GNU bug report logs - #79608
[PATCH] clarify comment in doc/grep.in.1

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Message #5 received at submit <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: "G. Branden Robinson" <g.branden.robinson <at> gmail.com>
To: bug-grep <at> gnu.org
Subject: [PATCH] clarify comment in doc/grep.in.1
Date: Fri, 10 Oct 2025 04:53:24 -0500

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Context: https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/bug-gawk/2025-03/msg00026.html

The `lq` and `rq` strings are not a groffism, but originate in 4BSD
(1980).[1]  They entered Unix System V with SVR4 (1988 or 1989).[2]
mandoc(1) has supported them since its inception.[3]

Plan 9 troff is the only implementation I know of that doesn't define
these strings in its man(7) package; I am preparing a patch for Plan 9
from User Space, a.k.a. "plan9port".

[1] https://minnie.tuhs.org/cgi-bin/utree.pl?file=4BSD/usr/lib/tmac/tmac.an.new
[2]
https://github.com/ryanwoodsmall/oldsysv/blob/e68293af91e2dc39f5f29c20d7e429f9e0cabc75/sysvr4/svr4/ucbcmd/troff/troff.d/tmac.d/an#L46
[3] https://cvsweb.openbsd.org/cgi-bin/cvsweb/src/usr.bin/mandoc/predefs.in?rev=1.1&content-type=text/x-cvsweb-markup

Patch attached.

Regards,
Branden

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Message #10 received at 79608-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Paul Eggert <eggert <at> cs.ucla.edu>
To: "G. Branden Robinson" <g.branden.robinson <at> gmail.com>
Cc: 79608-done <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: [PATCH] clarify comment in doc/grep.in.1
Date: Fri, 10 Oct 2025 15:12:12 -0700

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Thanks, I guess I was relying too much on my 7th Edition UNIX reflexes; 
its -man package lacked \*(lq and \*(rq. I'm leery of using markdown 
style in comments so I installed the attached instead.

I'll propagate this fix to RCS as well.

[0001-doc-update-troff-comment.patch (text/x-patch, attachment)]

Message #13 received at 79608 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: "G. Branden Robinson" <g.branden.robinson <at> gmail.com>
To: Paul Eggert <eggert <at> cs.ucla.edu>
Cc: 79608 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: [PATCH] clarify comment in doc/grep.in.1
Date: Fri, 10 Oct 2025 17:17:58 -0500

[Message part 1 (text/plain, inline)]

At 2025-10-10T15:12:12-0700, Paul Eggert wrote:
> Thanks, I guess I was relying too much on my 7th Edition UNIX
> reflexes; its -man package lacked \*(lq and \*(rq.

That's true TTBOMK--of the research-based sort rather than
experiential; my first exposure to Unix was DYNIX (Sequent's 4.3BSD) and
SunOS 4.  I'll stick the current state of groff_man(7)'s "History"
subsection at the end of this message for your amusement.[1]

> I'm leery of using markdown style in comments so I installed the
> attached instead.

No worries.

> I'll propagate this fix to RCS as well.

Thanks!

Regards,
Branden

[1] groff_man(7):

   History
     M. Douglas McIlroy ⟨m.douglas.mcilroy <at> dartmouth.edu⟩ designed,
     implemented, and documented the AT&T man macros for Unix Version 7
     (1979) and employed them to edit Volume 1 of its Programmer’s
     Manual, a compilation of all man pages supplied by the system.  The
     package supported the macros listed in this page not described as
     extensions, except P and the deprecated AT and UC.  It documented
     no registers and defined only R and S strings.

     UC appeared in 3BSD (1980).  Unix System III (1980) introduced P
     and exposed the registers IN and LL, which had been internal to
     Seventh Edition Unix man.  PWB/Unix 2.0 (1980) added the Tm string.
     4BSD (1980) added lq and rq strings.  SunOS 2.0 (1985) recognized
     C, D, P, and X registers.  4.3BSD (1986) added AT and P.  Ninth
     Edition Unix (1986) introduced EX and EE.  SunOS 4.0 (1988) added
     SB.  Unix System V (1988) incorporated BSD’s lq and rq strings.

     Except for EX/EE, James Clark implemented the foregoing features in
     early versions of groff.  Later, groff 1.20 (2009) resurrected
     EX/EE and originated SY/YS, TQ, MT/ME, and UR/UE.  Plan 9 from User
     Space’s troff introduced MR in 2020.

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