Hi Steve, > > * Strange, irregular, archaic-seeming markup design compared to XML > > or even TeX. Brian Kernignan called it "rebarbative" in *1979*. > > Groff is a filter. The input language, the markup, etc., is entirely > arbitary.
I read _The TeXbook_ and returned to troff. The input language of troff is superior for mark-up that doesn't clutter the prose, e.g. often small and out of the way at the left of a line, and macro sets have tended to follow this. XML suffers terribly from noise, not intended for human entry, as I think you said elsewhere. asciidoc and friends are too simplified, OK for a github README but not typesetting. Even though we're freed from two-letter everythings by modern troff, for common requests, a `.p' is all that's needed for the reader. (mom is noticeable exception to the "quiet" command syntax, though I recall Peter saying he maps all the SHOUTING onto lowercase for his personal use.) Cheers, Ralph.
