Re: [Groff] Several file arguments to groff

[Werner LEMBERG]

> If the file arguments use different macro packages, groff usually
> generates many errors.  For example, try
> 
>   groff -man man/groff.man -me doc/meintro.me -ms doc/pic.ms -Tlatin1
> 
> in groff's top source directory.  This produces many wrong macro
> usages and error reports, being just a bit different if the sequence
> of the arguments is changed.

Indeed, this will fail.  But the main reason is not groff but the
function used to parse the command line arguments: GNU's getopt.  It
sorts options and non-options (the latter coming first).  For the
above command line, groff sees this:

  groff -man -me -ms -Tlatin1 man/groff.man doc/meintro.me doc/pic.ms

> This bad concept

Why bad concept?

> should be either fixed or documented in the corresponding man pages
> and the info file.  Fixing is easy for `grog',

How shall grog be fixed?

> quite hard for `groff', maybe unnecessary for `troff'.  If it is not
> fixed, but only documented, `groffer' needs a major update.

I will document that the selection of a macro package (similar to TeX)
is a global decision, and that multiple main macro packages can't be
used simultaneously.  The only useful exception I can see is to
support man and mdoc at the same time; it should not be too hard to
implement this but I currently don't feel like doing this.  As usual,
volunteers welcome.


    Werner