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authorG. Branden Robinson <g.branden.robinson@gmail.com>2023-01-17 11:59:47 -0600
committerG. Branden Robinson <g.branden.robinson@gmail.com>2023-01-17 16:22:48 -0600
commit302b42c07ee3bbe864a466dfb5f721c39e0e2845 (patch)
treef826478e27c18bdbbc92d95ab44df1f6c414676a /tmac
parente9e0ff709f53418852f9301d6667d9e41cb47b1a (diff)
downloadgroff-git-302b42c07ee3bbe864a466dfb5f721c39e0e2845.tar.gz
groff_man*(7): Fix content, style, markup nits.
Content: * Strengthen claims about correct `TH` usage. * Stop using the term "standardized" to describe something that isn't (formally). * Explicitly identify mandb(8)'s predecessor "makewhatis"; it's probably that tool that demands such cautious man(7) document preparation. Style: * Use active voice more. * Tighten wording. * Use modal auxiliary to indicate irrealis mood. (If an ellipsis makes something fit, it no longer overruns.) * Say "typesetting device" instead of "typesetter device", since few devices driven by groff are typesetters per se. Markup: * Apply more poor man's keeps to combat widows and orphans.
Diffstat (limited to 'tmac')
-rw-r--r--tmac/groff_man.7.man.in83
1 files changed, 51 insertions, 32 deletions
diff --git a/tmac/groff_man.7.man.in b/tmac/groff_man.7.man.in
index e434fe83e..69b5551d1 100644
--- a/tmac/groff_man.7.man.in
+++ b/tmac/groff_man.7.man.in
@@ -180,7 +180,7 @@ _
.
.
.P
-Macros whose use we discourage
+We discuss other macros
.RB ( .AT ,
.BR .DT ,
.BR .HP ,
@@ -188,7 +188,7 @@ Macros whose use we discourage
.BR .PD ,
and
.BR .UC )
-are described in subsection \(lqDeprecated features\(rq below.
+in subsection \(lqDeprecated features\(rq below.
.
.
.P
@@ -491,7 +491,7 @@ with ellipses
_ifstyle()dnl
.RB ( .\|.\|.\& )
_endif()dnl
-if they overrun the space available in the header and footer,
+if they would overrun the space available in the header and footer,
respectively.
.
For HTML output,
@@ -500,19 +500,24 @@ headers and footers are suppressed.
.
.IP
Additionally,
-this macro starts a new page;
-the page number is reset to\~1
+this macro breaks the page,
+resetting the number to\~1
(unless the
.B \-rC1
option is given).
.
-This feature is intended only for formatting multiple man pages.
+This feature is intended only for formatting multiple
+.I man
+documents.
.
.
.IP
-A man page should contain exactly one
+A valid
+.I man
+document calls
.B .TH
-call at or near the beginning of the file,
+once,
+early in the file,
prior to any other macro calls.
_ifstyle()dnl
.
@@ -546,7 +551,7 @@ in bold
(or the font specified by the string
.BR HF )
and,
-on typesetter devices,
+on typesetting devices,
slightly larger than the base type size.
.
If the heading font
@@ -567,7 +572,7 @@ is set as an ordinary paragraph
.IP
The content of
.I heading-text
-and ordering of sections has been standardized by common practice,
+and ordering of sections follows a set of common practices,
as has much of the layout of material within sections.
.
For example,
@@ -710,8 +715,9 @@ installation.
.TP
.BR .RS " ["\c
.IR indentation ]
-Start a new relative inset level,
-moving the left margin right by
+Start a new relative inset level.
+.
+The left margin moves right by
.I indentation,
if specified,
and by a default amount otherwise;
@@ -720,10 +726,11 @@ see subsection \(lqHorizontal and vertical spacing\(rq below.
Calls to
.B .RS
can be nested;
-each call increments by\~1 the inset level used by
+each increments \" by\~1
+the inset level used by
.BR .RE .
.
-The inset level prior to any
+The level prior to any
.B .RS
calls is\~1.
.
@@ -1525,7 +1532,7 @@ macros set text in roman or bold,
respectively,
at a smaller type size;
these differ visually from regular-sized roman or bold text only on
-typesetter devices.
+typesetting devices.
.
It is often necessary to set text in different styles without
intervening space.
@@ -1558,8 +1565,10 @@ and inlined literals.
_endif()dnl
.
.
+.br
+.ne 2v
.P
-The default type size and family for typesetter devices is 10-point
+The default type size and family for typesetting devices is 10-point
Times,
except on the
.B \%X75\-12
@@ -1653,7 +1662,7 @@ _endif()dnl
.IR text ]
Set
.I text
-one point smaller than the default type size on typesetter devices.
+one point smaller than the default type size on typesetting devices.
.
If no argument is given,
a one-line input trap is planted;
@@ -1683,7 +1692,7 @@ _endif()dnl
Set
.I text
in bold and
-(on typesetter devices)
+(on typesetting devices)
one point smaller than the default type size.
.
If no argument is given,
@@ -1966,7 +1975,7 @@ and the default used when
and the deprecated
.B .HP
are not given an indentation argument,
-is 7.2n for typesetter devices
+is 7.2n for typesetting devices
and 7n for terminal devices
(but see the
.B \-rIN
@@ -2154,13 +2163,13 @@ and the deprecated
The default inter-section and inter-paragraph spacing is
is 1v for terminal devices
_ifstyle()dnl
-and 0.4v for typesetter devices
+and 0.4v for typesetting devices
(\(lqv\(rq is a unit of vertical distance,
where 1v is the distance between adjacent text baselines in a
single-spaced document).
_endif()dnl
_ifnotstyle()dnl
-and 0.4v for typesetter devices.
+and 0.4v for typesetting devices.
_endif()dnl
.
(The deprecated macro
@@ -2187,6 +2196,8 @@ file as well;
see section \(lqFiles\(rq below.
.
.
+.br
+.ne 7v
.\" ====================================================================
.SS Strings
.\" ====================================================================
@@ -2530,7 +2541,7 @@ a non-breaking space.
.
Used primarily in ellipses
(\(lq.\e|.\e|.\(rq)
-to space the dots more pleasantly on typesetter devices like PostScript
+to space the dots more pleasantly on typesetting devices like PostScript
and PDF.
.
.
@@ -2924,7 +2935,7 @@ Set the page header text
.
.
.P
-If you want to remove a page header or footer entirely,
+To remove a page header or footer entirely,
`define' the appropriate macro as empty rather than deleting it.
.
.
@@ -3025,12 +3036,15 @@ is handled as with
Use of this presentation-oriented macro is deprecated.
.
A hanging indentation cannot be expressed naturally under HTML,
-and HTML-based man page processors may interpret it as starting an
-ordinary paragraph.
+and
+.RI non- roff -based
+man page interpreters may treat
+.B .HP
+as an ordinary paragraph.
.
Thus,
-any information or distinction you mean to express with the indentation
-may be lost.
+information or distinctions you mean to express with indentation may be
+lost.
.
.
.TP
@@ -3446,7 +3460,7 @@ indentation.
.BI \-rLL= line-length
Set line length;
the default is 78n for terminal devices
-and 6.5i for typesetter devices.
+and 6.5i for typesetting devices.
.
.
.TP
@@ -3517,6 +3531,8 @@ See subsection \(lqHorizontal and vertical spacing\(rq above for the
default.
.
.
+.br
+.ne 4v
.TP
.B \-rU1
Enable generation of URI hyperlinks in the
@@ -3639,12 +3655,13 @@ To reduce the risk of name space collisions,
string and register names begin only with
.RB \[lq] m \[rq] .
.
-Man page authors concerned about portability to legacy Unix systems are
-encouraged to copy these definitions into their pages,
+We encourage man page authors
+who are concerned about portability to legacy Unix systems
+to copy these definitions into their pages,
and maintainers of
.I troff \" generic
-implementations or work-alike systems that format man pages are
-encouraged to re-use them.
+implementations or work-alike systems that format man pages
+to re-use them.
.
.
.IP
@@ -3662,6 +3679,8 @@ Furthermore,
it is wise to `define' such page-local macros
(if at all)
after the \(lqName\(rq section to accommodate timid
+.I makewhatis
+or
.I mandb
implementations that may give up their scan for indexing material early.
.