[comp.unix.sysv386] Formatting manual pages

moore@forty2.enet.dec.com (Paul Moore) (04/08/91)

I've recently installed some software on my system, and the manual pages appear
to be in a format that required processing by a text formatter (I assume nroff)
with commands like 
  .pp
  .ps
  etc

As I don't have any formatting tools available , do I have to live with this
unformatted style of manual entries?

Thanks for your help

Paul 

rvdp@cs.vu.nl (Ronald van der Pol) (04/09/91)

moore@forty2.enet.dec.com (Paul Moore) writes:

>I've recently installed some software on my system, and the manual pages appear
>to be in a format that required processing by a text formatter (I assume nroff)
>with commands like 
>  .pp
>  .ps
>  etc

>As I don't have any formatting tools available , do I have to live with this
>unformatted style of manual entries?

You need some sort of nroff. There are a couple of ways to get it:
- you can buy it from your Unix supplier
- you may have a look at the GNU groff packet. You need a C++ compiler
  to compile this one.
- try the nroff that comes with MINIX. I think it is public domain 
  (it doesn't have an explicit 'no copyright' notice)
--
	Ronald van der Pol    <rvdp@cs.vu.nl>

cpcahil@virtech.uucp (Conor P. Cahill) (04/09/91)

moore@forty2.enet.dec.com (Paul Moore) writes:

>As I don't have any formatting tools available , do I have to live with this
>unformatted style of manual entries?

If I can ever get the time, I will be making another press run at the 
usenet manuals that I printed last year (of course it will be updated 
with the manual pages from the latest releases).

Maybe next month....
-- 
Conor P. Cahill            (703)430-9247        Virtual Technologies, Inc.
uunet!virtech!cpcahil                           46030 Manekin Plaza, Suite 160
                                                Sterling, VA 22170 

mju@mudos.ann-arbor.mi.us (Marc Unangst) (04/10/91)

rvdp@cs.vu.nl (Ronald van der Pol) writes:
> - you may have a look at the GNU groff packet. You need a C++ compiler
>   to compile this one.

Groff binaries for '386 Unix have already been distributed, and should
be available for FTP on archive sites.

You can also get Henry Spencer's rewrite of nroff in awk, called awf.
Awf is PD, and does a good enough imitation of 'nroff -man' to make it
work for most man pages.  Awf was recently posted to
comp.sources.{unix|misc} (can't remember which one, so check both),
and should be on uunet and wuarchive and other c.s.{u|m} archive sites.

> - try the nroff that comes with MINIX. I think it is public domain 
>   (it doesn't have an explicit 'no copyright' notice)

Anything that comes with Minix that isn't explicitly PD is covered by
the Prentice-Hall copyright and, thus, can't be distributed.

--
Marc Unangst               |
mju@mudos.ann-arbor.mi.us  | "Bus error: passengers dumped"
...!umich!leebai!mudos!mju |