3 .\" A complete reference of the mdoc macro package for GNU troff.
5 .\" Based on NetBSD's mdoc.samples.7, version 1.21.
8 .\" Warning: You can't format this file with the old mdoc macros!
11 .\" Copyright (c) 1990, 1993
12 .\" The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
14 .\" Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
15 .\" modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions
17 .\" 1. Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright
18 .\" notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
19 .\" 2. Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
20 .\" notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the
21 .\" documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
23 .\" ftp://ftp.cs.berkeley.edu/pub/4bsd/README.Impt.License.Change]
24 .\" 4. Neither the name of the University nor the names of its contributors
25 .\" may be used to endorse or promote products derived from this software
26 .\" without specific prior written permission.
28 .\" THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE REGENTS AND CONTRIBUTORS ``AS IS'' AND
29 .\" ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE
30 .\" IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE
31 .\" ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE REGENTS OR CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE
32 .\" FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL
33 .\" DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS
34 .\" OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION)
35 .\" HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT
36 .\" LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY
37 .\" OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF
40 .\" @(#)mdoc.samples.7 8.2 (Berkeley) 12/30/93
42 .\" This reference invokes every macro in the package several
43 .\" times and is guaranteed to give a worst case performance
44 .\" for an already extremely slow package.
55 .Nd reference for groff's mdoc implementation
60 .Nm groff Fl m Ns Cm doc Ar
65 A complete reference for writing
73 formatting package for
78 package, addressed page layout leaving the manipulation of fonts and other
79 typesetting details to the individual author.
82 page layout macros make up the
83 .Em "page structure domain"
84 which consists of macros for titles, section headers, displays and lists
85 \- essentially items which affect the physical position of text on a
87 In addition to the page structure domain, there are two more domains, the
92 The general text domain is defined as macros which perform tasks such as
93 quoting or emphasizing pieces of text.
94 The manual domain is defined as macros that are a subset of the day to day
95 informal language used to describe commands, routines and related
98 Macros in the manual domain handle command names, command line arguments and
99 options, function names, function parameters, pathnames, variables, cross
100 references to other manual pages, and so on.
101 These domain items have value for both the author and the future user of the
103 Hopefully, the consistency gained across the manual set will provide easier
104 translation to future documentation tools.
108 manual pages, a manual entry is simply referred to as a man page, regardless
109 of actual length and without sexist intention.
112 .Sh "GETTING STARTED"
114 The material presented in the remainder of this document is outlined
117 .Bl -enum -width 3n -offset indent
119 . Tn "TROFF IDIOSYNCRASIES"
121 . Bl -tag -width 2n -compact
123 . It "Passing Space Characters in an Argument"
124 . It "Trailing Blank Space Characters"
125 . It "Escaping Special Characters"
126 . It "Other Possible Pitfalls"
130 . Tn "A MANUAL PAGE TEMPLATE"
139 . Tn "INTRODUCTION OF MANUAL AND GENERAL TEXT DOMAINS"
141 . Bl -tag -width 2n -compact
142 . It "What's in a Name" Ns ...
143 . It "General Syntax"
149 . Bl -tag -width 2n -compact
153 . It "Configuration Declarations (Section Four Only)"
154 . It "Command Modifiers"
155 . It "Defined Variables"
157 . It "Environment Variables"
159 . It "Function Declarations"
160 . It "Function Types"
161 . It "Functions (Library Routines)"
162 . It "Function Arguments"
165 . \" .It "Header File (including source code)"
166 . It "Interactive Commands"
173 . It "Variable Types"
175 . It "Manual Page Cross References"
179 . Tn "GENERAL TEXT DOMAIN"
181 . Bl -tag -width 2n -compact
186 . It "DragonFly Macro"
190 . It "Emphasis Macro"
192 . It "Enclosure and Quoting Macros"
193 . It "No-Op or Normal Text Macro"
194 . It "No-Space Macro"
195 . It "Section Cross References"
197 . It "Mathematical Symbols"
198 . It "References and Citations"
199 . It "Trade Names (or Acronyms and Type Names)"
200 . It "Extended Arguments"
204 . Tn "PAGE STRUCTURE DOMAIN"
206 . Bl -tag -width 2n -compact
207 . It "Section Headers"
208 . It "Subsection Headers"
209 . It "Paragraphs and Line Spacing"
211 . It "Examples and Displays"
212 . It "Lists and Columns"
216 . Tn "MISCELLANEOUS MACROS"
219 . Tn "PREDEFINED STRINGS"
225 . Tn "FORMATTING WITH GROFF, TROFF, AND NROFF"
242 .Sh "TROFF IDIOSYNCRASIES"
246 package attempts to simplify the process of writing a man page.
247 Theoretically, one should not have to learn the tricky details of
252 however, there are a few limitations which are unavoidable and best gotten
254 And, too, be forewarned, this package is
263 a macro is called by placing a
265 (dot character) at the beginning of a line followed by the two-character
266 (or three-character) name for the macro.
267 There can be space or tab characters between the dot and the macro name.
268 Arguments may follow the macro separated by spaces (but
271 It is the dot character at the beginning of the line which causes
274 to interpret the next two (or more) characters as a macro name.
275 A single starting dot followed by nothing is ignored.
278 (dot character) at the beginning of an input line in some context other than
279 a macro invocation, precede the
283 escape sequence which translates literally to a zero-width space, and is
284 never displayed in the output.
289 macros accept an unlimited number of arguments (contrary to other versions
290 of troff which can't handle more than nine arguments).
291 In limited cases, arguments may be continued or extended on the next
293 .Sx Extended Arguments
295 Almost all macros handle quoted arguments (see
296 .Sx Passing Space Characters in an Argument
301 general text domain and manual domain macros are special in that their
304 for callable macro names.
305 This means an argument on the argument list which matches a general text or
306 manual domain macro name (and which is defined to be callable) will be
307 executed or called when it is processed.
308 In this case the argument, although the name of a macro, is not preceded by
312 This makes it possible to nest macros; for example the option macro,
316 the flag and argument macros,
320 to specify an optional flag with an argument:
322 .Bl -tag -width ".Op Fl s Ar bytes" -offset indent
325 .Ql ".Op Fl s Ar bytes"
329 To prevent a string from being interpreted as a macro name, precede the
330 string with the escape sequence
333 .Bl -tag -width ".Op \&Fl s \&Ar bytes" -offset indent
334 .It Op \&Fl s \&Ar bytes
336 .Ql ".Op \e&Fl s \e&Ar bytes"
344 are not interpreted as macros.
345 Macros whose argument lists are parsed for callable arguments are referred
348 and macros which may be called from an argument list are referred to as
350 throughout this document.
353 as almost all of the macros in
355 are parsed, but as it was cumbersome to constantly refer to macros as
356 being callable and being able to call other macros, the term parsed
360 In the following, we call an
362 macro which starts a line (with a leading dot) a
364 if this distinction is necessary.
366 .Ss "Passing Space Characters in an Argument"
368 Sometimes it is desirable to give as an argument a string containing one or
369 more blank space characters, say, to specify arguments to commands which
370 expect particular arrangement of items in the argument list.
371 Additionally, it makes
374 For example, the function command
376 expects the first argument to be the name of a function and any remaining
377 arguments to be function parameters.
380 stipulates the declaration of function parameters in the parenthesized
381 parameter list, each parameter is guaranteed to be at minimum a two word
386 There are two possible ways to pass an argument which contains
388 One way of passing a string containing blank spaces is to use the hard or
389 unpaddable space character
391 that is, a blank space preceded by the escape character
393 This method may be used with any macro but has the side effect of
394 interfering with the adjustment of text over the length of a line.
396 sees the hard space as if it were any other printable character and cannot
397 split the string into blank or newline separated pieces as one would expect.
398 This method is useful for strings which are not expected to overlap a line
400 An alternative is to use
402 a paddable (i.e.\& stretchable), unbreakable space (this is a
406 The second method is to enclose the string with double quotes.
410 .Bl -tag -width ".Fn fetch char\ *str" -offset indent
411 .It Fn fetch char\ *str
413 .Ql ".Fn fetch char\e *str"
414 .It Fn fetch "char *str"
415 can also be created by
416 .Ql ".Fn fetch \*[q]char *str\*[q]"
422 before the space in the first example
423 or double quotes in the second example
426 would see three arguments, and the result would be:
428 .Dl Fn fetch char *str
430 .\" For an example of what happens when the parameter list overlaps a newline
431 .\" boundary, see the
435 .Ss "Trailing Blank Space Characters"
438 can be confused by blank space characters at the end of a line.
439 It is a wise preventive measure to globally remove all blank spaces
441 .Ao blank-space Ac Ns Ao end-of-line Ac
443 Should the need arise to use a blank character at the end of a line, it
444 may be forced with an unpaddable space and the
450 .Ss "Escaping Special Characters"
452 Special characters like the newline character
454 are handled by replacing the
460 to preserve the backslash.
462 .Ss "Other Possible Pitfalls"
464 A warning is emitted when an empty input line is found outside of displays
469 (Well, it is even better to use
471 macros to avoid the usage of low-level commands.)
473 Leading spaces will cause a break and are output directly.
474 Avoid this behaviour if possible.
475 Similarly, do not use more than one space character between words in an
476 ordinary text line; contrary to other text formatters, they are
478 replaced with a single space.
482 directly as an argument.
491 inserts two space characters after a punctuation mark closing a sentence;
496 are treated transparently, not influencing the sentence-ending behaviour.
497 To change this, insert
499 before or after the dot:
501 .Bd -literal -offset indent
520 .Bd -filled -offset indent
537 As can be seen in the first and third line,
539 handles punctuation characters specially in macro arguments.
540 This will be explained in section
543 In the same way, you have to protect trailing full stops of abbreviations
544 with a trailing zero-width space:
547 A comment in the source file of a man page can be either started with
553 anywhere (the latter is a
556 extension); the rest of such a line is ignored.
559 .Sh "A MANUAL PAGE TEMPLATE"
561 The body of a man page is easily constructed from a basic template:
563 .Bd -literal -offset indent
564 \&.\e" The following commands are required for all man pages.
565 \&.Dd Month day, year
566 \&.Dt DOCUMENT_TITLE [section number] [architecture/volume]
567 \&.Os [OPERATING_SYSTEM] [version/release]
570 \&.Nd one line description of name
571 \&.\e" This next command is for sections 2 and 3 only.
575 \&.\e" The following commands should be uncommented and
576 \&.\e" used where appropriate.
577 \&.\e" .Sh IMPLEMENTATION NOTES
578 \&.\e" This next command is for sections 2, 3 and 9 function
579 \&.\e" return values only.
580 \&.\e" .Sh RETURN VALUES
581 \&.\e" This next command is for sections 1, 6, 7 and 8 only.
582 \&.\e" .Sh ENVIRONMENT
585 \&.\e" This next command is for sections 1, 6, 7, 8 and 9 only
586 \&.\e" (command return values (to shell) and
587 \&.\e" fprintf/stderr type diagnostics).
588 \&.\e" .Sh DIAGNOSTICS
589 \&.\e" .Sh COMPATIBILITY
590 \&.\e" This next command is for sections 2, 3 and 9 error
591 \&.\e" and signal handling only.
601 The first items in the template are the commands
606 the document date, the operating system the man page or subject source is
607 developed or modified for, and the man page title (in
609 along with the section of the manual the page belongs in.
610 These commands identify the page and are discussed below in
613 The remaining items in the template are section headers
621 The headers are discussed in
622 .Sx "PAGE STRUCTURE DOMAIN" ,
623 after presentation of
624 .Sx "MANUAL DOMAIN" .
625 Several content macros are used to demonstrate page layout macros; reading
626 about content macros before page layout macros is recommended.
631 In the description of all macros below, optional arguments are put into
635 represents zero or more additional arguments.
636 Alternative values for a parameter are separated with
638 If there are alternative values for a mandatory parameter, braces are used
641 to enclose the value set.
642 Meta-variables are specified within angles.
646 .Bl -tag -width 6n -offset indent
650 .Op \-test1 Op \-test2 | \-test3
656 Except stated explicitly, all macros are parsed and callable.
658 Note that a macro takes effect up to the next nested macro.
665 Consequently, a warning message is emitted for most commands if the first
666 argument is a macro itself since it cancels the effect of the calling
668 Another consequence is that quoting macros never insert literal quotes;
671 .Ql ".Ic \*[q]foo <bar>\*[q]" .
673 Most macros have a default width value which can be used to specify a label
683 It is recommended not to use this rather obscure feature to avoid
684 dependencies on local modifications of the
691 The title macros are part of the page structure domain but are presented
692 first and separately for someone who wishes to start writing a man page
694 Three header macros designate the document title or manual page title, the
695 operating system, and the date of authorship.
696 These macros are called once at the very beginning of the document and are
697 used to construct headers and footers only.
701 .Op Aq document title
702 .Op Aq section number
705 The document title is the subject of the man page and must be in
707 due to troff limitations.
711 The section number may be a number in the range
712 .No 1,\~ Ns ... Ns ,\~9
718 If it is specified, and no volume name is given, a default volume name is
723 .Tn \*[operating-system] ,
724 the following sections are defined:
726 .Bl -column LOCAL -offset indent -compact
727 .It Li 1 Ta "\*[volume-operating-system] \*[volume-ds-1]"
728 .It Li 2 Ta "\*[volume-operating-system] \*[volume-ds-2]"
729 .It Li 3 Ta "\*[volume-operating-system] \*[volume-ds-3]"
730 .It Li 4 Ta "\*[volume-operating-system] \*[volume-ds-4]"
731 .It Li 5 Ta "\*[volume-operating-system] \*[volume-ds-5]"
732 .It Li 6 Ta "\*[volume-operating-system] \*[volume-ds-6]"
733 .It Li 7 Ta "\*[volume-operating-system] \*[volume-ds-7]"
734 .It Li 8 Ta "\*[volume-operating-system] \*[volume-ds-8]"
735 .It Li 9 Ta "\*[volume-operating-system] \*[volume-ds-9]"
739 A volume name may be arbitrary or one of the following:
742 .Bl -column LOCAL -offset indent -compact
743 .It Li USD Ta "\*[volume-ds-USD]"
744 .It Li PS1 Ta "\*[volume-ds-PS1]"
745 .It Li AMD Ta "\*[volume-ds-AMD]"
746 .It Li SMM Ta "\*[volume-ds-SMM]"
747 .It Li URM Ta "\*[volume-ds-URM]"
748 .It Li PRM Ta "\*[volume-ds-PRM]"
749 .It Li KM Ta "\*[volume-ds-KM]"
750 .It Li IND Ta "\*[volume-ds-IND]"
751 .It Li LOCAL Ta "\*[volume-ds-LOCAL]"
752 .It Li CON Ta "\*[volume-ds-CON]"
764 Values from the previous table will specify a new volume name.
765 If the third parameter is a keyword designating a computer architecture,
766 its value is prepended to the default volume name as specified by the
768 By default, the following architecture keywords are defined:
770 \# we use `No' to avoid hyphenation
771 .Bd -ragged -offset indent
772 .No alpha , acorn26 , acorn32 , algor , amd64 , amiga , arc , arm26 ,
773 .No arm32 , atari , bebox , cats , cesfic , cobalt , dreamcast , evbarm ,
774 .No evbmips , evbppc , evbsh3 , hp300 , hp700 , hpcmips , i386 , luna68k ,
775 .No m68k , mac68k , macppc , mips , mmeye , mvme68k , mvmeppc , netwinder ,
776 .No news68k , newsmips , next68k , ofppc , pc532 , pmax , pmppc , powerpc ,
777 .No prep , sandpoint , sgimips , sh3 , shark , sparc , sparc64 , sun3 ,
778 .No tahoe , vax , x68k , x86_64
782 If the section number is neither a numeric expression in the range 1 to\~9
783 nor one of the above described keywords, the third parameter is used
784 verbatim as the volume name.
786 In the following examples, the left (which is identical to the right) and
787 the middle part of the manual page header strings are shown.
790 prevents the digit\~7 from being a valid numeric expression.
793 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Dt\ FOO\ 2\ i386" -compact -offset indent
796 .Ql \*[volume-operating-system] \*[volume-ds-7]
797 .It Li ".Dt FOO 7 bar"
799 .Ql \*[volume-operating-system] \*[volume-ds-7]
800 .It Li ".Dt FOO \e&7 bar"
803 .It Li ".Dt FOO 2 i386"
805 .Ql \*[volume-operating-system]/\*[volume-as-i386] \*[volume-ds-2]
806 .It Li ".Dt FOO \*[q]\*[q] bar"
813 Local, OS-specific additions might be found in the file
815 look for strings named
817 (for the former type) and
819 (for the latter type);
821 then denotes the keyword to be used with the
825 This macro is neither callable nor parsed.
828 .Op Aq operating system
831 If the first parameter is empty,
833 .Sq Tn "\*[operating-system]"
835 This may be overridden in the local configuration file,
837 In general, the name of the operating system should be the common acronym,
842 The release should be the standard release nomenclature for the system
844 In the following table, the possible second arguments for some predefined
845 operating systems are listed.
848 local additions might be defined in
850 look for strings named
851 .Ql operating\-system\-XXX\-YYY ,
854 is the acronym for the operating system and
859 .Bl -tag -width ".No DragonFly" -offset indent
861 7th, 7, III, 3, V, V.2, V.3, V.4
863 3, 4, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.3t, 4.3T, 4.3r, 4.3R, 4.4
865 0.8, 0.8a, 0.9, 0.9a, 1.0, 1.0a, 1.1, 1.2, 1.2a, 1.2b, 1.2c, 1.2d, 1.2e,
866 1.3, 1.3a, 1.4, 1.4.1, 1.4.2, 1.4.3, 1.5, 1.5.1, 1.5.2, 1.5.3, 1.6, 1.6.1,
867 1.6.2, 1.6.3, 2.0, 2.0.1, 2.0.2, 2.0.3, 2.1, 3.0, 3.0.1, 3.0.2, 3.1, 4.0,
868 4.0.1, 5.0, 5.0.1, 5.0.2
870 1.0, 1.1, 1.1.5, 1.1.5.1, 2.0, 2.0.5, 2.1, 2.1.5, 2.1.6, 2.1.7, 2.2, 2.2.1,
871 2.2.2, 2.2.5, 2.2.6, 2.2.7, 2.2.8, 3.0, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 4.0, 4.1,
872 4.1.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 4.6, 4.6.2, 4.7, 4.8, 4.9, 4.10, 4.11, 5.0, 5.1,
873 5.2, 5.2.1, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 6.0, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4, 7.0, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 8.0,
876 2.0, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.8, 2.9, 3.0, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4,
877 3.5, 3.6, 3.7, 3.8, 3.9, 4.0, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.5, 4.6, 4.7, 4.8
879 1.0, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 1.8, 1.8.1, 1.10, 1.12, 1.12.2, 2.0, 2.2,
882 8.0.0, 8.1.0, 8.2.0, 8.3.0, 8.4.0, 8.5.0, 8.6.0, 8.7.0, 8.8.0, 8.9.0,
883 8.10.0, 8.11.0, 9.0.0, 9.1.0, 9.2.0, 9.3.0, 9.4.0, 9.5.0, 9.6.0
890 an unknown second parameter will be replaced with the string
892 for the other predefined acronyms it will be ignored and a warning message
894 Unrecognized arguments are displayed as given in the page footer.
895 For instance, a typical footer might be:
900 .Ql 4.3\~Berkeley Distribution ,
901 or for a locally produced set
903 .Dl .Os CS Department
910 macro is not present, the bottom left corner of the manual page will be
913 This macro is neither callable nor parsed.
924 is used for the date string.
925 If it has exactly three arguments, they are concatenated, separated with
928 .Dl .Dd January 25, 2001
930 The month's name shall not be abbreviated.
932 With any other number of arguments, the current date is used, ignoring
935 This macro is neither callable nor parsed.
939 .Sh "INTRODUCTION OF MANUAL AND GENERAL TEXT DOMAINS"
941 .Ss "What's in a Name" Ns ...
943 The manual domain macro names are derived from the day to day informal
944 language used to describe commands, subroutines and related files.
945 Slightly different variations of this language are used to describe the
946 three different aspects of writing a man page.
947 First, there is the description of
950 Second is the description of a
955 macros, and third, the description of a command to a user in the verbal
956 sense; that is, discussion of a command in the text of a man page.
960 macros are themselves a type of command; the general syntax for a troff
963 .Bd -filled -offset indent
964 .Li ".Xx argument1 argument2" ...
969 is a macro command, and anything following it are arguments to
971 In the second case, the description of a
973 command using the content macros is a bit more involved; a typical
975 command line might be displayed as:
977 .Bd -filled -offset indent
980 .Ao Ar infile Ac Ao Ar outfile Ac
986 is the command name and the
991 argument designated as optional by the option brackets.
1000 in this example, the user has to replace the meta expressions given in angle
1001 brackets with real file names.
1002 Note that in this document meta arguments are used to describe
1004 commands; in most man pages, meta variables are not specifically written
1005 with angle brackets.
1006 The macros which formatted the above example:
1008 .Bd -literal -offset indent
1011 \&.Ao Ar infile Ac Ao Ar outfile Ac
1015 In the third case, discussion of commands and command syntax includes both
1016 examples above, but may add more detail.
1021 from the example above might be referred to as
1024 .Em file arguments .
1025 Some command line argument lists are quite long:
1028 .Bl -tag -width ".Nm make" -offset indent -compact
1031 .Op Fl D Ar variable
1033 .Op Fl f Ar makefile
1034 .Op Fl I Ar directory
1035 .Op Fl j Ar max_jobs
1036 .Op Ar variable Ns = Ns Ar value
1044 Here one might talk about the command
1046 and qualify the argument,
1048 as an argument to the flag,
1050 or discuss the optional file operand
1052 In the verbal context, such detail can prevent confusion, however the
1054 package does not have a macro for an argument
1059 argument macro is used for an operand or file argument like
1061 as well as an argument to a flag like
1063 The make command line was produced from:
1065 .Bd -literal -offset indent
1068 \&.Op Fl D Ar variable
1070 \&.Op Fl f Ar makefile
1071 \&.Op Fl I Ar directory
1072 \&.Op Fl j Ar max_jobs
1073 \&.Op Ar variable Ns = Ns Ar value
1084 macros are explained in
1087 .Ss "General Syntax"
1089 The manual domain and general text domain macros share a similar syntax with
1090 a few minor deviations; most notably,
1096 differ only when called without arguments; and
1100 impose an order on their argument lists.
1101 All content macros are capable of recognizing and properly handling
1102 punctuation, provided each punctuation character is separated by a leading
1104 If a command is given:
1106 .Dl \&.Ar sptr, ptr),
1112 The punctuation is not recognized and all is output in the
1115 If the punctuation is separated by a leading white space:
1117 .Dl \&.Ar "sptr , ptr ) ,"
1121 .Dl Ar sptr , ptr ) ,
1123 The punctuation is now recognized and output in the default font
1124 distinguishing it from the argument strings.
1125 To remove the special meaning from a punctuation character escape it with
1128 The following punctuation characters are recognized by
1131 .Bl -column -offset indent-two XXXXXX XXXXXX XXXXXX XXXXXX
1132 .It Li .\& Ta Li ,\& Ta Li :\& Ta Li ;\& Ta Li (\&
1133 .It Li )\& Ta Li [\& Ta Li ]\& Ta Li ?\& Ta Li !\&
1138 is limited as a macro language, and has difficulty when presented with a
1139 string containing a member of the mathematical, logical or quotation set:
1141 .Bd -literal -offset indent-two
1142 {+,\-,/,*,%,<,>,<=,>=,=,==,&,`,',"}
1148 may assume it is supposed to actually perform the operation or evaluation
1149 suggested by the characters.
1150 To prevent the accidental evaluation of these characters, escape them with
1152 Typical syntax is shown in the first content macro displayed below,
1160 The address macro identifies an address construct.
1162 .Dl Usage: .Ad Ao address Ac ...
1164 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Ad\ f1\ ,\ f2\ ,\ f3\ :" -compact -offset 15n
1167 .It Li ".Ad addr1 ."
1169 .It Li ".Ad addr1 , file2"
1171 .It Li ".Ad f1 , f2 , f3 :"
1173 .It Li ".Ad addr ) ) ,"
1178 The default width is 12n.
1184 macro is used to specify the name of the author of the item being
1185 documented, or the name of the author of the actual manual page.
1187 .Dl Usage: .An Ao author name Ac ...
1189 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .An\ \*[q]Joe\ Author\*[q]\ )\ )\ ," -offset 15n
1190 .It Li ".An \*[q]Joe Author\*[q]"
1192 .It Li ".An \*[q]Joe Author\*[q] ,"
1194 .It Li ".An \*[q]Joe Author\*[q] Aq nobody@FreeBSD.org"
1195 .An "Joe Author" Aq nobody@FreeBSD.org
1196 .It Li ".An \*[q]Joe Author\*[q] ) ) ,"
1197 .An "Joe Author" ) ) ,
1201 The default width is 12n.
1207 command causes a line break allowing each new name to appear on its own
1209 If this is not desirable,
1211 .Bd -literal -offset indent
1216 call will turn this off.
1217 To turn splitting back on, write
1219 .Bd -literal -offset indent
1227 argument macro may be used whenever an argument is referenced.
1228 If called without arguments, the
1232 .Dl Usage: .Ar Oo Ao argument Ac Oc ...
1234 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Ar\ file1\ file2" -compact -offset 15n
1239 .It Li ".Ar file1 ."
1241 .It Li ".Ar file1 file2"
1243 .It Li ".Ar f1 f2 f3 :"
1245 .It Li ".Ar file ) ) ,"
1250 The default width is 12n.
1252 .Ss "Configuration Declaration (Section Four Only)"
1256 macro is used to demonstrate a
1258 declaration for a device interface in a section four manual.
1260 .Dl Usage: .Cd Ao argument Ac ...
1262 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Cd\ Xdevice\ le0\ at\ scode?X" -offset 15n
1263 .It Li ".Cd \*[q]device le0 at scode?\*[q]"
1264 .Cd "device le0 at scode?"
1271 command causes a line break before and after its arguments are printed.
1274 The default width is 12n.
1276 .Ss "Command Modifiers"
1278 The command modifier is identical to the
1280 (flag) command with the exception that the
1282 macro does not assert a dash in front of every argument.
1283 Traditionally flags are marked by the preceding dash, however, some commands
1284 or subsets of commands do not use them.
1285 Command modifiers may also be specified in conjunction with interactive
1286 commands such as editor commands.
1290 The default width is 10n.
1292 .Ss "Defined Variables"
1294 A variable (or constant) which is defined in an include file
1295 is specified by the macro
1298 .Dl Usage: .Dv Ao defined variable Ac ...
1300 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Dv\ MAXHOSTNAMELEN" -compact -offset 15n
1301 .It Li ".Dv MAXHOSTNAMELEN"
1303 .It Li ".Dv TIOCGPGRP )"
1308 The default width is 12n.
1314 errno macro specifies the error return value for section 2, 3, and\~9 library
1316 The second example below shows
1320 general text domain macro, as it would be used in a section two manual page.
1322 .Dl Usage: .Er Ao errno type Ac ...
1324 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Bq\ Er\ ENOTDIR" -compact -offset 15n
1327 .It Li ".Er ENOENT ) ;"
1329 .It Li ".Bq Er ENOTDIR"
1334 The default width is 17n.
1336 .Ss "Environment Variables"
1340 macro specifies an environment variable.
1342 .Dl Usage: .Ev Ao argument Ac ...
1344 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Ev\ PRINTER\ )\ )\ ," -compact -offset 15n
1345 .It Li ".Ev DISPLAY"
1349 .It Li ".Ev PRINTER ) ) ,"
1354 The default width is 15n.
1360 macro handles command line flags.
1364 For interactive command flags, which are not prepended with a dash, the
1367 macro is identical, but without the dash.
1369 .Dl Usage: .Fl Ao argument Ac ...
1371 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Fl\ xyz\ )\ ," -compact -offset 15n
1384 .It Li ".Fl xyz ) ,"
1392 macro without any arguments results in a dash representing stdin/stdout.
1395 a single dash will result in two dashes.
1397 The default width is 12n.
1399 .Ss "Function Declarations"
1403 macro is used in the
1405 section with section two or three functions.
1406 It is neither callable nor parsed.
1408 .Dl Usage: .Fd Ao argument Ac ...
1410 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Fd\ X#include\ <sys/types.h>X" -compact -offset 15n
1411 .It Li ".Fd \*[q]#include <sys/types.h>\*[q]"
1412 .Fd "#include <sys/types.h>"
1419 command causes a line break if a function has already been presented and a
1420 break has not occurred.
1421 This leaves a nice vertical space in between the previous function call and
1422 the declaration for the next function.
1429 section, represents the
1431 statement, and is the short form of the above example.
1432 It specifies the C\~header file as being included in a C\~program.
1433 It also causes a line break.
1437 section, it represents the header file enclosed in angle brackets.
1439 .Dl Usage: .In Ao header file Ac
1441 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .In\ stdio.h" -compact -offset 15n
1442 .nr in-synopsis-section 1
1443 .It Li ".In stdio.h"
1445 .nr in-synopsis-section 0
1446 .It Li ".In stdio.h"
1450 .Ss "Function Types"
1452 This macro is intended for the
1455 It may be used anywhere else in the man page without problems, but its main
1456 purpose is to present the function type in kernel normal form for the
1458 of sections two and three (it causes a line break, allowing the function
1459 name to appear on the next line).
1461 .Dl Usage: .Ft Ao type Ac ...
1463 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Ft\ struct\ stat" -compact -offset 15n
1464 .It Li ".Ft struct stat"
1468 .Ss "Functions (Library Routines)"
1476 .Dl Usage: .Fn Ao function Ac Oo Ao parameter Ac Oc ...
1478 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Fn\ align\ Xchar\ *ptrX\ ," -compact -offset 15n
1479 .It Li ".Fn getchar"
1481 .It Li ".Fn strlen ) ,"
1483 .It Li ".Fn align \*[q]char *ptr\*[q] ,"
1484 .Fn align "char *ptr" ,
1487 Note that any call to another macro signals the end of the
1489 call (it will insert a closing parenthesis at that point).
1491 For functions with many parameters (which is rare), the macros
1499 (function argument).
1503 .Bd -literal -offset indent
1512 \&.Fa "struct rrec *newrr"
1521 .Bd -ragged -offset indent
1530 .Fa "struct rrec *newrr"
1539 section, the function will always begin at the beginning of line.
1540 If there is more than one function presented in the
1542 section and a function type has not been given, a line break will occur,
1543 leaving a nice vertical space between the current function name and the one
1546 The default width values of
1550 are 12n and 16n, respectively.
1552 .Ss "Function Arguments"
1556 macro is used to refer to function arguments (parameters) outside of the
1558 section of the manual or inside the
1560 section if the enclosure macros
1568 may also be used to refer to structure members.
1570 .Dl Usage: .Fa Ao function argument Ac ...
1572 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Fa\ d_namlen\ )\ )\ ," -compact -offset 15n
1573 .It Li ".Fa d_namlen ) ) ,"
1575 .It Li ".Fa iov_len"
1580 The default width is 12n.
1586 macro generates text for use in the
1590 .Dl Usage: .Rv Oo \-std Oc Op Ao function Ac ...
1593 .Ql ".Rv \-std atexit"
1596 .Bd -ragged -offset indent
1597 \# a small hack to suppress a warning message
1598 .ds section-old "\*[section]
1601 .ds section "\*[section-old]
1607 option is valid only for manual page sections\~2 and\~3.
1608 Currently, this macro does nothing if used without the
1616 macro generates text for use in the
1620 .Dl Usage: .Ex Oo \-std Oc Op Ao utility Ac ...
1626 .Bd -ragged -offset indent
1627 \# a small hack to suppress a warning message
1628 .ds section-old "\*[section]
1631 .ds section "\*[section-old]
1637 option is valid only for manual page sections 1, 6 and\~8.
1638 Currently, this macro does nothing if used without the
1642 .Ss "Interactive Commands"
1646 macro designates an interactive or internal command.
1648 .Dl Usage: .Ic Ao argument Ac ...
1650 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Ic\ setenv\ ,\ unsetenv" -compact -offset 15n
1653 .It Li ".Ic \*[q]do while {...}\*[q]"
1654 .Ic "do while {...}"
1655 .It Li ".Ic setenv , unsetenv"
1656 .Ic setenv , unsetenv
1660 The default width is 12n.
1666 macro is used to specify the library where a particular function is compiled
1669 .Dl Usage: .Lb Ao argument Ac ...
1671 Available arguments to
1673 and their results are:
1676 .Bl -tag -width ".Li libossaudio" -compact -offset indent
1744 Local, OS-specific additions might be found in the file
1746 look for strings named
1749 then denotes the keyword to be used with the
1757 command causes a line break before and after its arguments are printed.
1764 literal macro may be used for special characters, variable constants, etc.\&
1765 \- anything which should be displayed as it would be typed.
1767 .Dl Usage: .Li Ao argument Ac ...
1769 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Li\ cntrl\-D\ )\ ," -compact -offset 15n
1772 .It Li ".Li M1 M2 M3 ;"
1774 .It Li ".Li cntrl\-D ) ,"
1776 .It Li ".Li 1024 ..."
1781 The default width is 16n.
1787 macro is used for the document title or subject name.
1788 It has the peculiarity of remembering the first argument it was called with,
1789 which should always be the subject name of the page.
1790 When called without arguments,
1792 regurgitates this initial name for the sole purpose of making less work for
1795 causes a line break within the
1799 Note: A section two or three document function name is addressed with the
1807 and remaining sections.
1808 For interactive commands, such as the
1814 macro should be used.
1820 it can not recall the first argument it was invoked with.
1822 .Dl Usage: .Nm Oo Ao argument Ac Oc ...
1824 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Nm\ groff_mdoc" -compact -offset 15n
1825 .It Li ".Nm groff_mdoc"
1827 .It Li ".Nm \e\-mdoc"
1829 .It Li ".Nm foo ) ) ,"
1836 The default width is 10n.
1842 macro places option brackets around any remaining arguments on the
1843 command line, and places any trailing punctuation outside the brackets.
1848 (which produce an opening and a closing option bracket respectively) may be used
1849 across one or more lines or to specify the exact position of the closing
1852 .Dl Usage: .Op Oo Ao option Ac Oc ...
1854 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Op\ Fl\ c\ Ar\ objfil\ Op\ Ar\ corfil\ ," -compact -offset 15n
1859 .It Li ".Op Fl k ) ."
1861 .It Li ".Op Fl k Ar kookfile"
1862 .Op Fl k Ar kookfile
1863 .It Li ".Op Fl k Ar kookfile ,"
1864 .Op Fl k Ar kookfile ,
1865 .It Li ".Op Ar objfil Op Ar corfil"
1866 .Op Ar objfil Op Ar corfil
1867 .It Li ".Op Fl c Ar objfil Op Ar corfil ,"
1868 .Op Fl c Ar objfil Op Ar corfil ,
1869 .It Li ".Op word1 word2"
1871 .It Li ".Li .Op Oo Ao option Ac Oc ..."
1872 .Li .Op Oo Ao option Ac Oc ...
1875 Here a typical example of the
1881 .Bd -literal -offset indent
1883 \&.Op Fl k Ar kilobytes
1884 \&.Op Fl i Ar interval
1892 .Bd -filled -offset indent
1894 .Op Fl k Ar kilobytes
1895 .Op Fl i Ar interval
1901 The default width values of
1905 are 14n and 10n, respectively.
1911 macro formats path or file names.
1912 If called without arguments, the
1914 string is output, which represents the current user's home directory.
1916 .Dl Usage: .Pa Oo Ao pathname Ac Oc ...
1918 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Pa\ /tmp/fooXXXXX\ )\ ." -compact -offset 15n
1921 .It Li ".Pa /usr/share"
1923 .It Li ".Pa /tmp/fooXXXXX ) ."
1924 .Pa /tmp/fooXXXXX ) .
1928 The default width is 32n.
1934 macro replaces standard abbreviations with their formal names.
1936 .Dl Usage: .St Ao abbreviation Ac ...
1939 .Dq Abbreviation/Formal Name
1945 .Bl -tag -width ".Li \-p1003.1g\-2000" -compact -offset indent
1962 .Bl -tag -width ".Li \-p1003.1g\-2000" -compact -offset indent
1963 .It Li \-iso9945\-1\-90
1965 .It Li \-iso9945\-1\-96
1969 .It Li \-p1003.1\-88
1971 .It Li \-p1003.1\-90
1973 .It Li \-p1003.1\-96
1975 .It Li \-p1003.1b\-93
1977 .It Li \-p1003.1c\-95
1979 .It Li \-p1003.1g\-2000
1981 .It Li \-p1003.1i\-95
1983 .It Li \-p1003.1\-2001
1985 .It Li \-p1003.1\-2004
1987 .It Li \-p1003.1\-2008
1993 Part 2: Shell and Utilities
1995 .Bl -tag -width ".Li \-p1003.1g\-2000" -compact -offset indent
1996 .It Li \-iso9945\-2\-93
2000 .It Li \-p1003.2\-92
2002 .It Li \-p1003.2a\-92
2009 .Bl -tag -width ".Li \-p1003.1g\-2000" -compact -offset indent
2039 .Bl -tag -width ".Li \-p1003.1g\-2000" -compact -offset indent
2046 .Ss "Variable Types"
2050 macro may be used whenever a type is referenced.
2053 section, it causes a line break (useful for old style variable declarations).
2055 .Dl Usage: .Vt Ao type Ac ...
2057 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Vt\ extern\ char\ *optarg\ ;" -compact -offset 15n
2058 .It Li ".Vt extern char *optarg ;"
2059 .Vt extern char *optarg ;
2066 Generic variable reference.
2068 .Dl Usage: .Va Ao variable Ac ...
2070 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Va\ Xchar\ sX\ ]\ )\ )\ ," -compact -offset 15n
2073 .It Li ".Va settimer ,"
2075 .It Li ".Va \*[q]int *prt\*[q] ) :"
2077 .It Li ".Va \*[q]char s\*[q] ] ) ) ,"
2078 .Va "char s" ] ) ) ,
2082 The default width is 12n.
2084 .Ss "Manual Page Cross References"
2088 macro expects the first argument to be a manual page name.
2089 The optional second argument, if a string (defining the manual section), is
2090 put into parentheses.
2092 .Dl Usage: .Xr Ao man page name Ac Oo Ao section Ac Oc ...
2094 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Xr\ xinit\ 1x\ ;" -compact -offset 15n
2101 .It Li ".Xr xinit 1x ;"
2106 The default width is 10n.
2109 .Sh "GENERAL TEXT DOMAIN"
2114 .Dl Usage: .At Oo Ao version Ac Oc ...
2116 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .At\ v6\ ." -compact -offset 15n
2123 The following values for
2127 .Dl 32v, v1, v2, v3, v4, v5, v6, v7, V, V.1, V.2, V.3, V.4
2132 .Dl "Usage: .Bx" Bro \-alpha | \-beta | \-devel Brc ...
2133 .Dl " .Bx" Oo Ao version Ac Oo Ao release Ac Oc Oc ...
2135 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Bx\ -devel" -compact -offset 15n
2140 .It Li ".Bx \-devel"
2145 will be prepended to the string
2147 The following values for
2151 .Dl Reno, reno, Tahoe, tahoe, Lite, lite, Lite2, lite2
2156 .Dl Usage: .Nx Oo Ao version Ac Oc ...
2158 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Nx\ 1.4\ ." -compact -offset 15n
2165 For possible values of
2167 see the description of the
2169 command above in section
2170 .Sx "TITLE MACROS" .
2175 .Dl Usage: .Fx Oo Ao version Ac Oc ...
2177 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Fx\ 2.2\ ." -compact -offset 15n
2184 For possible values of
2186 see the description of the
2188 command above in section
2189 .Sx "TITLE MACROS" .
2191 .Ss "DragonFly Macro"
2194 .Dl Usage: .Dx Oo Ao version Ac Oc ...
2196 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Dx\ 1.4\ ." -compact -offset 15n
2203 For possible values of
2205 see the description of the
2207 command above in section
2208 .Sx "TITLE MACROS" .
2213 .Dl Usage: .Ox Oo Ao version Ac Oc ...
2215 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Ox\ 1.0" -compact -offset 15n
2223 .Dl Usage: .Bsx Oo Ao version Ac Oc ...
2225 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Bsx\ 1.0" -compact -offset 15n
2235 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Ux" -compact -offset 15n
2240 .Ss "Emphasis Macro"
2242 Text may be stressed or emphasized with the
2245 The usual font for emphasis is italic.
2247 .Dl Usage: .Em Ao argument Ac ...
2249 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Em\ vide\ infra\ )\ )\ ," -compact -offset 15n
2250 .It Li ".Em does not"
2252 .It Li ".Em exceed 1024 ."
2254 .It Li ".Em vide infra ) ) ,"
2255 .Em vide infra ) ) ,
2259 The default width is 10n.
2265 font mode must be ended with the
2267 macro (the latter takes no arguments).
2268 Font modes may be nested within other font modes.
2271 has the following syntax:
2273 .Dl .Bf Ao font mode Ac
2276 must be one of the following three types:
2278 .Bl -tag -width ".Sy \&Sy | Fl symbolic" -compact -offset indent
2279 .It Sy \&Em | Fl emphasis
2282 macro was used for the entire block of text.
2283 .It Sy \&Li | Fl literal
2286 macro was used for the entire block of text.
2287 .It Sy \&Sy | Fl symbolic
2290 macro was used for the entire block of text.
2293 Both macros are neither callable nor parsed.
2295 .Ss "Enclosure and Quoting Macros"
2297 The concept of enclosure is similar to quoting.
2298 The object being to enclose one or more strings between a pair of characters
2299 like quotes or parentheses.
2300 The terms quoting and enclosure are used interchangeably throughout this
2302 Most of the one-line enclosure macros end in small letter
2304 to give a hint of quoting, but there are a few irregularities.
2305 For each enclosure macro there is also a pair of open and close macros which
2306 end in small letters
2316 .Bd -filled -offset 4n
2317 .Bl -column "quote" "close" "open" "Angle Bracket Enclosure" "`string' or string"
2318 .Em Quote Ta Em Open Ta Em Close Ta Em Function Ta Em Result
2319 .No .Aq Ta .Ao Ta .Ac Ta "Angle Bracket Enclosure" Ta Ao string Ac
2320 .No .Bq Ta .Bo Ta .Bc Ta "Bracket Enclosure" Ta Bo string Bc
2321 .No .Brq Ta .Bro Ta .Brc Ta "Brace Enclosure" Ta Bro string Brc
2322 .No .Dq Ta .Do Ta .Dc Ta "Double Quote" Ta Do string Dc
2323 .No .Eq Ta .Eo Ta .Ec Ta "Enclose String (in XX)" Ta XXstringXX
2324 .No .Pq Ta .Po Ta .Pc Ta "Parenthesis Enclosure" Ta Po string Pc
2325 .No .Ql Ta Ta Ta "Quoted Literal" Ta So string Sc or Li string
2326 .No .Qq Ta .Qo Ta .Qc Ta "Straight Double Quote" Ta Qo string Qc
2327 .No .Sq Ta .So Ta .Sc Ta "Single Quote" Ta So string Sc
2331 All macros ending with
2335 have a default width value of 12n.
2337 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Ec , .Eo"
2339 These macros expect the first argument to be the opening and closing strings
2342 Due to the nine-argument limit in the original troff program two other
2343 macros have been implemented which are now rather obsolete:
2345 takes the first and second parameter as the left and right enclosure string,
2346 which are then used to enclose the arguments of
2348 The default width value is 12n for both macros.
2350 The first and second arguments of this macro are the opening and
2351 closing strings respectively, followed by the arguments to be enclosed.
2353 The quoted literal macro behaves differently in troff and nroff mode.
2356 a quoted literal is always quoted.
2357 If formatted with troff, an item is only quoted if the width of the item is
2358 less than three constant width characters.
2359 This is to make short strings more visible where the font change to literal
2360 (constant width) is less noticeable.
2362 The default width is 16n.
2364 The prefix macro suppresses the whitespace between its first and second
2367 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Pf\ (\ Fa\ name2" -offset indent
2368 .It Li ".Pf ( Fa name2"
2373 The default width is 12n.
2377 macro (see below) performs the analogous suffix function.
2381 macro inserts an apostrophe and exits any special text modes, continuing in
2387 Examples of quoting:
2390 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Bq\ Em\ Greek\ ,\ French\ ." -compact -offset indent
2393 .It Li ".Aq Pa ctype.h ) ,"
2397 .It Li ".Bq Em Greek , French ."
2398 .Bq Em Greek , French .
2401 .It Li ".Dq string abc ."
2403 .It Li ".Dq \'^[A\-Z]\'"
2405 .It Li ".Ql man mdoc"
2409 .It Li ".Qq string ) ,"
2411 .It Li ".Qq string Ns ),"
2417 .It Li ".Em or Ap ing"
2422 For a good example of nested enclosure macros, see the
2425 It was created from the same underlying enclosure macros as those presented
2431 extended argument list macros are discussed below.
2433 .Ss "No-Op or Normal Text Macro"
2437 macro can be used in a macro command line for parameters which should
2444 if you really want that English word (and not the macro) as a parameter.
2446 .Dl Usage: .No Ao argument Ac ...
2448 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .No\ test\ Ta\ with\ Ta\ tabs" -compact -offset 15n
2449 .It Li ".No test Ta with Ta tabs"
2450 .No test Ta with Ta tabs
2454 The default width is 12n.
2456 .Ss "No-Space Macro"
2460 macro suppresses insertion of a space between the current position and its
2462 For example, it is useful for old style argument lists where there is no
2463 space between the flag and argument:
2465 .Dl "Usage:" ... Ao argument Ac \&Ns Oo Ao argument Ac Oc ...
2466 .Dl " " .Ns Ao argument Ac ...
2468 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Op\ Fl\ I\ Ns\ Ar\ directory" -compact -offset 15n
2469 .It Li ".Op Fl I Ns Ar directory"
2470 .Op Fl I Ns Ar directory
2475 macro always invokes the
2477 macro after eliminating the space unless another macro name follows it.
2478 If used as a command (i.e., the second form above in the
2485 .Ss "Section Cross References"
2489 macro designates a reference to a section header within the same document.
2491 .Dl Usage: .Sx Ao section reference Ac ...
2493 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Sx\ FILES" -offset 15n
2499 The default width is 16n.
2503 The symbolic emphasis macro is generally a boldface macro in either the
2504 symbolic sense or the traditional English usage.
2506 .Dl Usage: .Sy Ao symbol Ac ...
2508 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Sy\ Important\ Notice" -compact -offset 15n
2509 .It Li ".Sy Important Notice"
2510 .Sy Important Notice
2514 The default width is 6n.
2516 .Ss Mathematical Symbols
2518 Use this macro for mathematical symbols and similar things.
2520 .Dl Usage: .Ms Ao math symbol Ac ...
2522 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Ms\ sigma" -compact -offset 15n
2528 The default width is 6n.
2530 .Ss "References and Citations"
2532 The following macros make a modest attempt to handle references.
2533 At best, the macros make it convenient to manually drop in a subset of
2537 .Bl -tag -width 6n -offset indent -compact
2539 Reference start (does not take arguments).
2540 Causes a line break in the
2542 section and begins collection of reference information until the reference
2545 Reference end (does not take arguments).
2546 The reference is printed.
2548 Reference author name; one name per invocation.
2552 City/place (not implemented yet).
2556 Issuer/publisher name.
2562 Optional information.
2566 Corporate or foreign author.
2572 Optional hypertext reference.
2577 Macros beginning with
2579 are not callable but accept multiple arguments in the usual way.
2582 macro is handled properly as a parameter; other macros will cause strange
2587 can be used outside of the
2593 .Bd -literal -offset indent
2597 \&.%T "Implementation Notes on foobar(1)"
2598 \&.%R "Technical Report ABC\-DE\-12\-345"
2599 \&.%Q "Drofnats College, Nowhere"
2606 .Bd -ragged -offset indent
2610 .%T "Implementation Notes on foobar(1)"
2611 .%R "Technical Report ABC-DE-12-345"
2612 .%Q "Drofnats College, Nowhere"
2617 .Ss "Trade Names (or Acronyms and Type Names)"
2619 The trade name macro prints its arguments in a smaller font.
2620 Its intended use is to imitate a small caps fonts for uppercase acronyms.
2622 .Dl Usage: .Tn Ao symbol Ac ...
2624 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Tn\ ASCII" -compact -offset 15n
2632 The default width is 10n.
2634 .Ss "Extended Arguments"
2640 macros allow one to extend an argument list on a macro boundary for the
2647 are implemented similarly to all other macros opening and closing an
2648 enclosure (without inserting characters, of course).
2649 This means that the following is true for those macros also.
2651 Here is an example of
2653 using the space mode macro to turn spacing off:
2655 .Bd -literal -offset indent
2657 \&.It Xo Sy I Ar operation
2658 \&.No \een Ar count No \een
2666 .Bd -filled -offset indent
2669 .It Xo Sy I Ar operation
2670 .No \en Ar count No \en
2679 .Bd -literal -offset indent
2681 \&.It Cm S No / Ar old_pattern Xo
2682 \&.No / Ar new_pattern
2691 .Bd -filled -offset indent
2694 .It Cm S No \&/ Ar old_pattern Xo
2695 .No \&/ Ar new_pattern
2705 and enclosure macros: Test the value of a variable.
2707 .Bd -literal -offset indent
2710 \&.Oo \e&! Oc Ns Ar variable Oo
2711 \&.Ar operator variable ...
2718 .Bd -filled -offset indent
2719 .Bl -tag -width flag -compact
2722 .Oo \&! Oc Ns Ar variable Oo
2723 .Ar operator variable ...
2730 .Sh "PAGE STRUCTURE DOMAIN"
2732 .Ss "Section Headers"
2736 section header macros are required in every man page.
2737 The remaining section headers are recommended at the discretion of the
2738 author writing the manual page.
2741 macro is parsed but not generally callable.
2742 It can be used as an argument in a call to
2744 only; it then reactivates the default font for
2747 The default width is 8n.
2749 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Sh\ RETURN\ VALUES"
2754 If not specified, headers, footers and page layout defaults will not be set
2755 and things will be rather unpleasant.
2758 section consists of at least three items.
2761 name macro naming the subject of the man page.
2762 The second is the name description macro,
2764 which separates the subject name from the third item, which is the
2766 The description should be the most terse and lucid possible, as the space
2772 then all its arguments.
2774 .It Li ".Sh LIBRARY"
2775 This section is for section two and three function calls.
2776 It should consist of a single
2780 .Sx "Library Names" .
2782 .It Li ".Sh SYNOPSIS"
2785 section describes the typical usage of the subject of a man page.
2786 The macros required are either
2797 The function name macro
2799 is required for manual page sections\~2 and\~3; the command and general name
2802 is required for sections 1, 5, 6, 7, and\~8.
2803 Section\~4 manuals require a
2808 configuration device usage macro.
2809 Several other macros may be necessary to produce the synopsis line as shown
2812 .Bd -filled -offset indent
2820 The following macros were used:
2823 .Dl ".Op Fl benstuv"
2827 .It Li ".Sh DESCRIPTION"
2828 In most cases the first text in the
2830 section is a brief paragraph on the command, function or file, followed by a
2831 lexical list of options and respective explanations.
2832 To create such a list, the
2839 macros are used (see
2840 .Sx Lists and Columns
2843 .It Li ".Sh IMPLEMENTATION NOTES"
2844 Implementation specific information should be placed here.
2846 .It Li ".Sh RETURN VALUES"
2847 Sections 2, 3 and\~9 function return values should go here.
2850 macro may be used to generate text for use in the
2852 section for most section 2 and 3 library functions;
2854 .Sx "Return Values" .
2860 section headers are part of the preferred manual page layout and must be
2861 used appropriately to maintain consistency.
2862 They are listed in the order in which they would be used.
2864 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Sh\ COMPATIBILITY"
2865 .It Li ".Sh ENVIRONMENT"
2868 section should reveal any related environment variables and clues to their
2869 behavior and/or usage.
2872 Files which are used or created by the man page subject should be listed via
2879 .It Li ".Sh EXAMPLES"
2880 There are several ways to create examples.
2883 section below for details.
2885 .It Li ".Sh DIAGNOSTICS"
2886 Diagnostic messages from a command should be placed in this section.
2889 macro may be used to generate text for use in the
2891 section for most section 1, 6 and\~8 commands;
2895 .It Li ".Sh COMPATIBILITY"
2896 Known compatibility issues (e.g. deprecated options or parameters)
2897 should be listed here.
2900 Specific error handling, especially from library functions (man page
2901 sections 2, 3, and\~9) should go here.
2904 macro is used to specify an error (errno).
2906 .It Li ".Sh SEE ALSO"
2907 References to other material on the man page topic and cross references to
2908 other relevant man pages should be placed in the
2911 Cross references are specified using the
2916 style references are not accommodated.
2918 It is recommended that the cross references are sorted on the section
2919 number, then alphabetically on the names within a section, and placed
2920 in that order and comma separated.
2928 .It Li ".Sh STANDARDS"
2929 If the command, library function or file adheres to a specific
2930 implementation such as
2934 this should be noted here.
2935 If the command does not adhere to any standard, its history should be noted
2940 .It Li ".Sh HISTORY"
2941 Any command which does not adhere to any specific standards should be
2942 outlined historically in this section.
2944 .It Li ".Sh AUTHORS"
2945 Credits should be placed here.
2948 macro for names and the
2950 macro for e-mail addresses within optional contact information.
2951 Explicitly indicate whether the person authored the initial manual page
2952 or the software or whatever the person is being credited for.
2954 Blatant problems with the topic go here.
2960 sections may be added; for example, this section was set with:
2962 .Bd -literal -offset 15n
2963 \&.Sh "PAGE STRUCTURE DOMAIN"
2966 .Ss "Subsection Headers"
2968 Subsection headers have exactly the same syntax as section headers:
2970 is parsed but not generally callable.
2971 It can be used as an argument in a call to
2973 only; it then reactivates the default font for
2976 The default width is 8n.
2978 .Ss "Paragraphs and Line Spacing"
2980 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Pp"
2984 paragraph command may be used to specify a line space where necessary.
2985 The macro is not necessary after a
2993 macro (which both assert a vertical distance unless the
2997 The macro is neither callable nor parsed and takes no arguments; an
3004 .\" This worked with version one, need to redo for version three
3007 .\" .Cw (ax+bx+c) \ is\ produced\ by\ \&
3008 .\" .\".Cw (ax+bx+c) \&.Va_by_) \&_and_\& \&[?/]m_b1_e1_f1[?/]\&
3025 .\" .Em is produced by
3041 .\" This example shows the same equation in a different format.
3045 .\" signs were forced with
3049 .\" .Cw (ax\ +\ bx\ +\ c) \ is\ produced\ by\ \&
3050 .\" .\".Cw (ax+bx+c) \&.Va_by_) \&_and_\& \&[?/]m_b1_e1_f1[?/]\&
3061 .\" .Li \&.Cx \e\ +\e\ \e&
3072 .\" .Em is produced by
3080 .\" .Li \&.Cx \e\ +\e\ \e&
3091 .\" The incantation below was
3097 .\" .Cw \&[?/]m_b1_e1_f1[?/]\& is\ produced\ by
3099 .\" .Li \&.Cx Op Sy ?/
3109 .\" .Em is produced by
3111 .\" .Li \&.Ar \e\ b1 e1 f1
3125 The only keep that is implemented at this time is for words.
3132 The only option that
3134 accepts currently is
3136 (this is also the default if no option is given) which is useful for
3137 preventing line breaks in the middle of options.
3138 In the example for the make command line arguments (see
3139 .Sx What's in a Name ) ,
3142 from placing up the flag and the argument on separate lines.
3144 Both macros are neither callable nor parsed.
3146 More work needs to be done with the keep macros; specifically, a
3148 option should be added.
3150 .Ss "Examples and Displays"
3152 There are seven types of displays.
3154 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .D1"
3157 Display one line of indented text.
3158 This macro is parsed but not callable.
3162 The above was produced by:
3163 .Li ".D1 Fl ldghfstru" .
3167 Display one line of indented
3172 example macro has been used throughout this file.
3173 It allows the indentation (display) of one line of text.
3174 Its default font is set to constant width (literal).
3176 is parsed but not callable.
3178 .Dl % ls \-ldg /usr/local/bin
3180 The above was produced by:
3181 .Li ".Dl % ls \e\-ldg /usr/local/bin" .
3187 display must be ended with the
3190 It has the following syntax:
3192 .Bd -ragged -compact
3193 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Bd" -offset indent
3195 .Bro \-literal | \-filled | \-unfilled | \-ragged | \-centered Brc
3196 .Oo \-offset Ao string Ac Oc Oo \-file Ao file name Ac Oc Oo \-compact Oc Xc
3201 .Bl -tag -width ".Fl file Ao Ar file name Ac " -compact
3203 Fill, but do not adjust the right margin (only left-justify).
3205 Center lines between the current left and right margin.
3206 Note that each single line is centered.
3208 Do not fill; display a block of text as typed, using line breaks as
3209 specified by the user.
3210 This can produce overlong lines without warning messages.
3212 Display a filled block.
3213 The block of text is formatted (i.e., the text is justified on both the left
3216 Display block with literal font (usually fixed-width).
3217 Useful for source code or simple tabbed or spaced text.
3218 .It Fl file Ao Ar file name Ac
3219 The file whose name follows the
3221 flag is read and displayed before any data enclosed with
3225 using the selected display type.
3227 .Xr troff/ Ns Nm \-mdoc
3228 commands in the file will be processed.
3229 .It Fl offset Ao Ar string Ac
3232 is specified with one of the following strings, the string is interpreted to
3233 indicate the level of indentation for the forthcoming block of text:
3236 .Bl -tag -width ".Ar indent-two" -compact
3238 Align block on the current left margin; this is the default mode of
3241 Supposedly center the block.
3242 At this time unfortunately, the block merely gets left aligned about an
3243 imaginary center margin.
3245 Indent by one default indent value or tab.
3246 The default indent value is also used for the
3250 macros, so one is guaranteed the two types of displays will line up.
3251 The indentation value is normally set to\~6n or about two thirds of an inch
3252 (six constant width characters).
3254 Indent two times the default indent value.
3258 aligns the block about two inches from the right side of the page.
3259 This macro needs work and perhaps may never do the right thing within
3266 is a valid numeric expression instead
3267 .Pf ( Em with a scale indicator other than
3269 use that value for indentation.
3270 The most useful scale indicators are
3274 specifying the so-called
3278 This is approximately the width of the letters
3283 of the current font (for nroff output, both scale indicators give the same
3287 isn't a numeric expression, it is tested whether it is an
3289 macro name, and the default offset value associated with this macro is used.
3290 Finally, if all tests fail,
3293 (typeset with a fixed-width font) is taken as the offset.
3295 Suppress insertion of vertical space before begin of display.
3299 End display (takes no arguments).
3302 .Ss "Lists and Columns"
3304 There are several types of lists which may be initiated with the
3307 Items within the list are specified with the
3309 item macro, and each list must end with the
3312 Lists may be nested within themselves and within displays.
3313 The use of columns inside of lists or lists inside of columns is unproven.
3315 In addition, several list attributes may be specified such as the width of a
3316 tag, the list offset, and compactness (blank lines between items allowed or
3318 Most of this document has been formatted with a tag style list
3321 It has the following syntax forms:
3324 .Bd -ragged -compact
3325 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Bl" -offset indent -compact
3327 .Bro \-hang | \-ohang | \-tag | \-diag | \-inset Brc
3328 .Oo \-width Ao string Ac Oc
3329 .Oo \-offset Ao string Ac Oc Oo \-compact Oc Xc
3331 .No \-column Oo \-offset Ao string Ac Oc
3332 .Ao string1 Ac Ao string2 Ac ... Xc
3334 .Bro \-item | \-enum Oo \-nested Oc | \-bullet | \-hyphen | \-dash Brc
3335 .Oo \-offset Ao string Ac Oc Oo \-compact Oc Xc
3340 And now a detailed description of the list types.
3343 .Bl -tag -width ".Fl column" -compact
3347 .Bd -literal -offset indent
3348 \&.Bl \-bullet \-offset indent \-compact
3350 Bullet one goes here.
3360 .Bl -bullet -offset indent -compact
3362 Bullet one goes here.
3368 .It Fl dash No ( or Fl hyphen )
3371 .Bd -literal -offset indent
3372 \&.Bl \-dash \-offset indent \-compact
3384 .Bl -dash -offset indent -compact
3395 .Bd -literal -offset indent
3396 \&.Bl \-enum \-offset indent \-compact
3408 .Bl -enum -offset indent -compact
3416 If you want to nest enumerated lists, use the
3418 flag (starting with the second-level list):
3420 .Bd -literal -offset indent
3421 \&.Bl \-enum \-offset indent \-compact
3424 \&.Bl \-enum \-nested \-compact
3428 And item three here.
3439 .Bl -enum -offset indent -compact
3442 .Bl -enum -nested -compact
3446 And item three here.
3456 without list markers.
3458 .Bd -literal -offset indent
3459 \&.Bl \-item \-offset indent
3475 .Bl -item -offset indent
3491 to specify the tag width.
3494 .Bl -tag -width "PPID" -compact -offset indent
3496 sleep time of the process (seconds blocked)
3500 resulting from references by the process
3501 to pages not loaded in core.
3503 numerical user-id of process owner
3505 numerical id of parent of process priority
3506 (non-positive when in non-interruptible wait)
3512 .Bd -literal -offset indent
3513 \&.Bl \-tag \-width "PPID" \-compact \-offset indent
3515 sleep time of the process (seconds blocked)
3519 resulting from references by the process
3520 to pages not loaded in core.
3522 numerical user\-id of process owner
3524 numerical id of parent of process priority
3525 (non\-positive when in non\-interruptible wait)
3531 Diag lists create section four diagnostic lists and are similar to inset
3532 lists except callable macros are ignored.
3535 flag is not meaningful in this context.
3539 .Bd -literal -offset indent
3541 \&.It You can't use Sy here.
3542 The message says all.
3550 .It You can't use Sy here.
3551 The message says all.
3556 A list with hanging tags.
3558 .Bl -hang -offset indent
3560 labels appear similar to tagged lists when the
3561 label is smaller than the label width.
3562 .It Em Longer hanged list labels
3563 blend into the paragraph unlike
3564 tagged paragraph labels.
3567 And the unformatted text which created it:
3569 .Bd -literal -offset indent
3570 \&.Bl \-hang \-offset indent
3572 labels appear similar to tagged lists when the
3573 label is smaller than the label width.
3574 \&.It Em Longer hanged list labels
3575 blend into the paragraph unlike
3576 tagged paragraph labels.
3582 Lists with overhanging tags do not use indentation for the items; tags are
3583 written to a separate line.
3585 .Bl -ohang -offset indent
3587 sleep time of the process (seconds blocked)
3591 resulting from references by the process
3592 to pages not loaded in core.
3594 numerical user-id of process owner
3596 numerical id of parent of process priority
3597 (non-positive when in non-interruptible wait)
3603 .Bd -literal -offset indent
3604 \&.Bl \-ohang \-offset indent
3606 sleep time of the process (seconds blocked)
3610 resulting from references by the process
3611 to pages not loaded in core.
3613 numerical user\-id of process owner
3615 numerical id of parent of process priority
3616 (non\-positive when in non\-interruptible wait)
3622 Here is an example of inset labels:
3623 .Bl -inset -offset indent
3625 The tagged list (also called a tagged paragraph)
3626 is the most common type of list used in the
3630 attribute as described below.
3632 Diag lists create section four diagnostic lists
3633 and are similar to inset lists except callable
3636 Hanged labels are a matter of taste.
3638 Overhanging labels are nice when space is constrained.
3640 Inset labels are useful for controlling blocks of
3641 paragraphs and are valuable for converting
3643 manuals to other formats.
3646 Here is the source text which produced the above example:
3648 .Bd -literal -offset indent
3649 \&.Bl \-inset \-offset indent
3651 The tagged list (also called a tagged paragraph)
3652 is the most common type of list used in the
3655 Diag lists create section four diagnostic lists
3656 and are similar to inset lists except callable
3659 Hanged labels are a matter of taste.
3661 Overhanging labels are nice when space is constrained.
3663 Inset labels are useful for controlling blocks of
3664 paragraphs and are valuable for converting
3666 manuals to other formats.
3672 This list type generates multiple columns.
3673 The number of columns and the width of each column is determined by the
3684 (dot) immediately followed by a valid
3686 macro name, interpret
3688 and use the width of the result.
3689 Otherwise, the width of
3691 (typeset with a fixed-width font) is taken as the
3697 argument is parsed to make a row, each column within the row is a separate
3698 argument separated by a tab or the
3704 .Bl -column -offset indent ".Sy String" ".Sy Nroff" ".Sy Troff"
3705 .It Sy String Ta Sy Nroff Ta Sy Troff
3706 .It Li <= Ta <= Ta \*(<=
3707 .It Li >= Ta >= Ta \*(>=
3714 \&.Bl \-column \-offset indent ".Sy String" ".Sy Nroff" ".Sy Troff"
3715 \&.It Sy String Ta Sy Nroff Ta Sy Troff
3716 \&.It Li <= Ta <= Ta \e*(<=
3717 \&.It Li >= Ta >= Ta \e*(>=
3722 Don't abuse this list type!
3723 For more complicated cases it might be far better and easier to use
3725 the table preprocessor.
3731 .Bl -tag -width ".Fl indent Ao Ar string Ac"
3732 .It Fl width Ao Ar string Ac
3737 (dot) immediately followed by a valid
3739 macro name, interpret
3741 and use the width of the result.
3742 Almost all lists in this document use this option.
3746 .Bd -literal -offset indent
3747 \&.Bl \-tag \-width ".Fl test Ao Ar string Ac"
3748 \&.It Fl test Ao Ar string Ac
3749 This is a longer sentence to show how the
3751 flag works in combination with a tag list.
3758 .Bl -tag -width ".Fl test Ao Ar string Ac"
3759 .It Fl test Ao Ar string Ac
3760 This is a longer sentence to show how the
3762 flag works in combination with a tag list.
3766 (Note that the current state of
3770 is interpreted; afterwards, all variables are restored again.
3771 However, boxes (used for enclosures) can't be saved in
3774 as a consequence, arguments must always be
3776 to avoid nasty errors.
3777 For example, do not write
3780 .Ql ".Ao Ar string Xc"
3781 instead if you really need only an opening angle bracket.)
3785 is a valid numeric expression
3786 .Em ( with a scale indicator other than
3788 use that value for indentation.
3789 The most useful scale indicators are
3793 specifying the so-called
3797 This is approximately the width of the letters
3802 of the current font (for nroff output, both scale indicators give the same
3806 isn't a numeric expression, it is tested whether it is an
3808 macro name, and the default width value associated with this macro is used.
3809 Finally, if all tests fail,
3812 (typeset with a fixed-width font) is taken as the width.
3814 If a width is not specified for the tag list type, every time
3816 is invoked, an attempt is made to determine an appropriate width.
3817 If the first argument to
3819 is a callable macro, the default width for that macro will be used;
3820 otherwise, the default width of
3823 .It Fl offset Ao Ar string Ac
3828 a default indent value (normally set to\~6n, similar to the value used in
3835 is a valid numeric expression instead
3836 .Pf ( Em with a scale indicator other than
3838 use that value for indentation.
3839 The most useful scale indicators are
3843 specifying the so-called
3847 This is approximately the width of the letters
3852 of the current font (for nroff output, both scale indicators give the same
3856 isn't a numeric expression, it is tested whether it is an
3858 macro name, and the default offset value associated with this macro is used.
3859 Finally, if all tests fail,
3862 (typeset with a fixed-width font) is taken as the offset.
3864 Suppress insertion of vertical space before the list and between list items.
3868 .Sh "MISCELLANEOUS MACROS"
3870 Here a list of the remaining macros which do not fit well into one of the
3872 We couldn't find real examples for the following macros:
3876 They are documented here for completeness \- if you know how to use them
3877 properly please send a mail to
3878 .Mt bug-groff@gnu.org
3879 (including an example).
3881 .Bl -tag -width ".Li .Bt"
3885 .Bd -ragged -offset indent
3889 It is neither callable nor parsed and takes no arguments.
3893 .Dl Usage: .Fr Ao function return value Ac ...
3895 Don't use this macro.
3896 It allows a break right before the return value (usually a single digit)
3897 which is bad typographical behaviour.
3900 to tie the return value to the previous word.
3903 Use this macro to include a (header) file literally.
3906 followed by the file name, then the contents of
3909 .Dl Usage: .Hf Ao file Ac
3911 It is neither callable nor parsed.
3917 Exact usage unknown.
3918 The documentation in the
3920 source file describes it as a macro for
3921 .Dq "menu entries" .
3923 Its default width is 6n.
3929 Exact usage unknown.
3930 The documentation in the
3932 source file describes it as
3933 .Dq old function type (fortran) .
3936 Activate (toggle) space mode.
3938 .Dl Usage: .Sm Oo on | off Oc ...
3940 If space mode is off, no spaces between macro arguments are inserted.
3941 If called without a parameter (or if the next parameter is neither
3951 .Bd -ragged -offset indent
3955 It is neither callable nor parsed and takes no arguments.
3959 .Sh "PREDEFINED STRINGS"
3961 The following strings are predefined:
3963 .Bl -column String infinity "Troff " "straight double quote" -offset indent
3964 .It Sy String Ta Sy Nroff Ta Sy Troff Ta Sy Meaning
3965 .It Li <= Ta <= Ta \*[<=] Ta "less equal"
3966 .It Li >= Ta >= Ta \*[>=] Ta "greater equal"
3967 .It Li Rq Ta '' Ta \*[Rq] Ta "right double quote"
3968 .It Li Lq Ta `` Ta \*[Lq] Ta "left double quote"
3969 .It Li ua Ta ^ Ta \*[ua] Ta "upwards arrow"
3970 .It Li aa Ta \' Ta \*[aa] Ta "acute accent"
3971 .It Li ga Ta \` Ta \*[ga] Ta "grave accent"
3972 .It Li q Ta \&" Ta \*[q] Ta "straight double quote"
3973 .It Li Pi Ta pi Ta \*[Pi] Ta "greek pi"
3974 .It Li Ne Ta != Ta \*[Ne] Ta "not equal"
3975 .It Li Le Ta <= Ta \*[Le] Ta "less equal"
3976 .It Li Ge Ta >= Ta \*[Ge] Ta "greater equal"
3977 .It Li Lt Ta < Ta \*[Lt] Ta "less than"
3978 .It Li Gt Ta > Ta \*[Gt] Ta "greater than"
3979 .It Li Pm Ta +\- Ta \*[Pm] Ta "plus minus"
3980 .It Li If Ta infinity Ta \*[If] Ta "infinity"
3981 .It Li Am Ta \*[Am] Ta \*[Am] Ta "ampersand"
3982 .It Li Na Ta \*[Na] Ta \*[Na] Ta "not a number"
3983 .It Li Ba Ta \*[Ba] Ta \*[Ba] Ta "vertical bar"
3986 The names of the columns
3990 are a bit misleading;
3994 representation, while
3996 gives the best glyph form available.
3997 For example, a Unicode enabled
3999 device will have proper glyph representations for all strings, whereas the
4000 enhancement for a Latin1
4002 device is only the plus-minus sign.
4004 String names which consist of two characters can be written as
4006 string names which consist of one character can be written as
4008 A generic syntax for a string name of any length is
4017 \#=====================================================================
4023 available in previous versions of
4025 has been removed since
4028 provides better facilities to check parameters; additionally, many error and
4029 warning messages have been added to this macro package, making it both more
4032 The only remaining debugging macro is
4034 which yields a register dump of all global registers and strings.
4035 A normal user will never need it.
4038 .Sh "FORMATTING WITH GROFF, TROFF, AND NROFF"
4040 By default, the package inhibits page breaks, headers, and footers if
4047 to make the manual more efficient for viewing on-line.
4048 This behaviour can be changed (e.g.\& to create a hardcopy of the
4050 output) by setting the register
4052 to zero while calling
4054 resulting in multiple pages instead of a single, very long page:
4056 .Dl groff \-Tlatin1 \-rcR=0 \-mdoc foo.man > foo.txt
4058 For double-sided printing, set register
4062 .Dl groff \-Tps \-rD1 \-mdoc foo.man > foo.ps
4064 To change the document font size to 11pt or 12pt, set register
4068 .Dl groff \-Tdvi \-rS11 \-mdoc foo.man > foo.dvi
4076 The line and title length can be changed by setting the registers
4082 .Dl groff \-Tutf8 \-rLL=100n \-rLT=100n \-mdoc foo.man | less
4084 If not set, both registers default to 78n for TTY devices and 6.5i
4090 .Bl -tag -width mdoc/doc-ditroff -compact
4092 The main manual macro package.
4094 A wrapper file to call
4096 .It Pa mdoc/doc-common
4097 Common strings, definitions, stuff related typographic output.
4098 .It Pa mdoc/doc-nroff
4099 Definitions used for a
4102 .It Pa mdoc/doc-ditroff
4103 Definitions used for all other devices.
4105 Local additions and customizations.
4107 Use this file if you don't know whether the
4111 package should be used.
4112 Multiple man pages (in either format) can be handled.
4126 Section 3f has not been added to the header routines.
4129 font should be changed in
4134 needs to have a check to prevent splitting up
4135 if the line length is too short.
4137 separates the last parenthesis, and sometimes
4138 looks ridiculous if a line is in fill mode.
4140 The list and display macros do not do any keeps
4141 and certainly should be able to.
4142 .\" Note what happens if the parameter list overlaps a newline
4144 .\" to make sure a line boundary is crossed:
4146 .\" \&.Fn struct\e\ dictionarytable\e\ *dictionarylookup struct\e\ dictionarytable\e\ *tab[]
4149 .\" produces, nudge nudge,
4150 .\" .Fn struct\ dictionarytable\ *dictionarylookup char\ *h struct\ dictionarytable\ *tab[] ,
4151 .\" .Fn struct\ dictionarytable\ *dictionarylookup char\ *h struct\ dictionarytable\ *tab[] ,
4153 .\" .Fn struct\ dictionarytable\ *dictionarylookup char\ *h struct\ dictionarytable\ *tab[] .
4155 .\" If double quotes are used, for example:
4157 .\" \&.Fn \*qstruct dictionarytable *dictionarylookup\*q \*qchar *h\*q \*qstruct dictionarytable *tab[]\*q
4160 .\" produces, nudge nudge,
4161 .\" .Fn "struct dictionarytable *dictionarylookup" "char *h" "struct dictionarytable *tab[]" ,
4163 .\" .Fn "struct dictionarytable *dictionarylookup" "char *h" "struct dictionarytable *tab[]" ,
4165 .\" .Fn "struct dictionarytable *dictionarylookup" "char *h" "struct dictionarytable *tab[]" .
4167 .\" Not a pretty sight...
4168 .\" In a paragraph, a long parameter containing unpaddable spaces as
4169 .\" in the former example will cause
4171 .\" to break the line and spread
4172 .\" the remaining words out.
4173 .\" The latter example will adjust nicely to
4174 .\" justified margins, but may break in between an argument and its
4178 .\" the right margin adjustment is normally ragged and the problem is
4181 .\" Local Variables: