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Re: tbl(1) minor issues


From: G. Branden Robinson
Subject: Re: tbl(1) minor issues
Date: Fri, 22 Jul 2022 21:50:07 -0500

Hi Alex,

At 2022-07-23T01:08:18+0200, Alejandro Colomar wrote:
> I'm reading tbl(1), so I'll report a few (minor issues) I found:

Thank you; I appreciate the review.  Yours is the first it's gotten
since I rewrote it.

> [
>        spaces,  or  tabs.   (AT&T tbl accepted only options with
>        all characters in the same lettercase.)   Some  of  these
> ]
> 
> since the parenthesized sentence refers to the sentence previous to
> it, I'd put it as part of it (notice the placement of periods):
> 
> [
>        spaces,  or  tabs   (AT&T tbl accepted only options with
>        all characters in the same lettercase).   Some  of  these
> ]

I disagree with this, because I find it awkward to put one complete
sentence as a parenthetical inside another.  I believe a sentence should
remain grammatical even if the parentheses are removed.  I admit to some
severity on this point, but all too often as a reader, I find amateur
technical writers employing punctuation as an excuse to discard the
rules of standard grammar.  That is not what punctuation is for.

> I miss a comma:
> 
> [
>        all characters in the same lettercase.)   Some  of  these
>        options  require  a parenthesized argument; those that do[,]
>        permit spaces and tabs between the option’s name and  the
>        opening  parenthesis.   Options  accumulate and cannot be
> ]

I've stumbled over that in re-reading, myself.  I'll make this change.

> Expect to see more reports about that page soon :)

Looking forward to it!

Regards,
Branden

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