Re: vim :hardcopy equivalent

[Dave Kemper]

On Wed, Jul 24, 2024 at 2:24 PM G. Branden Robinson
<g.branden.robinson@gmail.com> wrote:
> At 2024-07-24T13:28:04-0500, G. Branden Robinson wrote:
> > I notice now that those claims about the margin sizes might be off by
> > one vee; in my experience, a "margin" measures an extent of whitespace
> > (or "negative space"), whereas the `sp` request positions the _text
> > baseline_, and since glyphs are nearly always drawn at least in part
> > _above_ the text baseline, text formatted at a vertical position of
> > 0.5i from the top of the page actually encroaches into a "top margin"
> > of one half-inch.
>
> Sure enough, there were problems.  I've fixed them in my working copy
> and you can expect them in my next push.

Commit 0cc32d8b7
(http://git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/groff.git/commit/?id=0cc32d8b7)
seems to be the cited fix.

I have one correction and one suggestion about this change.

Correction:
The text "the @code{sp} and @code{br} requests" was added, but the
example uses no .br.  According to the git log entry, this should say
"bp".

Suggestion:
The git log entry, specifically the third and fourth items, explain
why certain .sp parameters are written as they are.  At least the
latter of these items, and maybe both, are subtle points about margin
sizes worth explaining to readers (of the manual, not just of the git
log).

(And I'm not sure the git log explanation is quite right: it says
"adjusting [the footer] 1v up the page from the bottom of the body
text" where it seems to mean "1v up the page from *half an inch below*
the bottom of the body text."  As written, it sounds like the footer
overstrikes the bottom of the body text.)