In testing a recent ConText (with texlive2008) using my math textbook, I noticed that the problem backgrounds were not placed correctly. Below is a minimal test file where no background shows up. Eventually I figured out the cause: The defaults are \runMPgraphicsfalse and \runMPTEXgraphicsfalse and shell_escape = f (in texmf.cnf). Setting them all true fixed the backgrounds. This is with ConTeXt ver: 2009.06.04 22:20 MKII (texlive 2008). Could/should texexec abort if runtime metapost is needed but write18 and \runMP* are not true? That way seems safer than silently producing a document different from what the user expects. The long-term solution is probably that it all work even if those variables are not true, but it is probably tricky to implement all the subprocess communication and coordination. -Sanjoy \setupcolors[state=start] % sly textbackground method from Aditya Mahajan (2006), "Homework % Assignments in CONTEXT", PracTEX Journal, No. 4. \definetextbackground [problembackground] [ mp=background:random, location=paragraph, width=local, ] \startuseMPgraphic{background:random} path p; for i = 1 upto nofmultipars : p = (multipars[i]); fill p withcolor 0.90white; endfor; \stopuseMPgraphic \chardef\kindofpagetextareas\plusone \starttext \startproblembackground \input tufte \stopproblembackground \stoptext