Evolutions in typesetting systems
Darrell R. Raymond · 1992
Using text previewers to browse code and documentation has uncovered some of the basic limitations of classical typesetting systems. Problems arise from the use of embedded markup, the reliance on context-free grammars, and monolithic typesetter design. Some aspects of each of these problems are discussed. A typesetter architecture is proposed that does not require markup or grammars, and that employs a functional decomposition of the typesetting task, in which objectoriented inheritance is used to manage the interaction between modules. 1. Introduction Effective text display is a basic necessity in a good software engineering environment. Current systems use primitive display technology, relying on simple ASCII text editors, or occasionally employing the output of batch typesetters run through filters such as vgrind. In the past it has been argued that the enhanced presentation possible with full-fledged typesetting systems can increase the readability of source code[3]. We develope...