Re: [Groff] An environment variable for enabling compatibility mode

[Jon Snader]

On Thu, Jan 31, 2002 at 11:14:10PM +0100, Werner LEMBERG wrote:
> 
> > I believe we need very fine granularity
> > (i.e. we need to be able to enable/disable a particular
> > functionality).  If we just have a switch to enable the foobar set
> > of options we run into the problem of someone needing some but not
> > all of the foobar options.
> 
> I suggest that the groff version provides the `granularity'.  I can't
> imagine that someone really wants feature X which has been available
> until groff version A and feature Y which came into existence in
> groff version B with A < B.
> 

As you noted in a previous email, there's not much need right now for
very fine granularity, but I was trying to think ahead a little.  Let
us say that the next version of groff implemented the refer change that
sparked this thread, and that the version after that implemented the
``make-my-words-flow-like-honey'' extension.  Now I would certainly like
to make my words flow like honey, but I don't, as you know, like the
refer change.  How do I get the make-my-words-flow-like-honey change
without the refer change?  The versioning method does not do it.

Again, I don't think that there's a problem right now, but it's by no
means a stretch to see how it could become a problem as new non-backward
compatible features are added to groff.

Jon Snader