Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!rutgers!bagate!cbmvax!snark!eric
From: eric@snark.thyrsus.com (Eric S. Raymond)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions
Subject: Re: question about m4 - macro preprocessor
Message-ID: <1YZ9HV#48SBdy5b9hT35clRvd8CLgn8=eric@snark.thyrsus.com>
Date: 25 Nov 90 16:39:44 GMT
References: <3201@mrsvr.UUCP>
Lines: 28

In <3201@mrsvr.UUCP> Carl Crawford wrote:
> i am using the macro preprocessor m4 with files that are
> subsequently passed to troff. m4 replaces lines that 
> contain m4 commands with blank lines. the blank lines
> disrupt the text that is passed to troff. does anyone know 
> how to run m4 so that the blank lines can be eliminated?

No sweat. Just append the special token `dnl' to the lines containing your
macro calls. This mutually annihilates the newline immediately following. So,
instead of

================
mytext
mymacro(baz, qux)
more_mytext
================

write

================
mytext
mymacro(baz, qux)dnl
more_mytext
================

Happy hacking!
-- 
      Eric S. Raymond = eric@snark.thyrsus.com  (mad mastermind of TMN-Netnews)