Re: [Groff] Formatting algorithm

[Peter Schaffter]

Keith --

On Wed, Apr 23, 2014, Keith Marshall wrote:
> > Signalling the end of collected paragraphs can't be done exclusively
> > within macros because, unlike SGMLs, paragraph macros in groff
> > generally aren't closed.
> 
> Doesn't a paragraph logically conclude at any request which introduces a
> break?  Or invocation of any macro which itself invokes such a request?
> (In addition to an empty input line, or one with leading white space,
> which implies a break?)  All of these exhibit one common feature: the
> introduction of the break.

Quite so.  Not sure what I was imagining when I wrote my original
comment.  Must be this 'flu I've come down with.
 
> Of course, in the interests of semantic markup, it may be useful to have
> a macro which would explicitly mark the end of a paragraph, but would
> such a macro not be a semantic element of the particular macro package
> which provides it?

Absolutely.  Semantics belong in the realm of macros.  But, as you
point out, any request or macro causing a break signals the end of
a paragraph, so there's really no need for an end-of-para macro,
even for semantic clarity.  Such a beast would, IMO, introduce
superfluous fussiness into source files.

-- 
Peter Schaffter
http://www.schaffter.ca