto-insert ess backends
(setq ess-use-company nil)

(defun my-ess-config ()
(make-variable-buffer-local 'company-backends)
(add-to-list 'company-backends
'(company-tabnine company-R-args company-R-objects company-dabbrev-code :separate)))

(add-hook 'ess-mode-hook #'my-ess-config)

[jabranham]

I'm surprised modifying ess-r-company-backends doesn't work. Did you try it this way:

(setq ess-r-company-backends
      '((company-tabnine company-R-library company-R-args company-R-objects :separate)))

As a disclaimer I'm not a company user myself :-)

[George9000]

Thank you. That worked.

For others who may come here with the same issue, here are two approaches to the config in spacemacs (which would likely work very similarly in a plain .emacs init file)

In the user-config section of .spacemacs

(require 'company-tabnine)
(add-to-list 'company-backends #'company-tabnine)
(setq company-idle-delay 0)
(setq company-show-numbers t)
(company-tng-configure-default)
(setq company-frontends
      '(company-tng-frontend
        company-pseudo-tooltip-frontend
        company-echo-metadata-frontend))
(setq ess-r-company-backends
      '((company-tabnine company-R-library company-R-args company-R-objects :separate)))

Alternatively, in a private layer, mylayer, (~/.emacs.d/private/mylayer/packages.el):

(defun mylayer/init-company-tabnine ()
  (use-package company-tabnine
    :ensure t
    :init
    (progn
      (add-to-list 'spacemacs-default-company-backends #'company-tabnine)
      (company-tng-configure-default)
      (setq company-idle-delay 0
            company-show-numbers t
            company-frontends
            '(company-tng-frontend
              company-pseudo-tooltip-frontend
              company-echo-metadata-frontend)
            )
      )))

(setq ess-r-company-backends
      '((company-tabnine company-R-library company-R-args company-R-objects :separate)))

For users of doom emacs, first uncomment ess in ~/.doom.d/init.el, then in ~/.doom.d/config.el

(require 'company-tabnine)
(add-to-list 'company-backends #'company-tabnine)
(setq company-idle-delay 0)
(setq company-show-numbers t)
(company-tng-configure-default)
(setq company-frontends
      '(company-tng-frontend
        company-pseudo-tooltip-frontend
        company-echo-metadata-frontend))

(after! ess-r-mode
  (set-company-backend! 'ess-r-mode
    '(:separate company-tabnine company-R-library company-R-args company-R-objects)))

[jabranham]

Thanks for letting us know! I'm reopening this because it's not clear to me why ess sets company-backends buffer locally the way it does.

[nverno]

Setting them buffer locally is pretty standard. It's easier to manage effective backends per mode, since they tend to behave differently and ordering matters.

[vspinu]

Indeed. The idea is to make company work out of the box by default. Those familiar with company can overwrite company-backends themselve, or, if so desired, ess-r-company-backends. In fact we can make the latter a defcustom for an even easier customization, but benefits are marginal.

[jabranham]

Ah, OK. That all makes sense I guess. And if it's standard to treat it this way I suppose we can just close this issue then.

[danielchen26]

I was wondering how to setup the user-config for ess-julia together using company-tabnine.