Re: Unrecognised fields

peter Murray-rust (ubcg09q@iona.cryst.bbk.ac.uk)
Wed, 15 Feb 1995 00:44:18 +0000 (GMT)

The makeindex script will read *any* properly structured *.glo file w/o
falling over. (Unfortunately it will crash on a syntactically incorrect
one - this will only happen if a curator - could be me! - misedits it.
If *that* happens, just find the last correctly translated file and the
next will be the bad one!)

makeindex is a hack. it has hardcoded fields in it (e.g.
glossary.urls) This is HORRID! That is why I am going to SGML. I think
I have cracked how to run it. Then the glossary team can construct new
types without having to rehack the software . In the first instance, new
types will display, but cannot have special properties associated with
them. e.g.
glossary.nonsense would display something like:
List of Nonsense:
"This is bla bla"
" some grot"

List of Urls:
<a href = ... etc

the idea is that with a bit of hacking I can add *methods* to the new
types so that you will be able to write something like:

<!ATTLIST NONSENSE VALIDATE="$VALUE(nonsense)<93.2">

This will recgnise that NONSENSE has a method VALIDATE (which will have
the semantics of a BOOLEAN and will pass the tcl string $VALUE(nonsense)<93.2
to the script which will already have formed the variable $VALUE(nonsense).
This is slightly hairy but immensely powerful. It will take a week or
two to think through.

I hope to start hacking the *simple* SGML quite soon.

P.