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Conference vaxuum::document_ft

Title:DOCUMENT T1.0
Notice:**New notesfile (DOCUMENT.NOTE) now available (see note 897)**
Moderator:CLOSET::ADLER
Created:Mon Feb 09 1987
Last Modified:Thu Oct 31 1991
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:897
Total number of notes:4397

108.0. "We Need Smallcaps" by MARTY::FRIEDMAN () Fri Mar 13 1987 16:07

We need the ability to produce smallcaps in all font environments. Right
now we have only a fairly shabby workaround that uses a local version of
the layered doctype.

Marty
T.RTitleUserPersonal
Name		DateLines
108.1It's all illusionCLOSET::SEGALFri Mar 13 1987 16:275
    There are no true small caps in any of the fonts.
    What's wrong with what you have? Maybe we can make it
    more acceptable.
    
    Lee
108.2MARTY::FRIEDMANMon Mar 16 1987 15:4637
An illusion of smallcaps is fine, but we need the illusion to properly
appear in a font environment. For example, we want the word 
PostScript to come out in 

tenrm
tenbf
tenit
tenbi

So let's say that you have an italicized bit of text, which includes
the word PostScript. However, in your font environment for tenpoint,
you can only specify either \sc or \sbc. There's no \sic or \sbi, for example.
And even if there was, the writer or production person would have
to recode their definition of <POSTSCRIPT> to include the \sic instead
of the \sc for every case of italics. Either that, or you would have
to have several defintions: <POSTSCRIPT>, <POSTSCRIPT_BF>, <POSTSCRIPT_IT>,
<POSTSCRIPT_BI>, etc. That defeats the purpose of a font environment, and 
forces the writer to worry about formatting.

So I would prefer a way for the font definition files to be able to handle
a combination of \sc and another variant at the same time. This might 
mean that a complete font environment would have:

tenrm
tenbf
tenit
tenbi
tenrmsc
tenbfsc
tenitsc
tenbisc


Many of our books use smallcaps for such words as PostScript, PrintServer,
and ScriptPrinter. (I know, the printing industry is getting carried away...)

Marty
108.3P{\sevenrm OST}S{\sevenrm CRIPT}VAXUUM::DYERAdventures in SuccessTue Mar 17 1987 09:563
The "plain TeX" approach is to use sevenrm for the smallcaps.  Giving them names
 like "tenrmsc" seems convoluted to me.
  <_Jym_>
108.4MARTY::FRIEDMANTue Mar 17 1987 10:426
Yes, my thought is convoluted on this issue because I'm not sure how to 
implement smallcaps in a font *environment*. We'd prefer to avoid hand
coding the proper font in the .TEX file for every reference to these words.


Marty
108.5lil orphan alphaVAXUUM::SEGALTue Mar 17 1987 14:328
    The key item here is *environment*. There is no
    small caps family in any font environment; each environment
    defines small caps and small bold caps as a specific type.
    
    Ummm, might not a family created solely for emphasizing
    simulated small caps be considered just a shabby workaround?
    
    Lee
108.6MARTY::FRIEDMANWed Mar 18 1987 11:3226
-.1:
>    The key item here is *environment*. There is no
>    small caps family in any font environment; each environment
>    defines small caps and small bold caps as a specific type.
>    
>    Ummm, might not a family created solely for emphasizing
>    simulated small caps be considered just a shabby workaround?
>    
>    Lee


I'm getting lost in the terminology here, but the bottom line is that
we would like to define a symbol:

<DEFINE_SYMBOL>(POSTSCRIPT\...)

such that we could use <POSTSCRIPT> anywhere in a document and have
it appear with the small caps, whether it is in roman, bold, italics, or 
whatever.

Can you illustrate your suggestion?

Thanks.

Marty