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author | Norbert Preining <norbert@preining.info> | 2019-09-02 13:46:59 +0900 |
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committer | Norbert Preining <norbert@preining.info> | 2019-09-02 13:46:59 +0900 |
commit | e0c6872cf40896c7be36b11dcc744620f10adf1d (patch) | |
tree | 60335e10d2f4354b0674ec22d7b53f0f8abee672 /info/impatient/errata.future |
Initial commit
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-rw-r--r-- | info/impatient/errata.future | 268 |
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diff --git a/info/impatient/errata.future b/info/impatient/errata.future new file mode 100644 index 0000000000..78ed14aba3 --- /dev/null +++ b/info/impatient/errata.future @@ -0,0 +1,268 @@ +$Id: errata.future,v 1.2 2011/01/27 22:16:24 karl Exp $ + +Ideas for future changes. Did not make these in the free edition since +I didn't want to change the page breaks because I didn't want to install +Icon so I could regenerate the index -- aside from lack of time and +inclination. :) See the README. + + +- incorporate the images in the artwork/ subdirectory. + +- discuss CTAN, other Internet resources, plain or generic macro + packages, and so on. + +- extend with descriptions of e-TeX, pdftex, omega. + +- html output, perhaps using tex2page. + http://www.ccs.neu.edu/home/dorai/tex2page/tex2page-doc.html + (tex4ht did nothing useful with it, but maybe with work ...) + + +from Will Adams: + + - p. 105 (and throughout) the encoding for Zapf Dingbats doesn't +agree w/ what was used and instead of a right pointing hand dingbat, a +Star of David appears on the .pdf + + - p. 113 - text overlaps / crashes here, I think 'cause some stuff +escaped out of Verbatim mode. + + - colophon - this appears on a verso, not a recto, which I find a bit odd. + +One last bit of consideration is how you want to handle the cover / +frontmatter. + + +from Karl and Kathy: + +* The default values should probably be in roman everywhere. I don't +think `6pt plus 1pt minus 2pt' looks bad in roman any more, which was +the original impetus for printing them in typewriter, as I recall. +It is pretty random right now. (Numbers are usually printed in roman, +for example.) + +* The index might look better printed without the commas after the term. +Also, there should be some way to indicate usages of control sequences, +as opposed to explanations. We could do what Knuth did, and print the +entries in another font (typewriter would be appropriate, perhaps). We +could also just have a subentry `examples' or `using' or something. + +* `\langle f' and `l\rangle' are too close. I don't know if the macros +can be hacked to add more space for just those characters. + +* The way (short) lists are punctuated is inconsistent. In (at least) +four places (pp.3,18,56,265) the items are capitalized and end with +period. In most others (2,72,74,81,83,234) they are not capitalized and +have no ending punctuation. And in two (76,238) they are not capitalized +and end with a period. I realize that the same form is not always +appropriate, but this is not true very often. Personally, I prefer a +form like: + +\list +\item item 1, +\item item 2, +\item last item. +\endlist + +but whatever. + +* In most places where we say `.dvi' we aren't really talking about the +file extension. `{\sc DVI}' would be more appropriate. + +* The Preface, Brief Contents, and Contents chapter opening pages start +too high and too far to the left. This is probably a consequence of +\chapter changing and \shortchapter not. + + +(The rest of the changes are by page number.) + +1 Section 13 is also designed to be accessed randomly. Also, wouldn't it +be better to use section names as well as numbers? + +7 (first para) local information tells you => local information will +tell you, since they couldn't have found it yet. + +9 (first para) by typing something => by first typing something, since +they have to do more to input screed. +(bottom) unclosed left parenthesis => unmatched left parenthesis. + +10 The third in the subsection (with ``typeset me'') looks like it has +extra space in it. + +12 (bottom) supposed to produce => supposed to do, because the macro +might not be supposed to produce anything at all. + +16 Say that TeX does its own spacing in formulas. This is probably the +most crucial fact about doing math in TeX. Index `spacing, in formulas' +and `formulas, spacing in'. +(math formulas) can appear in text ... or set off => can appear in +text ... or can appear set off, for structure. +enclose a text formula in => enclose a text formula within + +17 (last para) The kind of entity TeX is assembling determines the mode +it's in, it doesn't define it. I tend to think of it in the other +direction: the mode TeX is in determines the entity TeX is assembling. + +21 (last para) It would be clearer to actually define \xmpheader in the +first example and then use it. As it is, it's not entirely clear which +commands in the first example go into it. +(bottom) is defined in plain TeX => is either a primitive or defined +in plain TeX. + +22 You use the en-dash in the place where an em-dash should be in the +last sentence. + +23 (three instances near the top) The comments should have periods at +the end and be capitalized properly. We are remarkably inconsistent on +this throughout. In some cases, the comments aren't complete sentences, +so periods are unnecessary. But sometimes, as here, they are complete +sentences, so we should have periods. And sometimes they're sentences +and not capitalized. + +24 If we didn't put space between these paragraphs, you would have a +hard time => If we hadn't ..., you would have had ..., to remove the +time warp. + +25 % The left brace start => % The { starts, to shorten the line. +(middle) % Skips like this => % Skips like that, because one of the +skips was just given. + +26 fonts won't give you => fonts don't give you +page 100 and page 97 => pages 97 and 100 + +32 (bottom) try to use these commands => try to use those commands, +since the commands are above the comment. +Also, they can get lists with more levels than one by using the Eplain +list stuff, instead of programming it themselves, alas. + +34 The title might be better as `Using non-Computer Modern fonts' or +something, since we haven't said what the first source is. + +37 (towards the top) => Use \vtop for short multiline entries => Use +\vtop to get whole paragraphs, since ``multiline entries'' is a pretty +stupid term (that I wrote). +(towards the bottom) % without the kern, the `f' and `l' would be too +close => % Without the kern, the `f' and `l' would be a ligature. + +44 (after example input) Put the page reference (p.176) after the +`\settabs 2 \columns'. + +45 (towards the bottom) treats each entry as a group => puts each entry +into a group, because alignment entries are certainly other things +besides groups. + +46 (top) The \tabskip (p.184) => The \tabskip parameter (p.184), and +(top) The \noalign (p.183) commands => The \noalign commands (p.183), +because it reads better; also, we say `the \strut commands (p.167)' +below. +(third para) Two consecutive sentences start with ``A vertical +alignment''. The second one could probably be ``It''. + +51 I guess the box picture never got fixed. (The `reference point' moved +up quite a bit, and the arrow moved up a little. Also, the `baseline' +could be moved down.) + +52 (first two paragraphs): the height/depth of hboxes takes \raise and +\lower into account, and the width of vboxes takes \moveleft and +\moveright into account. +(the list) the box (or rule) => the box or rule, because the rule +case isn't subordinate or anything. This is in both items. + +53 In `cgrok', the `c' is too close to the `grok'. I realize it +shouldn't be a full space, but right now they're practically touching. +Italic correction? Explicit space? + +54 (first line) It would be nice to say the names of categories 11--13. +(third para from top) Chars in categories 11 and 12 don't mean +``produce a box containing this character typeset in the current font''. +They don't produce a box, for one thing. And they don't typeset ``this +character'', either. They typeset whatever is in the font at their +character code. I don't know how you want to explain this, but I think +this is seriously wrong. +(example) control sequence `foo$' => control sequence `\foo$' + +55 (second para) Same problem with characters vs. character code. The +input letter `h' is not transformed into the letter `h' typeset in the +current font. It's transformed into the character at position 104. +The locution now makes it sound as if TeX somehow searches the font for +the letter `h'. +(next para) We should say that the input character's ``code number'' is +the ``character code''. As it is, we never define the latter (I don't +think). +(two more paras) An example showing the 64 less/greater stuff would be +nice. + +56 (under class) is in class 3 => has class 3, because the class is +really an attribute of a character, not an external set of characters. +(before class example) Wouldn't ``arbitrarily changed'' be better +than ``randomly changed''? (Unless you really used a random number +generator.) +(first para of command concept): same problem with characters. TeX +doesn't construct a box containing that character typeset in the current +font. + +57 (under control sequence) with an escape character, usually a +backslash (\) => with an escape character, which is usually the +backslash character, since \ isn't always an escape character. + +58 (control word) It seems a bit inconsistent to footnote ``letter'' +here, and not in either of the previous two concepts. +(delimiter) In `... to one of the commands \left, \right, \overwithdelims, +... (see pp. 201,204)', either the 201 and 204 or the command names +should be switched, since it's \left and \right that are on 204. +(next para) fonts you're using have big enough parens => fonts you're +using can construct big enough parens, because of extensible characters. +Also, it isn't clear that the delimiters produced by \bigl et al. have +fixed size. + +59 (before the list) The terms l-commands and r-commands need some +explanation. + +60 (first line) `the ``small'' character in the ``small'' font' is +misleading. We've already said the small char is in the small font. As +it is, when, a couple sentences below, we say that small character can +be left undefined, it sounds like the small font can't be left +undefined. +(demerits) `cost' should be a concept. + +62 (second para) Put a tie between `family' and `1'. + +65 (under format file) can be created => is created, because there's no +other way to make one. +(last line) two refs to page 228. + +66 (example) the shrinks are 1 and 3, whereas the shrinks on the next +page are 2 and 6. Might as well make them all the same. + +69 {\TeX} => \TeX{} (if we must keep this horrible example). + +71 The item concept is pretty useless as it is; it would be nice to say +what the possible items were, and clearly distinguish items from tokens, +etc. + +72 (towards the bottom) insured that the dots => made the dots, because +we've done something active than ``insure''. + +73 (ligature) the '' and , in office'', aren't kerned. You put +``office'' in an \hbox for some reason. + +80 (math mode) Should say that display math gives you space above and +below the formula. + +84 (page) between exercises => between exercisings? + +86 (page layout) We don't give the default space between the body of the +text and the headers or footers. + +217 \mathsurround should make an index entry for `formulas, spacing +around' or something like that. + +224 I think `Converting information to tokens' is really a misnomer. +How about just calling it `Conversions' and making `Environmental +information' its own section. + +263 `Ending the job' should be next to `Initializing TeX'. + +294 Have an index entry for `logos'. + +298 \unnumberedlist has become \unorderedlist. |