The file is available from the URL:
http://digilander.iol.it/bilotta/giuseppe/xdesc.zip
(if not, go to the /bilotta folder, follow the links for Giuseppe
and the for ConTeXt)
Monday, November 12, 2001 Giuseppe Bilotta wrote:
GB> Hello ConTeXt users!
GB> I'm proud to announce the first "real" release of my xdesc
GB> (extended descriptions) module, with selection and multisorting
GB> capabilities. Please find attached the xdesc.zip file, containing:
GB> * a patched texutil.pl; waiting for Hans to provide external
GB> module support for texutil, I had to patch
GB> support for xdesc right in the main file;
GB> rename the texutil.pl you already have as
GB> something like texutil.original and
GB> replace it with this one.
GB> The patch consists only in three routines
GB> (look for "patch" in the file to find them)
GB> and a couple of lines to trigger them. It
GB> doesn't touch any other code. I will
GB> discuss with Hans the details for the
GB> plug-in interface of TeXUtil, so the next
GB> version will probably come in a Perl
GB> module rather than a patch ...
GB> * t-xdesc.tex; the module; for those using the previous version
GB> (that is nobody :->): the interface has slightly
GB> changed --you don't use angle brackets (<>) to call
GB> slot values within a template, but the command
GB> \getslot. Also, the list placement commands have
GB> changed (see module and example file for further
GB> details). Put this in the "user" directory in the
GB> ConTeXt tree and refresh the filename database.
GB> * desc-tst.tex; example test file. (Snippet from the document that
GB> originally called for the need of extended
GB> descriptions). Put it anywhere and test it.
GB> Known bugs/limitations/todos:
GB> * does not integrate with the ConTeXt multilingual interface
GB> (yet).
GB> * is not the most robust or fast or otherwise optimized code; I
GB> will optimize/make it robust as the need arises *if* I know how to
GB> fix/optimize it.
GB> * object selection in list placement does not (yet) support
GB> by"section" and such.
GB> * I suspect it consumes string space very fast.
GB> * no \start .. \stop pairs are defined (yet). Will probably come
GB> with the multilingual interface.
GB> * not thoroughly tested.
GB> Other comments:
GB> The next version of the epigraph module will very probably be
GB> based on this xdesc module. (I wonder if it's worth writing it,
GB> though: it's not too hard and much more customizable to just say
GB> \defineextendeddescription[epigraph][epigraphs]
GB> [author=,year=,source=,
GB> whateverotherattributeyouwantforyourepigraphs=,]
GB> and then use it as
GB> \epigraph[author={Donald Arsenau},
GB> title={post on {\tt comp.text.tex}},
GB> note={May the 15th, 2001}]
GB> {\quotation{Acrobat} is so named because of the contortions one
GB> must do to get around its bugs.}
GB> Any comments/suggestions/critics/enhancement requests are welcome.
GB> For Hans: I'm pretty sure the code (especially the Perl code) is
GB> independent (or "indipendentable") enough from the particular
GB> structure of the xdescs, so an XML interface (maybe even an
GB> interface to BibTeX databases) is feasible.
GB> --
GB> Giuseppe "Oblomov" Bilotta
