Re: [docbook] making macros

["Chris Chiasson" <chris@chiasson.name>]

Since you're a vi user, you will probably not want to hear that emacs
nxml mode is excellent for editing docbook (especially the more recent
beta versions of Docbook  that do not rely on dtds or schemas, but
rely on relax ng grammars).

If you don't want emacs nxml but you do run a windowing system, I
recommend XML Mind XML editor. It doesn't do everything that can be
done with docbook (like some advanced xi:include stuff), but is very
nice - almost like a word processor.

On 4/22/06, Chuck Robey <chuckr@chuckr.org> wrote:
> Steven Cogorno wrote:
>
> > Chuck,
> >
> > When you say "macros", I think what you are talking about is elements.
> >
> > There are several good DocBook guides available. If you want to see
> > some examples from Sun, you can download some open source documents
> > from the Solaris doc set here http://dlc.sun.com/osol/docs/downloads/
> > current/
> >
> > These documents should help you understand the general structure of
> > DocBook.
>
> Sorry it took me a bit to reply, I wanted to check out your reference.
> I think, then, you meant that theose files serve zas xml examples,
> right?  Because I don't have a Solaris system here, and three wasn't any
> xml files with them, so I couldn't actually use any tool (like mozilla)
> to display them ... unless I'm really showing my innocence here.
>
> Just in case, I want to make one more try at explainning what I'm after,
> cause I'm serious here.  I've seen others on the web, from time to time,
> who jump on and make suggestions for work projects, but when you get
> down the the bottom of it, they're suggesting that *you* do the work
> while they sit back and "organize" for you (cheer you one, and I guess
> laugh at your simplicity).  I am *not* suggesting anything like that,
> but in one sense, I am asking for info.
>
> Years back, when I learned troff (groff), I found I couldn;t use it ,
> until I bagan to try out macro packages, and I found out I really liked
> the mm macros.  Well, I bought the O'Reilly Docbook book, and I have
> seen the more up to date version on the web, and what they show is
> exhaustive, and it really wasn't a great deal different than that first
> glance at troff: a huge long list of commands, without any usage
> suggestions.   So, I'm wondering if, maybe, I either need a better
> document on how to write docbook, OR maybe, macros that combine several
> different groups of Docbook elements into a smaller group of really
> useable (but completely different in name) elements might be what I'm
> after.  If it is, I would happily write the tool that converts my new
> set of macros back to the original set of Docbook elements (with
> whatever required manipulation of text tags or attributes might be
> needed) myself.
>
> The part I'm after, from you, is two questions:
>
> 1) is it possible that I might be right here, that a set of macros might
> be one workable method (one possible way to ease the writing of Docbook
> docs using editors that AREN'T customized for xml), and, if so,
>
> 2) Some help in trying to define such a set of macros.  Not in producing
> a tool to use them, I would do that.
>
> I personally am a user of vi, or maybe vim.  Anything you suggest that I
> read, or any research you suggest I need to do, I will do ... I am NOT
> asking you to do my work for me, at least I hope I'm not, I have a
> higher opinion of myself than that.  I do need some advice in my goal,
> though, which is to become a Docbook writer, dropping my longterm
> dependence on Troff.
>
> >
> >
> > Steven Cogorno
> > Sun Microsystems
> >
> >
>
>
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--
http://chris.chiasson.name/