[comp.text.tex] odd LaTeX problem

russell@ccu1.aukuni.ac.nz (Russell J Fulton;ccc032u) (02/15/91)

I am converting a moderately complex document from Washington State's 
TEXT1 package to LaTeX. (It is the documentation for the IPA fonts, if
anybody already has done this can I have it please!)

Anyway about halfway through the document (after processing 15 pages) 
LaTeX stops at the start of a paragraph with

! missing \begin{document}

here is the immediate contex: (location  indicated by breaking line and adding
                                    <-------------- )
--------------------------------------------------------
\section{Using the IPAMACS Macros}
 
In addition to the necessary font-related files, the \wsu\  font package
also includes a file called IPAMACS.TEX. This is a macro file which includes
font declarations and definitions for use with the \wsu\  fonts.
It also contains macro definitions for accessing each \wsu\  character
mnemonically, as well as some macro definitions
to simplify using \wsu\  accents and diacritics with Computer Modern
characters and vice versa.
 
Before you can use any of the macros from the \ipam\ file, you must input the
{\tt IPAMACS.TEX} file by entering,
%\begin{verbatim}
%\bs input ipamacs
%\end{verbatim}

\noindent at the top of your \TeX\ file. This assumes, of course, that you have
installed this file.
T     <--- tex find the error here!
           =========================
 he \ipam\ file defines a font called
\bs ipa to be the twelve point roman \wsu\
font. The \bs ipa font is used in all the macro definitions in \ipam\
 to access the
characters from the \wsu\ font. You may redefine \bs ipa, say to be ten point
roman, by entering
------------------------------------------------------

Does anybody have any idea as to where to look for the problem?
(I have commented out the verbatim enviroment incase it was causing problems.)

Thanks, Russell



-- 
Russell Fulton, Computer Center, University of Auckland, New Zealand.
<rj_fulton@aukuni.ac.nz>

eijkhout@s41.csrd.uiuc.edu (Victor Eijkhout) (02/16/91)

russell@ccu1.aukuni.ac.nz (Russell J Fulton;ccc032u) writes:

>I am converting a moderately complex document from Washington State's 
>TEXT1 package to LaTeX. (It is the documentation for the IPA fonts, if
>anybody already has done this can I have it please!)

>Anyway about halfway through the document (after processing 15 pages) 
>LaTeX stops at the start of a paragraph with

>! missing \begin{document}

I can guess...

This message comes from somehting like

\everypar{\ComplainAboutMissingBeginDocument}
\def\begindocument{\everypar{\SomethingHarmless} ...

which causes an error message if you have text before
the \begin{document}. Now what probably happens, is that
some of your macros (the other packages that you include)
redefine \everypar, and this interferes with LaTeX's workings.

This is a problem, and not really easy to solve. It needs
extensive rewriting of parts of LaTeX, or of your macros.

Victor.