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diff --git a/Master/texmf-dist/doc/context/context-omega/hamid.mail b/Master/texmf-dist/doc/context/context-omega/hamid.mail deleted file mode 100644 index 3e6162eaff6..00000000000 --- a/Master/texmf-dist/doc/context/context-omega/hamid.mail +++ /dev/null @@ -1,146 +0,0 @@ -Dear friends of Omega, - -I have made some good progress using Omega under ConTeXt and I would -like to share some of what I have learned with you all, including a -small contribution to the Omega and ConTeXt communities. - -First off let me say that I am extremely impressed with the ConTeXt -macropackage. Many of us use TeX and especially Omega not so much for -math typesetting primarily but for superb scholarly typesetting of -books and similar publications. From the point of view of the kind of -_general_ typographical flexibility needed for books and journals -ConTeXt far surpasses LaTeX in my opinion. By `general' I mean not -taking into account mathematics and the niche areas in which LaTeX -excels so well. LaTeX was originally designed to keep the user from -having to make typographical decisions; this, while arguably good for -publishing articles and reports, really gets in the way for scholarly -publishing purposes (though the wonderful memoir class by Peter Wilson -begins to address this and other issues). ConTeXt on the other hand -aims to give you the broadest possible range of typographic -configurability right out of the box. And it does it in an -across-the-board consistent manner (as opposed to loading possibly -mutually incompatible packages). - -Another advantage of ConTeXt is the dynamism of its development team -headed by Hans Hagen. For example, I received quick and positive -feedback to my inquiries about developing native critical edition -capabilities for ConTeXt and I am now working with Hans to help get -this done. - -The potential of combining Omega's multilingual capabilities with what -is surely becoming the best desktop publishing solution for scholarly -purposes is truly immense. I strongly urge the developers of Omega to -consider ConTeXt with the same (or perhaps even greater) importance -than is given to LaTeX. ConTeXt is the wave of the future. - -The ConTeXt documentation, while thorough, is still a bit obscure so -it takes a while to really get into it. Even now I am still more -comfortable with LaTeX; as with any major software, ConTeXt certainly -takes getting used to. Hopefully someone will publish a "ConTeXt -Companion" or "ConTeXt Unbound" to make the transition easier. But -for anyone who wants to compare LaTeX and ConTeXt here are a few good -resources: - -The now out-of-print 4TeX5 manual has a good comparison of ConTeXt and LaTeX -http://4tex.ntg.nl/4tex5/manual/ - -LaTeX2ConTeXt.pdf helps in migrating from one to the other: -http://berend.gameren.nl/tex/ -http://berend.gameren.nl/tex/LaTeX2ConTeXt.pdf - -Finally, Taco Hoekwater's "Comparing ConTeXT and LaTeX" -http://www.ntg.nl/maps/pdf/20_42.pdf - -Of course Hans Hagen's latest documentation for ConTeXt itself (which is always being updated) is at -http://www.pragma-ade.com/ - -A beginners' help page is at -http://home.salamander.com/~wmcclain/context-help.html - -Analogous to Lambda, I call ConTeXt for Omega "Gamma", for the third -letter in the greek alphabet. To compile Gamma, make sure a recent -version of ConTeXt is installed and do the following to make the -format file cont-en.fmt: - -texexec --make --alone --tex=omega en - -(Hopefully in future versions of ConTeXt the format file will be gamma.fmt, gamma.ofmt, or something similar) - -To compile a Gamma file, run - -texexec --tex=omega my file - -=========Omega Fonts: type-om.tex=============== - -The font selection scheme in ConTeXt is conceptually simple but -practically rather tricky. It's a large cry from NFSS but is much more -configurable (making it more tricky). I am embarassed by the amount of -time it took me to get my own fonts working smoothly. Fortunately Hans -was extremely responsive to all my requests for help and I suspect I'd -still be lost in the labyrinth of ConTeXt's font selection machinery -of typescripts and typefaces if not for his help and -patience. Attached in this mail is type-om.tex which is a set of -typescripts which loads omlgc and omarab fonts so they can be used -seamlessly with ConTeXt. This file provides a model for setting up -your own fonts in Gamma. But be sure to read mfonts.pdf from the -ConTeXt documentation. - -IMPORTANT: you must change \texmf\omega\plain\base\grlccode.tex as follows: - -\typeout{Greek lccodes...} ===> \message{Greek lccodes...} - -You will notice that I have set the interlinespace for omarab as -3ex. Can Yannis or anyone else suggest a better value? (I don't use -omarab myself so I don't have a feel yet for what the best value would -be). - -=========Language Environments: con-om.tex======== - -Also attached is con-om.tex which is a BETA port of omega.sty to -Gamma. While I have tested con-om.tex and it works fine so far, I am -sure I have done some things wrong here. For exampe, the environment -definitions use plain old \def whereas in ConTeXt there is a -\definestartstop mechanism which is really the right way to do this. I -also just replaced \DeclareRobustCommand with \def which may not be -the best thing to do (advice needed!). - -=========Sample File: om-test7.tex================== - -om-test7.tex is a test Gamma file that works for Latin and the Greek, -Arabic-Persian, and Urdu environments, and probably for the rest as -well. - -=========Distribution================== - -These three files are a gift to the Omega and ConTeXt communities. I -hope that eventually type-om.tex will be integrated into the ConTeXt -distribution and that con- om.tex will be integrated into the Omega -distribution to serve as the basis for a high-level interface to -ConTeXt. The first two, especially con-om, need improvement but I hope -that they make it easier for potential users of ConTeXt and Omega to -get off to a good start and not have to spend as much time as I did -getting things set up. - -Jonas, please feel free to add this stuff to your omega site as well. - -===========bugs====================== - -There are a few areas where ConTeXt and Omega don't interact well. I -sent a message to the ConTeXt list which I will forward to the Omega -list a little later. - -===================================== - -Thnx 2 Hans Hagen again for his patience and help. As modest as this -stuff is, I hope it helps to bring Omega and ConTeXt closer and as a -foundation for further improvements by real TeXnicians. - -Best wishes -Idris - -========================== -Dr. Idris Samawi Hamid -Depatment of Philosophy -Colorado State University -Fort Collins, CO 80526 - |