[PATCH 5/7] tabs.1: Revise "HISTORY" section.

[G. Branden Robinson]

* Use commas to clarify application of comparative phrase.
* Try again to recast the sentence with the trailing comma.
* Favor man(7) font macros over *roff font selection escape sequences,
  except for man page cross (and self-) references.
* Drop italics from quotation that is already in quotation marks.
* Adjust relative inset amount to match that in previous section.
* Recast for (attempted) clarity.
---
 man/tabs.1 | 76 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++-------------------
 1 file changed, 50 insertions(+), 26 deletions(-)

diff --git a/man/tabs.1 b/man/tabs.1
index 01ed44e4a..811c963bd 100644
--- a/man/tabs.1
+++ b/man/tabs.1
@@ -238,7 +238,9 @@ .SH PORTABILITY
 The \fB\-d\fP (debug) and \fB\-n\fP (no-op) options are extensions not provided
 by other implementations.
 .SH HISTORY
-A \fBtabs\fP utility appeared in PWB/Unix 1.0 (1977).
+A
+.B tabs
+utility appeared in PWB/Unix 1.0 (1977).
 .\" https://minnie.tuhs.org/cgi-bin/utree.pl?file=PWB1/sys/source/s2/\
 .\"   tabs.c
 A reduced version shipped in Seventh Edition Unix
@@ -252,8 +254,11 @@ .SH HISTORY
 left margin.
 That option is not documented by POSIX.
 .PP
-The PWB/Unix \fBtabs\fP utility returned in System III (1980),
-and used built-in tables rather than the terminal database,
+The PWB/Unix
+.B tabs
+utility returned in System III (1980),
+and used built-in tables,
+rather than the terminal database,
 to support a half-dozen hardcopy terminal (printer) types.
 It also had built-in logic to support setting the left margin,
 as well as a feature for copying the tab settings from a file.
@@ -263,50 +268,69 @@ .SH HISTORY
 .\" https://minnie.tuhs.org/cgi-bin/utree.pl?file=SysVR4/cmd/tabs/tabs.c
 added support for the terminal database,
 but retained the tables to support the printers.
-In an earlier development effort,
-the tab stop initialization provided by \fBtset\fP(1) (1982),
-and incorporated into \fBtput\fP(1) uses the terminal database,
+By this time,
+System\ V
+.B tput
+had incorporated the tab stop initialization feature of BSD's
+.B tset
+from 1982,
+but employed the
+.I \%term\%info
+database to do so.
 .PP
-The \fB+m\fP option was documented in the POSIX
-Base Specifications Issue 5
+The
+.B +m
+option was documented in the POSIX Base Specifications Issue 5
 (Unix98, 1997),
 then omitted in Issue 6
 (Unix03, 2004)
 without express motivation,
 though an introductory comment
-\fI\*(``and optionally adjusts the margin\*(''\fP remains,
+\*(``and optionally adjusts the margin\*('' remains,
 overlooked in the removal.
-The \fBtabs\fP utility documented in Issues 6 and later has no mechanism
-for setting margins.
-The \fB+m\fP option in
+The
+.B tabs
+utility documented in Issues 6 and later has no mechanism for setting
+margins.
+The
+.B +m
+option in
 .I \%ncurses
-\fBtabs\fP differs from the SVr4 feature by using terminal capabilities
-rather than built-in tables.
+\fB\%@TABS@\fP differs from the SVr4 feature by using terminal
+capabilities rather than built-in tables.
 .PP
 POSIX documents no limit on the number of tab stops.
 Other implementations impose one;
-the limit is 20 in PWB/Unix's \fBtabs\fP utility.
+the limit is 20 in PWB/Unix's
+.B tabs
+utility.
 While some terminals may not accept an arbitrary number of tab stops,
 .I \%ncurses
-\fBtabs\fP attempts to set tab stops up to the right margin if the list
-thereof is sufficiently long.
+\fB\%@TABS@\fP attempts to set tab stops up to the right margin if the
+list thereof is sufficiently long.
 .PP
-The \*(``Rationale\*('' section of the Issue 6 \fBtabs\fP reference page
+The \*(``Rationale\*('' section of the Issue 6
+.B tabs
+reference page
 .\" https://pubs.opengroup.org/onlinepubs/009604499/utilities/tabs.html
-details how the committee considered redesigning the \fBtabs\fP and
-\fBtput\fP utilities,
+details how the committee considered redesigning the
+.B tabs
+and
+.B tput
+utilities,
 without settling on an improved solution.
 It claims that
-.RS 5
 .PP
-no known historical version of tabs supports the capability of setting
-arbitrary tab stops.
+.RS 4
+\*(``no known historical version of
+.I tabs
+supports the capability of setting arbitrary tab stops.\*(''
 .RE
 .PP
-Nevertheless,
-the feature described in subsection \*(``Explicit Lists\*('' above was
+The feature described in subsection \*(``Explicit Lists\*('' above was
 implemented in PWB/Unix,
-and permits the setting of abitrary tab stops.
+.\" see URL above
+and permitted the setting of abitrary tab stops nevertheless.
 .SH SEE ALSO
 \fB\%@INFOCMP@\fP(1M),
 \fB\%@TSET@\fP(1),
-- 
2.30.2

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