> On 16 Jun 2025, at 15:06, John Was <johnoxuk@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Thanks - it's at least useful to know what I needn't waste my time on!
>
> I see that I shall also have to master ConTexT's commands for tables, though I hope they are customizable (as per my training at OUP a lifetime ago, I like a half-point rule at the beginning and end but a quarter-point rule between headings and the data).  Plain (Xe)TeX's \halign command works only for that generally useless item, a table with only one column - if you try add an extra column the setting halts and one is presented with the false information that there is more than one instance of # between instances of & in the setup of the table.  They lie!

This should help:

https://wiki.contextgarden.net/Tables/Natural_tables_with_TABLE#Rules

> I'm disappointed that I can't use \catcode = \active to do anything useful - I do often use that, particularly to fetch a character not in the typeface.  For example, if I want a  yogh and am obliged to use a particular typeface (because of house style for a journal or book series) that doesn't have the character, I would give in the file header in XeTeX:
>
> \catcode"0292=\active
> \defʒ{\yogh}
>
> (I have \yogh defined as 'put \char"0292 here, grouped within {}, from Junicode'.)  That allows me to keep the character  ʒ  in the input file and leave it to TeX to carry out the appropriate instruction whenever it encounters it.
>
> This is prohibited in ConTexT, I find, but I'll have to learn a new way of achieving the same thing.

\yogh is not predefined in ConTeXt. The \catcode change itself is fine, but you will have to come up with a definition for \yogh. Something like

  \def\yogh{{\switchtobodyfont[dejavu]\char"0292 }}


Best wishes,
Taco


—
Taco Hoekwater              E: taco@bittext.nl
genderfluid (all pronouns)


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