When the REPL is started without lisp-mode windows, the arglist isn't fontified until something is „M-x slime-mode”'d because of this:
[slime-autodoc.el] (defun slime-fontify-string (string) "Fontify STRING as `font-lock-mode' does in Lisp mode." (with-current-buffer (get-buffer-create " *slime-fontify*") (erase-buffer) (unless (eq major-mode 'lisp-mode) (lisp-mode) (slime-autodoc-mode -1) ...) ...))
…and „slime-autodoc-mode” sets „slime-echo-arglist-function” when arg satisfies „minusp”.
So i made an ugly patch to fix it. Here it goes:
diff --git a/contrib/slime-autodoc.el b/contrib/slime-autodoc.el index 524539d..e69a65c 100644 --- a/contrib/slime-autodoc.el +++ b/contrib/slime-autodoc.el @@ -184,7 +184,11 @@ Return DOCUMENTATION." (erase-buffer) (unless (eq major-mode 'lisp-mode) (lisp-mode) - (slime-autodoc-mode -1) + (let ((slime-echo-arglist-function slime-echo-arglist-function) + (slime-autodoc-mode slime-autodoc-mode) + (eldoc-idle-delay eldoc-idle-delay) + (eldoc-documentation-function eldoc-documentation-function)) + (slime-autodoc-mode -1)) (set (make-local-variable 'slime-highlight-suppressed-forms) nil)) (insert string) (let ((font-lock-verbose nil))