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Conference 7.286::atarist

Title:Atari ST, TT, & Falcon
Notice:Please read note 1.0 and its replies before posting!
Moderator:FUNYET::ANDERSON
Created:Mon Apr 04 1988
Last Modified:Tue May 06 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:1433
Total number of notes:10312

564.0. "META?" by RDGE23::PARTENQ (DECdirect Tech. Support (UK) group account) Fri Aug 11 1989 11:40

    Can anyone explain the term "Meta" to me. I hear METAfont,
    METAcharacter etc but I don't know what they mean.
    Thanks.
    ...Howard
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564.1meta == changeOLDTMR::WALLACEFri Aug 11 1989 12:0113
    Meta (From American Heritage dictionary)
    	1. Changed or transfered
    	2. Situated behind
    
    A METAcharater (for example) is a character (typicaly escape) which you
    type before another character ("situated behind") to "change" the
    meaning of the secound character. More specificly, in MicroEmacs if I
    type the letter "E" that letter will be inserted into my editing buffer
    but if I type the two key sequence "<ESC>E" the letter "E" does not get
    inserted into the buffer but instead a command is executed (in my case
    EXIT).
    
    	Ray
564.2LDP::WEAVERLaboratory Data Products/ScienceFri Aug 11 1989 19:588
Metafont is a generic font description used by TeX, which is a document
processing system similar in concept to RUNOFF, but much more advanced
written by Donald Knuth in the mid-late '70's.  The MetaFont program will
take a font description and produce a font for a particular device.  There
is probably a TeX conference around in Digital where you could get more
information if needed.

							-Dave
564.3ThanksSUBURB::JAMESHMon Aug 14 1989 05:043
    Thanks very much. I am now much wiser and those Metaxxx have now
    become a lot more meaningfull. Much appreciated.
    ...Howard
564.4Meta-conventionPRNSYS::LOMICKAJJeff LomickaThu Aug 17 1989 11:547
Here's an example I saw on the news.

Apparently, there was a convention in Boston last week of people that
stage conventions.  An ironic concept - a convention dedicated to the
planning and process of putting on a convetion.  I'd call that a
"meta-convention".