From 72c9345e5bafe708888bf65448a81d1aee8275ed Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Norbert Preining Date: Sat, 5 Oct 2019 03:01:15 +0000 Subject: CTAN sync 201910050301 --- macros/latex/base/ltnews17.tex | 230 +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 230 insertions(+) create mode 100644 macros/latex/base/ltnews17.tex (limited to 'macros/latex/base/ltnews17.tex') diff --git a/macros/latex/base/ltnews17.tex b/macros/latex/base/ltnews17.tex new file mode 100644 index 0000000000..f55300f447 --- /dev/null +++ b/macros/latex/base/ltnews17.tex @@ -0,0 +1,230 @@ +% \iffalse meta-comment +% +% Copyright (C) 1993-2019 +% The LaTeX3 Project and any individual authors listed elsewhere +% in this file. +% +% This file is part of the LaTeX base system. +% ------------------------------------------- +% +% It may be distributed and/or modified under the +% conditions of the LaTeX Project Public License, either version 1.3c +% of this license or (at your option) any later version. +% The latest version of this license is in +% http://www.latex-project.org/lppl.txt +% and version 1.3c or later is part of all distributions of LaTeX +% version 2008 or later. +% +% This file has the LPPL maintenance status "maintained". +% +% The list of all files belonging to the LaTeX base distribution is +% given in the file `manifest.txt'. See also `legal.txt' for additional +% information. +% +% The list of derived (unpacked) files belonging to the distribution +% and covered by LPPL is defined by the unpacking scripts (with +% extension .ins) which are part of the distribution. +% +% \fi +% Filename: ltnews17.tex +% +% This is issue 17 of LaTeX News. + +\documentclass +% [lw35fonts] % uncomment this line to get Palatino + {ltnews}[2004/02/28] + +% \usepackage[T1]{fontenc} + + +\publicationmonth{December} +\publicationyear{2005} +\publicationissue{17} + +\begin{document} + +\maketitle + +% \raisefirstsection + +\section{Project licence news} + +The \LaTeX{} Project Public License has been updated slightly so that +it is now version 1.3c. In the warranty section the +phrase ``unless required by applicable law'' has been reinstated, +having got lost at some point. Also, +it now contains three clarifications: of the difference between +``maintained'' and ``author-maintained''; of the +term ``Base Interpreter''; and when clause 6b and 6d shall not apply. + +Following requests, we now also provide the text of the licence as a +\LaTeX{} document (in the file \texttt{lppl.tex}). This file can be +processed either as a stand-alone document or it can be included +(without any modification) into another \LaTeX{} document, e.g., as an +appendix, using \verb|\input| or \verb|\include|. + + +\section{New guide on font encodings} + +Way back in 1995 work was started on a guide to document the +officially allocated \LaTeX{} font encoding names. However, for one +reason or another this guide (named \textit{\LaTeX{} font encodings}) +was, until now, not added to the distribution. It describes the major +7-bit and 8-bit font encodings used in the \LaTeX{} world and explains +the restrictions required of conforming text font encodings. It also +lists all the `encoding specific commands' (the LICR or \LaTeX{} +Internal Character Representation) for characters supported by the +encodings \texttt{OT1} and \texttt{T1}. + +When the file \texttt{encguide.tex} is processed by \LaTeX{}, it will +attempt to typeset an encoding table for each encoding it describes. +For this to be possible, \LaTeX{} must be able to find \texttt{.tfm} +files for a representative example font for each encoding. If +\LaTeX{} cannot find such a file then a warning is issued and the +corresponding table is omitted. + + +\section{Robust commands in math} + +The font changing commands in text-mode have been robust commands for years, +but the same has not been true for the math versions such as +\verb|\mathbf|. While the math-mode commands worked correctly in +section heads, they could cause problems in other places such as index +entries. With this release, these math-mode commands are now robust in +the same way as their text-mode counterparts. + +%% +\pagebreak +%% + + +\section{Updates of required packages} + +Several of the packages in the \package{tools} bundle have been updated +for this release. + +The \package{xspace} package has some new features. One is an +interface for adding and removing the exceptions it knows about and +another is that it works with active characters. These remove problems +of incompatibility with the \package{babel} system. + +In \textit{\LaTeX\ News~16} we announced that some packages might +begin to take advantage of \eTeX{} extensions on systems where these +are available: and the latest version of \package{xspace} does just +that. Note also that \package{fixltx2e} will make use of the +facilities in \eTeX{} whenever these are present (see below). + +The \package{calc} package has also been given an update with a few +extra commands. +The commands \verb|\maxof| and \verb|\minof|, each with two +brace-delimited arguments, provide the usual numeric $\max$ and $\min$ +operations. The commands \verb|\settototalheight| and +\verb|\totalheightof| work like \verb|\settoheight| and +\verb|\heightof|. There are also some internal improvements to make +\package{calc} work with some more primitive \TeX\ constructs, such as +\verb|\ifcase|. + +The \package{varioref} package has acquired a few more default +strings but there are still a number of languages for +which good strings are still missing. + +The \package{showkeys} package has also been updated slightly to work +with more recent developments in \package{varioref}. Also, it now +provides an easy way to define the look of the printed labels with +the command \verb|\showkeyslabelformat|. + +\section{Work on \LaTeX{} fixes} + +The package known as \package{fixltx2e} has three new additions. A new +command \verb|\textsubscript| has been added as a complement to the +command \verb|\textsuperscript| in the kernel. Secondly, a new form of +\verb|\DeclareMathSizes| that allows all of its arguments to have a +dimension suffix. This means you can now use expressions such as +\verb|\DeclareMathSizes{9.5dd}{9.5dd}{7.4dd}{6.6dd}|. + +The third new +addition is the robust command \verb|\TextOrMath| which takes two +arguments and executes one of them when typesetting in text or math +mode respectively. This command also takes advantage of \eTeX{} +extensions if available; more specifically, +%% +%%\pagebreak +%% +when the \eTeX{} extensions are available, it does not +destroy kerning between previous letters and the text to be typeset. +The command is also used +internally in \package{fixltx2e} to resolve a problem with +\verb|\fnsymbol|. + +Also, further work has been done on reimplementing +the command \verb|\addpenalty|, which is used internally in several +places: we hope it is an improvement! + +\section{The graphics bundle} + +The \package{graphics} bundle now supports the +\package{dvipdfmx} post-processor and Jonathan Kew's XE\TeX\ +program. By support we mean that the graphics packages recognize the +new options \texttt{xetex} and \texttt{dvipdfmx} but we do not +distribute the respective driver files. + +This leads elegantly to a description of the +new policy concerning such driver files in the \package{graphics} bundle. +Most driver files for our graphics packages are maintained by the +developers of the associated post-processor or \TeX\ programs. +The teams developing these packages are working very hard: their rapid +development offers a stark contrast to the current schedule of \LaTeX\ +releases. It is therefore no longer practical +for the \LaTeX\ Team to be responsible for distributing the +latest versions of these driver files. + +Therefore the installation files for \package{graphics} have been +split: there is now \file{graphics.ins} to install the package files and +\file{graphics-drivers.ins} for the driver files (located in +\file{drivers.dtx}). +There is no need +to install all those provided in the file \file{drivers.dtx}. + +Please also note that, as requested by the maintainers of +\package{PStricks}, we have removed the package \package{pstcol} as +current versions of \package{PSTricks} make it obsolete. + +%% +\newpage +%% + + +\section{Future development} + +The title of this section is a little misleading as it actually +describes \emph{current} development. In 1998 the \package{expl3} +bundle of packages was put on \ctan\ to demonstrate a possible \LaTeX3 +programming environment. These packages have been lying dormant for some +time while the \LaTeX\ Project Team were preoccupied by other things +such as developing the experimental packages \package{xor}, +\package{template}, etc., (and also writing that indispensable +and encyclopaedic volume,\\ +The \LaTeX{} Companion -- 2nd edition). + +In October 2004 work on this code base was resumed with the goal of +some day turning it into a kernel for \LaTeX3. This work can now +also make full use of the widely accepted \eTeX\ extensions. Currently +two areas are central to this work. + +\begin{itemize} +\item Extending the + kernel code of \LaTeX3. +\item Converting the experimental packages + such as \package{xor}, \package{template} to use the new + syntax internally. +\end{itemize} + +Beware! Development of +\package{expl3} is happening so fast that the descriptions above might +be out of date when you read this! If you wish to see what's going on +then go to +\url{http://www.latex-project.org/code.html} where you can download + fully working code (we hope!). + +\end{document} + -- cgit v1.2.3