Re: 3VDQ : I want a .abw file *and* a .pdf file

On Tuesday 07 February 2006 02:42 pm, John R. Culleton wrote:
>
> On Tuesday 07 February 2006 02:01 pm, Bear Tooth wrote:
> > I have a great huge long complicated recipe, my own
> > invention, tweaked and re-tweaked for over thirty years, which my
> > guests often ask for. I typed it originally in my regular mailer
> > (Pine, from U Washington), and used to keep a copy in my shell to
> > fetch into emails.

Do you have a website? I uploaded "webber" and "web.sed" as soon as
they were done to mine. I back up with two hard disks and the
occasional cd. Very unsystematic. But new free stuff goes straight
to my website, so someone genuinely expert can keep it. Woulda coulda
shoulda I suppose.

Those convert very shortened and simplified tags to html. Latex.sed
and texer need to be revised because I have changed webber, but when
updated they will convert the same text file, so only one source will
be needed. For example:

.1 My Title

becomes

<h1>My Title</h1>

or

\title{My Title}
...
\maketitle

There is also automatic end note numbering, where the end notes can be
in the same file or a different file. You just have to give the name
of the file.

To place the end note
,en
done. Of course you can click on it and go to its target with
html only. Latex has footnotes, and you can use them and hide
them from html readers, but I like end notes a lot better anyway.

To place the target

.t This is bold
but the rest of the paragraph isn't. You get proper ```single'''
or ``double'' quotes too.

Again, linux stuff. Sed and gawk can do windos. I don't know about
translating webber from bash shell into a batch file, but it's not
very long.

Sounds like it's about time you got into html. You don't have to
worry about upgrades there. Html is a finished product. It's not
going to change, ever.

> > If I do, I might as well do it right, and use my word
> > processor this time. That will save it as a .abw file, of course;

Abiword is still changing. I love it, I really do, but if you're
looking for permanence, stick with plain text sources. It's not the
developer's fault. Latex and especially font handling keeps changing,
and it will be a while before all is safely unicode. (if ever.) I am
no programmer, and it's off the wall, but webber works wonderfully.
The bash script doesn't do anything that can't be done by hand
reasonably, but it is a convenience.

> > but most of my correspondents, poor unretired souls, are still
> > chained to the Gates of Hell and his Abominable OS -- and, probably,
> > don't have good software; they may even do their email at work or in
> > a public library, and be unable to install it. (Library machines
> > commonly have a program that runs every night, and completely wipes
> > anything that's been put on the machine since the previous night. I
> > wouldn't put it past some employers to have that, too.)
> >
> > So I have three Very Dumb Questions. First, given that I
> > once have waffle_recipe.abw in my shell -- and want to keep it, in
> > case I decide to make additions or revisions -- is there an easy way
> > to turn it into waffle_recipe.pdf, and save that separately? Then I
> > could attach the good one to emails to those who can use it, and the
> > .pdf to the poor souls.

Abiword 2.4.1: file->print->Create a PDF Document

> > Second, in case I do find it or get it back, I know how to
> > put it back into my shell as either waffles or waffles.txt, by

> PDF is the best for printing, and also the most useful "finished"
> format for posting on the internet.

Not if you're in a hurry.
>
> A file in text can be converted to the corresponding file in pdf
> by following these simple steps:
>
> 1. Put the following at the front of the file:
> \pdfoutput=1
> {\obeylines
>
> 2.Put the following at the end of the file:
> }
> \bye
>
> 3. Download and install TeX from e.g. www.miktex.org
>
> 4. Run pdftex mydocumentname.txt

Thanks for posting this. Very clear.
>
> Now those who choke at step 3 can send it to me. I work in Linux
> but the above recipe works for those stuck with Windows. TeX runs
> on all three major platforms.
>
> I don't understand why you don't have Abiword. It is free, and
> also the subject of this list.

And it really looks good.

I use debian testing, and I was unable to find a proper $\flat$ sign
among the abiword fonts. The # will do for a sharp, and IIRC there
was a natural someplace. Music is just as popular a topic as math,
isn't it?

Also, the masters of latex didn't know enough about typography, in
spite of all their bragging.

-- --
-- --
-- --
-- --
-- --
-- --

Obviously, the default should have been two columns with less
margin, because then and now printers are letter or A4 size.

-- --
-- --
pictu
-----
pictu
-- --
-- --

Between two wide pics, or at the end|beginning of a page, it should go
to single column provided it results in 4 lines or less. Fewer lines
need less leading, but at that length of course you need a bit more
than in the two column areas:

-- --
-- --
pictu
-- --
-- --
pictu

Elementary typography. I did it with an IBM Selectric, justifying by
hand, in the Jurassic. Why couldn't a genius like Leslie Lamport
manage it? That's self-serving *b******t* about latex not being a
page layout program. Of course it's a page layout program. It's
just not a good one.

I hope to cure you of an admiration for latex, if you have any. It's
second rate, and apparently always will be. Set your sights higher
for abiword. daveA

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Received on Wed Feb 8 17:13:23 2006