Re: [Groff] [groff/patch] transparent gzip

[Jon Snader]

On Sun, Aug 25, 2002 at 02:06:31PM +0300, Mark Veltzer wrote:
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> Ralph !
> 
> I understand all of your objections. How about this idea:
> 
> Find a generic C library (free source, maintained by a third party) which 
> sits on top of libc which gives transparent access to various file types and 
> can be programmed by the groff level (to allow/prohibit various types of 
> compressions, data source types etc...).
> 

[snip]

I'm with Ralph on this.  One of the concepts that made Unix so powerful
is the notion of small tools that do one job well, connected by pipes
to solve larger more complex problems.

IMHO groff needs built in decompression exactly as much as an text editor
needs the ability to play MP3s--not at all.  There are already tools to
do both jobs, and by keeping them separate we are able to build more
complex and flexible tools.

As a developer, I know that the more code you add to a piece of software,
the more fragile and brittle it becomes.  We don't need more feeping
creaturitis in groff.  Let it do the thing that it does best--typeset text.

Jon Snader