Re: [Groff] The bottom is always ok, the head never is

[Miklos Somogyi]

On 09/03/2006, at 4:20 PM, Werner LEMBERG wrote:

> > > I can't comment on -me since I've never used it.
> >
> > Then I'd like to try the MS package.  Could you post the description
> > of the header/footer macros please?
>
> What information do you need which isn't covered in groff_ms.man and
> groff.info?

I could find PT, BT neither in "man groff_ms" nor in "info groff".
Never mind, I'll rather try to figure out what the me header/footer 
macros are doing.

> > Btw, the HT macro that Larry mentioned (HT, PT, BT) is not in
> > /usr/share/groff/1.18.1/tmac/s.tmac
>
> The macro is called `.HD', and its definition is empty by default.
> And it is already available in 1.18.1.
>
> > Based on the man pages I thought that .ps |xxx was setting the
> > height excactly/absolutely at xxx from the top.  Perhaps a sentence
> > in "man" would be welcome to explain what really happens.
>
> Please provide a patch.

Dunno how to make a patch. "info groff" says:

 - Request: .sp [distance]
     Space downwards DISTANCE.  With no argument it advances 1 line.  A
     negative argument causes `gtroff' to move up the page the
     specified distance.  If the argument is preceded by a `|' then
     `gtroff' moves that distance from the top of the page.  This
     request causes a line break.  The default scaling indicator is `v'.

I'd like to suggest the following:

 - Request: .sp [distance]
     Space downwards DISTANCE.  With no argument it advances 1 line.  A
     negative argument causes `gtroff' to move up the page the
     specified distance.  If the argument is preceded by a `|' then
     `gtroff' moves that distance from the top of the page.  This
     request causes a line break, and that adds the current line 
spacing to the space
     you have just specified. The default scaling indicator is `v'.

     For convenience you may wish to use the following macros to set 
the height
     of the next line at a given distance from the top- or the bottom 
of the page:

      .de y-from-top-down
      .   sp |\\$1-\\n[.v]u
      ..
      .de y-from_bot-up
      .   sp |\\n[.p]u-\\$1-\\n[.v]u
      ..

      e.g. ".y-from-bot-up 10c" means that the bottom of the next line 
will be at 10
      centimeres from the paper edge at the bottom.

Miklos


>     Werner