April 2010 - ntg-context - NTG Mailing Lists

% prevents linebreaks in \startlines ... \stoplines
by Aditya Mahajan 04 Apr '10

04 Apr '10

Hi, Here is an interesting example \starttext \startlines one % two % three % \stoplines \stoptext This gives no linebreaks! Can this be prevented? I doubt it since TeX never sees the \n. In which case, we should call it a feature :-) Aditya

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interlinespace in table of content
by Marco 04 Apr '10

04 Apr '10

Hi, given the following MWE %%%%%%%%%% \setupinteraction [state=start] % OK, if commented out \setuplayout [grid=yes] % OK, if commented out \starttext \completecontent \dorecurse{3}{ \chapter{chapter} \section{section} \subsection{subsection}} \stoptext %%%%%%%%%% you can see that the interline space in the table of content is too big. If either the grid or interaction is turned off the result is satisfying. How can I produce my desired result with both enabled? Thanks for your help. marco

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new error in Context under Linux
by Alain Delmotte 04 Apr '10

04 Apr '10

Hi! I got an new error compiling the example p28-30 of the Excursion with \startcombination...\stopcombination !load otf : file size: 112404 !load otf : enhancing ... !load otf : saving in cache: /home/alain/context/tex/texmf/fonts/opentype/public/lm/lmroman8-bold.otf ! Argument of \docheckifiteminsetelse has an extra }. <inserted text> \par <to be read again> } \@@kjtabletitle ->Use of \type {\setuptables } . \doif #1#2->\edef \!!stringa {#1 }\edef \!!stringb {#2}\ifx \!!stringa \!!str... \dostructurecountercomponent ...\c!title }\v!none {\setfalse \hasstructureco... \docompletefloat ...c!title ={#4},\c!bookmark =][] \globallet \currentfloatnu... ... l.420 \stopcombination ? Thanks, Alain

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minimal example of some problems
by Michael Saunders 04 Apr '10

04 Apr '10

Aditya: >>>> 1. columns and marginal notes conflict: >>> >>> For some of the issues, it would be perhaps a good idea to make proper >>> bug-reports (with minimal example of course). >> >> In some other venue? > >In a separate thread, with a minimal example, that one can copy-paste and >see the error. Trying to guess what is wrong is difficult. I tried that several times and got no response. Since you insist on seeing lots of lorem ipsum, the following example: \definefontfeature[default][mode=node,language=dflt,script=latn,kern=yes,liga=yes,tlig=yes,trep=yes] \definefontfeature[body][default][onum=yes,onum=yes,pnum=yes,calt=yes,protrusion=quality,expansion=quality] \definefontfeature[su][body][sups=yes,ordn=yes] \usetypescriptfile[type-garamond] \starttypescript [MTbook] \definetypeface[MTbook][rm][serif][garamondMD][optical] \stoptypescript \usetypescript[MTbook] \setupalign[hanging,hz] \setupbodyfont[MTbook,12pt]% \mainlanguage[en-us] \definepapersize[MTS][width=823pt,height=462pt] \definepapersize[MTA][width=823pt,height=462pt] \setuppapersize[MTA][MTS] \setuplayout[width=604.46pt,height=462pt,% topspace=3pt,bottomspace=0pt,lines=30,header=21.4pt,footer=21.4pt,% headerdistance=7.2pt,footerdistance=7.2pt,% leftedgedistance=0pt,rightedgedistance=0pt,% leftmargin=95pt,rightmargin=95pt,% leftmargindistance=10pt,rightmargindistance=10pt,% leftedge=11.5pt,rightedge=11.5pt,% cutspace=0pt,backspace=109.5pt,% grid=verytolerant] \showgrid \setupcolumns[n=2,rule=off,distance=20pt] \setupinmargin[style=\ss,align=outer] \setupfootnotedefinition[location=serried,distance=0.5em] \newcommand{\fnstyle}{\switchtobodyfont[12pt]\addff{su}} \setupnote[footnote][location=columns,numbercommand=\fnstyle,textcommand=\fnstyle\tfa,align={normal,hanging},interaction=yes] \setupinteraction[state=start,color=darkgreen,contrastcolor=darkred] \setupinteractionscreen[option=fit,view=fit] \setupcombinedlist[content][interaction=all,textcolor=black] \showlayoutcomponents \starttext \startcolumns Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Duis aliquam sapien nec ligula aliquam eu tempor quam elementum. Etiam tellus justo, pellentesque non luctus a, adipiscing ac mi. Nulla nec lorem quis ante blandit laoreet vitae sed purus. Donec quis quam nec massa ullamcorper condimentum at sit amet ante. Quisque ac nisl nibh. Aliquam pulvinar pharetra purus suscipit dictum. Cras adipiscing sem id tortor commodo nec mattis felis ultricies. Sed eget neque eget arcu dictum feugiat. Nulla at congue ligula. Aliquam a magna et erat interdum auctor. Ut consectetur sem ac massa congue ut consequat sem elementum. Quisque ac justo enim. Donec et enim eu risus fermentum lacinia at a odio. Sed egestas ligula ullamcorper risus accumsan hendrerit. Integer placerat lectus sed eros porta accumsan. Pellentesque elementum, urna eu tincidunt mollis, elit dolor scelerisque diam, sed commodo nisl odio sagittis erat. Ut consequat dolor enim, eget euismod arcu. In hac habitasse platea dictumst. Cras adipiscing erat eu enim hendrerit quis euismod orci vehicula. Sed pharetra porta lacinia. Nullam at lacus et sem venenatis consequat ut nec eros. Donec diam elit, malesuada nec aliquam in, elementum vel mi. Etiam quis euismod dui. Nunc sit amet eros vel erat vehicula accumsan. Cras vulputate magna vitae urna fermentum nec eleifend tortor dignissim. Suspendisse at velit id turpis gravida commodo sed quis nulla. Cras id urna vel dui facilisis convallis. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. Pellentesque habitant morbi tristique senectus et netus et malesuada fames ac turpis egestas. Phasellus pulvinar auctor metus, non rutrum risus ornare a. Proin purus nisl, fringilla at congue ac, imperdiet non velit. Sed magna libero, pellentesque ut vestibulum sit amet, euismod ac nulla. Proin egestas, mi at convallis accumsan, lectus erat tincidunt magna, quis ullamcorper arcu dolor et dui. Maecenas iaculis erat aliquam augue pellentesque aliquam. Donec in odio sapien, ac iaculis risus. In tempus nulla tristique ante dapibus nec accumsan velit convallis. Sed imperdiet tincidunt turpis aliquam porta. Pellentesque\footnote{Integer libero velit, accumsan at porttitor et, gravida et ligula. Maecenas vestibulum convallis metus, vitae ullamcorper diam aliquet eget. Sed id lorem nec nibh dignissim bibendum. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. Praesent in arcu a nunc rutrum faucibus. Ut ornare, est vitae viverra luctus, sapien eros malesuada felis, id facilisis ipsum ligula sit amet purus. Sed libero dui, consectetur rhoncus laoreet non, faucibus quis est. Aenean non lacus felis, sit amet tempor felis. Fusce gravida sem arcu, id hendrerit est. Ut nec ligula nunc, sed pulvinar risus. Cras ac purus sem, eget posuere enim. Quisque sem velit, accumsan sit amet interdum vitae, laoreet ac tellus. Curabitur tempus, erat sed dapibus volutpat, dolor lacus faucibus ante, ut iaculis nunc nisl in eros. Sed varius arcu id lectus blandit a consequat massa euismod. Maecenas magna diam, elementum et viverra sit amet, dignissim in diam. Etiam volutpat sollicitudin orci, nec consequat dui commodo vel. Fusce vel dignissim mauris. Aenean consectetur lorem eu dui auctor ut elementum nibh porta. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. Aenean dignissim aliquam sodales. Nam sagittis dui eget quam scelerisque condimentum. Donec varius nunc purus. Cras nulla dui, sodales et lobortis ac, ornare vitae justo. Donec dapibus pharetra tellus pulvinar ornare. Phasellus consequat luctus urna vitae dignissim. Vivamus euismod est nulla. Phasellus pharetra justo eu lectus luctus in dapibus dolor egestas. Nunc varius porttitor mi a vehicula. Integer rutrum, urna non auctor fringilla, elit dolor cursus tortor, quis iaculis tellus magna id odio. Duis porta ultrices euismod. Phasellus in vestibulum orci. Cras eget porta dui. Donec tincidunt adipiscing dolor, eu ultricies neque cursus at. Proin id ligula nec felis aliquet mollis. Proin dolor mi, iaculis at rutrum eget, pulvinar et dolor. Donec vitae tortor sit amet justo fermentum ornare ut ac turpis. Nullam et ligula sed dui luctus venenatis. Nam at egestas libero. Pellentesque luctus elit at justo lobortis porta. Sed in nulla neque. Proin tortor eros, molestie semper facilisis id, egestas id dolor. Etiam metus neque, imperdiet vel venenatis sit amet, facilisis eu lectus. Nullam varius tristique justo, sed scelerisque diam viverra congue. In turpis eros, laoreet sit amet suscipit vitae, tincidunt quis est. Pellentesque tellus justo, egestas sit amet iaculis at, consectetur eget arcu. Sed ut placerat augue. } id sapien et erat congue rhoncus ac in massa. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. Etiam risus lorem, dignissim sollicitudin posuere vel, fringilla nec risus. Nam molestie feugiat pharetra. Donec ac odio justo. Nam semper tellus at enim hendrerit dapibus. Phasellus eu justo non libero vulputate tincidunt non at erat. Phasellus non nisl lectus, sit amet imperdiet sapien. Curabitur vitae enim quis metus pellentesque commodo sed a lectus. Phasellus non sapien enim. Etiam ac est nec justo lacinia faucibus at hendrerit tellus. Suspendisse ultricies leo id est ornare pharetra. Aenean varius eros id lectus pulvinar consectetur at eu purus. Pellentesque libero leo, scelerisque ultrices suscipit sed, sagittis in velit. Mauris sed diam sit amet mi cursus luctus. Aliquam sollicitudin risus sit amet lacus lacinia aliquet. Nullam metus enim, fermentum ac molestie a, bibendum sit amet leo. Nam eget sapien justo. Phasellus porttitor lacus nec eros volutpat ut scelerisque mi placerat. Suspendisse potenti. Integer odio lorem, congue suscipit placerat id, luctus id libero. In hac habitasse platea dictumst. Suspendisse nibh lorem, iaculis eu egestas et, mollis ut elit. Integer convallis vestibulum neque, et tristique magna mattis et. Quisque eu nisi lacus, nec dictum lorem. Phasellus mollis elementum euismod. Sed at arcu odio, sed volutpat ante. Integer cursus nisl vel tortor commodo quis ornare mauris consectetur. In sit amet orci mauris. Aenean tellus sem, facilisis vitae vehicula at, venenatis ullamcorper magna. Cum sociis natoque penatibus et magnis dis parturient montes, nascetur ridiculus mus. Ut diam elit, fermentum mattis consequat ac, ultricies nec enim. Phasellus interdum, velit vel lacinia egestas, sapien dolor tincidunt enim, vitae adipiscing dolor diam et dolor. Nullam adipiscing neque a erat aliquet imperdiet. Phasellus at dui a risus elementum placerat ut sit amet nisl. Phasellus vulputate feugiat sem, varius suscipit metus porta et. In hac habitasse platea dictumst. Sed lacinia aliquam \inmargin{pharetra fringilla nunc quis} erat, vitae viverra nibh dignissim id. Class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos. Cras luctus tempus neque vel pretium. Cras non leo ipsum, sed adipiscing nulla. Etiam condimentum posuere velit sit amet sollicitudin. Duis magna risus, pellentesque et adipiscing in, accumsan sed sapien. Vestibulum sodales viverra nisl, nec facilisis quam varius vel. Ut malesuada consequat velit, ut posuere lectus scelerisque eu. Class aptent taciti sociosqu ad litora torquent per conubia nostra, per inceptos himenaeos. Etiam lectus diam, lobortis quis consectetur quis, vulputate id justo. Nulla pharetra fringilla nunc quis lacinia. Morbi id molestie orci. Praesent lorem erat, rutrum ut facilisis vitae, egestas nec dolor. Donec ullamcorper sollicitudin sapien vel placerat. Etiam interdum arcu in nibh placerat iaculis. Nullam eget nisl tortor, sed lacinia tellus. Donec placerat diam a erat molestie vitae convallis metus tempor. Morbi libero nulla, viverra vitae vestibulum placerat, ultrices nec dui. Proin velit risus, hendrerit eu congue et, mollis sed orci. Nunc nec tincidunt felis. Pellentesque rhoncus sem id libero rhoncus facilisis. Donec in sapien arcu. Sed vitae ante quis nunc rutrum pretium. Mauris convallis feugiat massa at pharetra. Vivamus molestie velit sit amet augue tristique ac dictum ligula condimentum. Proin placerat iaculis interdum. Fusce vel nisi arcu. Nunc ut lorem sed sapien commodo euismod sit amet non dui. Suspendisse eget lectus massa. Nam id leo velit. Aliquam lobortis, tortor sit amet faucibus molestie, lacus lacus imperdiet metus, in posuere nisi nisl quis lacus. Integer vitae leo faucibus libero congue porttitor ut sagittis quam. Praesent imperdiet urna quis justo mattis iaculis. Proin pulvinar diam non dolor malesuada laoreet. Nulla id lacus urna, et consequat quam. Curabitur eleifend, sapien in vulputate lobortis, nisl tortor faucibus metus, eu scelerisque lectus nisl at lectus. Vivamus ut ultricies nibh. Duis interdum, massa at vehicula ullamcorper, orci ante aliquam augue, at posuere nisl diam ac orci. Ut mollis dapibus nulla, in dignissim massa semper vitae. Praesent ultrices sodales velit nec dignissim. Maecenas condimentum, arcu sed molestie rhoncus, leo ipsum congue mauris, quis volutpat est elit eget justo. Aenean tincidunt elit id leo semper dictum. Phasellus et rhoncus nulla. Donec tincidunt, lacus eget convallis ultricies, augue sem tempus turpis, id pulvinar ligula dui sed neque. Nulla tristique scelerisque tempor. \stoptext is meant to illustrate four problems: 1. Leftward protrusion doesn't work. 2. I don't think hz is working in footnotes. 3. Observe footnote 1 (the only one). It is breaking between p.1 and p.2. I want to forbid that. 4. Notice the overprinting near the top of p.2 c.1. That is a marginal note that should go into the right margin. The font I'm using is Adobe Garamond Premiere Pro. If you think there might be a problem with the typescript, I can show you that too. > >>> What is the proper way to raise or lower a bit of text? I just spent > >>> ... > > > >> \raisebox{1ex}{?} > > > > When I try: > > > > \raisebox{1ex}{--} > > > > Context stops on the error: > > > > > "A <box> was supposed to be here > > > > \raisebox{1ex}{ > > --}" > > Provide a box :-) \raisebox{1ex}{\hbox{--}} (untested) I tested it. That fails on exactly the same error.

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Re: [NTG-context] The ConTeXt book
by Michael Saunders 04 Apr '10

04 Apr '10

> > 1. columns and marginal notes conflict: > > For some of the issues, it would be perhaps a good idea to make proper > bug-reports (with minimal example of course). In some other venue? > P.S.: Please consider fixing or changing your email client: it breaks the threads. Gmail. This is broken? > > 2. leftward protrusion fails > > \definefontfeature[...][default][...,protrusion=quality,expansion=quality] > > \setupalign[hanging,hz] > > \showgrid % or \showframe > > There is no leftward protrusion at all. Everything on the left edge > > is flush with the margin, even 'T' and 'J'. Similarly: > > > Don't know what you mean, works here. > > \definefontfeature[default][default][protrusion=quality] > > \usetypescript[modern] > \setupbodyfont[modern] The only difference I see is that I'm trying to use a different font than modern: \usetypescriptfile[type-garamond] \starttypescript [MTbook] \definetypeface[MTbook][rm][serif][garamondMD][optical] ... \stoptypescript \usetypescript[MTbook] \setupalign[hanging,hz] \setupbodyfont[MTbook,12pt] So, leftward protrusion only works with Latin Modern? > > 3. protrusion fails in footnotes: > > Even on the right edge. Hz isn't happening in them either. > > > You have to enable it separate for notes. > \setupnote[footnote][align={normal,hanging}] I got rightward protrusion with that, but it looks like no hz. Why are the key-values different? I also tried {quality,quality} and got nothing. > > 5. footnotes break between pages > > How do I stop this? > > > No example, no help! Imagine: <one page full of lorem ipsum... containing \footnote{half-page of lorem ipsum...} > The footnote will begin on page one, break halfway through, and continue on the following page. I want to prevent footnotes from breaking in this way. If you really need to see 1.5 pages of concrete "lorem ipsum" posted to understand the problem, I can provide it. > > 9. \raisebox? > > What is the proper way to raise or lower a bit of text? I just spent > > ... > \raisebox{1ex}{?} When I try: \raisebox{1ex}{--} Context stops on the error: "A <box> was supposed to be here \raisebox{1ex}{ --}" > > What should ConTeXt do when your font doesn't provide the allcaps feature. Some of the punctuation (e.g., hyphens, en- and em-dashes) should be raised slightly and perhaps given a little extra spacing. The feature is in my serif font, but not in my sans, hence my effort to correct this. > > 10. problematic characters in grid typesetting. > > Unless I set grid=verytolerant, my 'Q' knocks the next line down a > > notch. Is there a better way to deal with this? > > > You can change the height/depth ratio of a line. > \setupinterlinespace[height=0.6,depth=0.4] I must remember to put that convenient command before every majescule Q. By the way---I am thrilled to hear of and very eager to see Idris's book! > But maybe a select audience of test-able volunteers will be the way to go... I volunteer to be testable. > Yep. But when you actually run into one of these problems in LaTeX, you > are often more or less left alone - unlike ConTeXt and this list. I'm pursuing it with the hope of more beautiful results, but I'm not getting my problems solved here so far.

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The ConTeXt book: A summary
by Yet Another ConTeXt user 03 Apr '10

03 Apr '10

If you were surprised, like me Fifty emails, in your inbox to see Let me help you with a summary Of what happened, using a poor excuse for poetry It was the day of fools When Arthur tried to be cool In ConTeXt mailing list he shouted, "Look I am going to write a ConTeXt book!" Everyone was happy and had a thrill Till Martin said, "it is the first of April" His joke ruined, Arthur was sad He said Martin, this is bad Other users were also upset, taken for a ride The lack of a book, is not a matter of pride There were cries and a big fuss I was just getting started, said Russ After that comments did pour Its not even funny, said Gour All of us would be out of luck If Hans were to be hit by a bus! Citing Douglas Adams said Taco That will make the bus, a shamed loco In time back it 'ill go And slam its breaks, like a pro Writing documentation is no fun It that the reason it is shun Even if you do write something Does anyone even read the damn thing? Taco lamented all he hears is that 'it sucks' Demotivated, he may just pass the buck "Oh please, don't let the project slack If you write something, we will give you feedback" This circle of arguments is always repeated Whenever the question of documentation gets tweeted A new conspiracy theory was added this time "They want to keep it a secret," it's a crime I am sick and tired of all the pretext Why do you think anyone should write a book on ConTeXt? Taco and Hans, their hands are full Everyone else is just using a tool (Actually when I was writing this chronology Irdis was thinking about a typographical ontology) If you think that the documentation is lacking Do something, rather than slacking Here's a suggestion, if I may give to thee Follow it, and you'll be a ConTeXt prodigee Pick up a pen and go 'n write On any part of ConTeXt that you like A wiki article, a blog post, are good places to start People reading them will relish the knowledge it imparts Write an example, show how things work Don't just hide there and lurk If nothing else, write about what you find confusing Others writing documentation may find it motivating On this note, this summary I'll end You were not offended, I'll pretend Finally a request, if I may Let me be anonymous, please, I pray A promise in passing, I'll also make Someday a ConTeXt book or tutorial, I'll bake I am waiting for time and a muse At least, that is my excuse -- A ConTeXt User

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The ConTeXt book
by Michael Saunders 03 Apr '10

03 Apr '10

Wolfgang: Thanks---I'll go over what I can of those this weekend and get back to you and Taco about them in a few days. Peter: > > That's the feeling I'm getting. I'm finding it hard to do a lot of > > basic things in Context. Maybe Context can do them and maybe it > > can't, but there is no way to find out. > > Could you please provide a typical example? Here are ten: 1. columns and marginal notes conflict: \setupcolumns[n=2,rule=off,distance=20pt] \setupinmargin[style=\ss,align=outer] \startcolumns text text \inmargin{text} text \stopcolumns The marginal notes always print to the left of the column. This works perfectly for the left column, but fails for the right column---they overprint the text of the left column. 2. leftward protrusion fails \definefontfeature[...][default][...,protrusion=quality,expansion=quality] \setupalign[hanging,hz] \showgrid % or \showframe There is no leftward protrusion at all. Everything on the left edge is flush with the margin, even 'T' and 'J'. Similarly: 3. protrusion fails in footnotes: Even on the right edge. Hz isn't happening in them either. 4. interactive headers/footers I'd like to make my header and footer texts hyperlinks to the head that they point to. I'm trying this: \setupinteraction[state=start,color=darkgreen,contrastcolor=darkred] \setupinteractionscreen[option=fit,view=fit] \newcommand{\gmpt}{\getmarking[pt]} \newcommand{\swpt}{{\goto{\getmarking[part]}[\gmpt]}} \setupfootertexts[margin][\rlap\swpt\hfill][\hfill\llap{\getmarking[chapter]}] (By the way, I'm resorting to this misdirection with the \newcommands only because Context gives me an error whenever it finds nested brackets. E.g., \newcommand{\swpt}{{\goto{\getmarking[part]}[\getmarking[pt]]}} would fail.) Then, at the beginning of a part, I have to add the extra marking to carry the reference in the 'pt' marker (right?), e.g.: \part[pt:one]{One}\marking[pt]{pt:one} But this does not work. (By the way, all of this \defineXYZ, \setupXYZ, \XYZ stuff is confusing. It seems like there is some kind of purpose to this pattern of naming, but I can't find what it is.) So, I experimented: {\about[pt:one]} (a particular reference) works {\about[\gmpt]} (referring through the marking) fails---so I can find no automatic way of doing it. (By the way, why are my footnote markers all green---shouldn't they be red? could I make them black? Why does clicking on them sometimes send me to a random page?) 5. footnotes break between pages How do I stop this? 6. hyphenation between pages. How do I stop this? 7. opening state I'd like my document to open in Adobe reader showing one page at a time (as if "click to open one page at at time" had been pressed). 8. description I spent the evening trying to get \definedescription to set a description on a line of its own followed by an explanatory paragraph. I tried most of the keys/values. I never got anything that looked good, let alone close to what I wanted. Finally, I spent a few seconds writing a humble LaTeX-esque line: \newcommand{\defhead}{\switchtobodyfont[gillSB,12pt]\ss} \newcommand{\desclist}[2]{\crlf{\noindent\defhead #1\emspace#2}\crlf} that did the job. 9. \raisebox? What is the proper way to raise or lower a bit of text? I just spent a lot of trial and error to find this: \inframed[frame=off,offset=.5pt,height=17.3pt]{--} to raise my en-dashes a little when \setff{ac} (for all caps) didn't work with one font. 10. problematic characters in grid typesetting. Unless I set grid=verytolerant, my 'Q' knocks the next line down a notch. Is there a better way to deal with this? > > switch and finding it practically impossible. I imagine many people > > try, spend a week trying to get it to work and then give up and go > > back to LaTeX. > > Why do you? Because I think it might be possible to produce better output with Context than with LaTeX (is this true?). My experience has been quite different from yours. I got up an running with LaTeX in a week (in 1995), found the documentation clear and almost any effect I wanted easy to achieve with well-documented packages that never seriously conflicted. This, on the other hand, is a nightmare.

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The ConTeXt book
by Michael Saunders 03 Apr '10

03 Apr '10

"This is the project which has only 5 or 6 users. Who actually uses it? Use LaTeX!" That's the feeling I'm getting. I'm finding it hard to do a lot of basic things in Context. Maybe Context can do them and maybe it can't, but there is no way to find out. If the claims that Context is better really aren't empty, I would expect a lot of people to switch, but I imagine 99% of them are in the same boat I'm in---trying to switch and finding it practically impossible. I imagine many people try, spend a week trying to get it to work and then give up and go back to LaTeX. Mojca's point, that Context is commercial, may be the key: it can be free in name only but if the means of using it are kept secret, it's only of benefit to Pragma. (Hans himself mentioned earlier that there are many undocumented options for use in-house only that outsiders see in the code and wonder about.) Taco's objection that no one helps with the community project to update the reference manual is reasonable, but also predictable: strangers cannot simply wander in and write the book. The knowledge is in Hans's head (and maybe a few others), and only they can communicate it. It's evident that they either can't or won't. I really would like to see the quality of computer typesetting advance, and I was hopeful at hearing about Luatex/Context. I'd love to see Context produce better output more easily than LaTeX, but so far I'm putting a lot of effort into it to get some very disappointing results. One might place some hope in a future (21st c.?) LaTeX 3 based on Luatex, but that would depend on Hans explaining how Luatex works, and it seems doubtful that would ever happen. For now I'm sticking with Context because I still hope there might be some value in it, but it's hard to find.

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Error under Ubuntu Lnux
by Alain Delmotte 03 Apr '10

03 Apr '10

Hi! I installed Ubuntu 9.10 (in a VMWare Player under Windows) I also installed the minimals and TeXworks (in the ConTeXt tree). I run setuptex, TeXworks but then I get an error. Here information: This is LuaTeX, Version beta-0.50.0-2009122419 \write18 enabled. (/home/alain/Documents/context/premier.tex ConTeXt ver: 2010.03.30 18:56 MKIV fmt: 2010.4.1 int: english/english .../... For a simple source (created under Linux), here the source and the error: % a comment \starttext This is some text! \stoptext ------------------ .../... fonts : preloading latin modern fonts {/home/alain/context/tex/texmf/fonts/map/dvips/lm/lm-math.map}{/home/alain/context/tex/texmf/fonts/map/dvips/lm/lm-rm.map} bodyfont : 12pt rm is loaded language : language en is active {/home/alain/context/tex/texmf-context/fonts/map/pdftex/context/mkiv-base.map} systems : begin file untitled-1.tex at line 3 error: ...text/tex/texmf-context/tex/context/base/spac-ver.lua:610: attempt to index field 'spec' (a nil value) . l.6 ? Process interrupted by user ------------------------------------ For a longer source (from Windows): fonts : preloading latin modern fonts {/home/alain/context/tex/texmf/fonts/map/dvips/lm/lm-math.map}{/home/alain/context/tex/texmf/fonts/map/dvips/lm/lm-rm.map} bodyfont : 12pt rm is loaded language : language en is active {/home/alain/context/tex/texmf-context/fonts/map/pdftex/context/mkiv-base.map} systems : begin file premier.tex at line 1 error: ...text/tex/texmf-context/tex/context/base/spac-ver.lua:848: attempt to index local 'ps' (a nil value) . \dosomelistelement ...\relax \fi }\hss }}\endgraf \nointerlineskip \endgraf ... \dodolistelement ...ement {#1}{#2}{#3}{#4}{#5}{#6} \global \utilitydonetrue \processlistofstructure ...\fi \fi \fi \endcsname \ctxlua {structure.lists.p... l.1 \processlistofstructure{section}{section}{1} \placestructurelist ...ts.process("#1","#2","#3")} \doplacecombinedlist ...dlistparameter \c!number } \doendoflist \stoplistrefe... ... l.4 ? ---------------------------------- Any advice to solve this? Thanks, Alain

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The ConTeXt book
by Arthur Reutenauer 03 Apr '10

03 Apr '10

Hello, This is to inform you that's I've been commissioned by Hans and Taco to work on a manual for ConTeXt, under their supervision, during the next 12 months. After the recent discussions about documentation on this list, they have agreed that the lack of a complete manual was getting more and more serious, and they have decided to fix this by delegating this task. The project will be financed full-time by Pragma and Bittext, their respective companies, and we're seeking other sources that would allow us to pay another writer. Anyone volunteering on behalf of her / his company, or of her / his own initiative, please contact us! Over the next weeks I will collect opinions from users about their respective priorities, and what they (you!) think the book should look like. Cheers, Hans (pragma at wxs do nl) Taco (taco at elvenkind dot com) Arthur (arthur dot reutenauer at normalesup dot org)

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