good-looking tables in context
Hi all, I have to present a lot of numerical data in tables. However, I don't know how to achieve aesthetically pleasing results in context. (Ex)-Latex users may know the booktabs package which is a great help in this respect. I would like to achieve the same in context now. I have attached a small example file (source and pdf). Let me draw your attention to the most important points: - There are rules of different thickness for top, bottom, and middle rules. - The spacing between rows before / after / around the rules is nicely adjusted automatically. - Rules not spanning all columns, like the one in the header, can be trimmed at the left and the right so that they do not extend entirely to the start/end oft the first/last column. I think all three features are essential for convenient typesetting of tables with acceptable output. How can I produce this in context? I am aware of the different table mechanisms. As far as I have seen in the available documentation, none of them is currently suited for what I want. Or am I wrong? I hope so, and I am grateful for your hints and comments. Regards, Eckhart
Hi Eckhart,
- There are rules of different thickness for top, bottom, and middle rules.
[...] One day I hacked my own code around some tabulate material to get this (rulethickness) done. I whish this feature would be in the kernel. I sometimes do heavy tabulate typesetting. This is one of the last reasons using LaTeX for me. Sorry of not being of any help. Patrick -- ConTeXt wiki: http://contextgarden.net
On Wed, 30 Mar 2005 at 22:38:15+0200, Patrick Gundlach wrote:
I sometimes do heavy tabulate typesetting. This is one of the last reasons using LaTeX for me.
Oh yes indeed. I think this is really the last thing where context is inferior to latex. Well, not really inferior when considering capabilities like those offered by natural tables. But concerning the final output, yes. And unfortunately, tables are very important for my next project. When I think of a hundred-or-so-pages document with many floats, using latex - I thought I would never have to go through this again. And I simply can't imagine anymore living with things like context's float placement, metapost tricks, hanging punctuation, great support for crazy feature request, etc. To be honest, I even thought of including latex tables as figures generated from inline code... -- Eckhart
Eckhart Guthöhrlein wrote:
On Wed, 30 Mar 2005 at 22:38:15+0200, Patrick Gundlach wrote:
I sometimes do heavy tabulate typesetting. This is one of the last reasons using LaTeX for me.
Oh yes indeed. I think this is really the last thing where context is inferior to latex. Well, not really inferior when considering capabilities like those offered by natural tables. But concerning the final output, yes. And unfortunately, tables are very important for my next project. When I think of a hundred-or-so-pages document with many floats, using latex - I thought I would never have to go through this again. And I simply can't imagine anymore living with things like context's float placement, metapost tricks, hanging punctuation, great support for crazy feature request, etc. To be honest, I even thought of including latex tables as figures generated from inline code...
what exactly are you missing? Hans ----------------------------------------------------------------- Hans Hagen | PRAGMA ADE Ridderstraat 27 | 8061 GH Hasselt | The Netherlands tel: 038 477 53 69 | fax: 038 477 53 74 | www.pragma-ade.com | www.pragma-pod.nl -----------------------------------------------------------------
Hello Hans, [LaTeX tables]
what exactly are you missing?
There is a good file that pretty much describes what I am missing (perhaps haven't found in a manual - I never looked that close): http://www.ctan.org/tex-archive/macros/latex/contrib/booktabs/booktabs.pdf There are commands like \toprule, \midrule, \bottomrule that insert horizontal rules with different thickness (default values, optional ones can be added with [..] right after the command). Eckhart has sent an example in his first post. To get a horizontal rule from column a to column b you can (in LaTeX) use: \cmidrule[<wd>](<trim>){a–b} where wd is the rulethickness, trim is where to cut off a bit, and a, b the columns. This is a very nice command that I often use. \addlinespace addes a little space between rows. Table preambles can be complicated... but the next one is pretty simple: \begin{tabular}{@{}rll*{22}cv{40em}@{}} means: to the left of the table, there should be no whitespace (i.e. the leftmost glyph of the table should be tight to the preceding glyph) now, there is a right aligned column, two left aligned, 22 centered columns and one type "v" and to the right there should be no whitespace either. The column type v is defined like this \newcolumntype{v}[1]{>{\raggedright\hspace{0pt}}p{#1}} Ragged right but so that the first word can be hyphenated. Or another columntype could be: \newcolumntype{R}[1]{%
{\begin{turn}{90}\begin{minipage}[t][0pt]{#1}\smalltabsize\raggedright\hspace{0pt}}l% <{\end{minipage}\end{turn}}% }
that would lead to rotated raggedright text in a smaller font. I know that ConTeXt tables have a lot of features that LaTeX tables don't have. Patrick -- ConTeXt wiki: http://contextgarden.net
Patrick Gundlach wrote:
There are commands like \toprule, \midrule, \bottomrule that insert horizontal rules with different thickness (default values, optional ones can be added with [..] right after the command). Eckhart has sent an example in his first post.
\starttable[|||] \HL[2] \NC test \NC test \NC \FR \HL[5] \NC test \NC test \NC \MR \HL[8] \NC test \NC test \NC \LR \HL[2] \stoptable
To get a horizontal rule from column a to column b you can (in LaTeX) use:
\cmidrule[<wd>](<trim>){a–b}
where wd is the rulethickness, trim is where to cut off a bit, and a, b the columns. This is a very nice command that I often use.
\starttable[||||] \HL[2] \NC test \NC test \NC test \NC \FR \DC \DL[2] \DR \NC test \NC test \NC test \NC \MR \HL[8] \NC test \NC test \NC test \NC \LR \HL[2] \stoptable
\addlinespace addes a little space between rows.
we have \SR for that
Table preambles can be complicated... but the next one is pretty simple:
\begin{tabular}{@{}rll*{22}cv{40em}@{}}
means: to the left of the table, there should be no whitespace (i.e. the leftmost glyph of the table should be tight to the preceding glyph) now, there is a right aligned column, two left aligned, 22 centered columns and one type "v" and to the right there should be no whitespace either. The column type v is defined like this
\framed[offset=overlay]{% \starttable[s0|s1r|l|l|*{2}{c}|] \NC right \NC left \NC left \NC one \NC two \AR \NC r \NC l \NC l \NC 1 \NC 2 \AR \stoptable } something is wrong with the format key defining mechanism and hooks; i need to check this [actually, i need to merge the original table code and my patches into one file so that i can make things more robust]
\newcolumntype{v}[1]{>{\raggedright\hspace{0pt}}p{#1}}
Ragged right but so that the first word can be hyphenated.
Or another columntype could be:
\newcolumntype{R}[1]{%
{\begin{turn}{90}\begin{minipage}[t][0pt]{#1}\smalltabsize\raggedright\hspace{0pt}}l% <{\end{minipage}\end{turn}}% }
that would lead to rotated raggedright text in a smaller font.
keys ... but i need to fix something
I know that ConTeXt tables have a lot of features that LaTeX tables don't have.
hidden features -) Hans ----------------------------------------------------------------- Hans Hagen | PRAGMA ADE Ridderstraat 27 | 8061 GH Hasselt | The Netherlands tel: 038 477 53 69 | fax: 038 477 53 74 | www.pragma-ade.com | www.pragma-pod.nl -----------------------------------------------------------------
Hello Hans,
\starttable[|||] \HL[2] \NC test \NC test \NC \FR \HL[5] \NC test \NC test \NC \MR \HL[8] \NC test \NC test \NC \LR \HL[2] \stoptable
These [n] are multiplies of a default dimension? I'd like to say \TR for a default (predefined, thicker) top rule or \TR[30pt] for a very thick top rule. Same with a \MR and \BR (mid rule, bottom rule), but these names are already used... I see: with s0 the table is trimmed left and right. Great.
To get a horizontal rule from column a to column b you can (in LaTeX) use: \cmidrule[<wd>](<trim>){a–b} where wd is the rulethickness, trim is where to cut off a bit, and a, b the columns. This is a very nice command that I often use.
\starttable[||||] \HL[2] \NC test \NC test \NC test \NC \FR \DC \DL[2] \DR \NC test \NC test \NC test \NC \MR \HL[8] \NC test \NC test \NC test \NC \LR \HL[2] \stoptable
Is it possible to trim the second horizontal rule so that the left and right edge are cut off?
\addlinespace addes a little space between rows.
we have \SR for that
And here again, I'd like to be able to specify the vertical spacing. Thanks so far, I am getting closer. And I promise to write a myway once I can make a table like the ones I am used to. Patrick -- ConTeXt wiki: http://contextgarden.net
Good to know about the optional parameter of \HL. I still miss the same things as Patrick: - rules of arbitrary thickness (not only multiples of something) - fine-tuning of vertical spacing, especially around thicker rules - left/right trimming of horizontal lines Patrick, please let me know if you manage to produce something booktabs-like. Thanks, -- Eckhart
On Wed, Apr 06, 2005 at 02:19:18PM +0200, Eckhart Guthöhrlein wrote:
- left/right trimming of horizontal lines
What do you mean by left/right trimming? If I am correct, doesn't one use \DL to draw a line at the bottom of a cell, \DC to not draw a line, and \DL to end the row? This means one can draw lines just for the cells one wants in any manner. Paul -- ************************ *Paul Tremblay * *phthenry@iglou.com * ************************
Paul Tremblay
On Wed, Apr 06, 2005 at 02:19:18PM +0200, Eckhart Guthöhrlein wrote:
- left/right trimming of horizontal lines
What do you mean by left/right trimming?
a line that goes to the border of the cell but not further, i.e. it does not extend into the space between two cells. So two cells next to each other would look like this: | | | | -|------------| |-------------|- | | | | one right trimmed and one left trimmed rule. this would be the untrimmed variant | | | | -|-----------------------------|- | | | | see the file booktabs.pdf (that describes a LaTeX package) on page two. Compare the table two and three. Esp. the rule below "Item". It should not advance over the word Description.
If I am correct, doesn't one use \DL to draw a line at the bottom of a cell, \DC to not draw a line, and \DL to end the row? This means one can draw lines just for the cells one wants in any manner.
See this table. The middle rule is too wide for me. It needs left and right timming. \starttable[||||] \HL[2] \NC test \NC test \NC test \NC \FR \DC \DL[2] \DR \NC test \NC test \NC test \NC \MR \HL[2] \stoptable Patrick -- ConTeXt wiki and more: http://contextgarden.net
participants (4)
-
Eckhart Guthöhrlein -
Hans Hagen -
Patrick Gundlach -
Paul Tremblay