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From: rusty@weyl.Berkeley.EDU.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.text
Subject: Re: Why troff?
Message-ID: <827@cartan.Berkeley.EDU>
Date: Mon, 26-Jan-87 16:16:54 EST
Article-I.D.: cartan.827
Posted: Mon Jan 26 16:16:54 1987
Date-Received: Wed, 28-Jan-87 06:56:54 EST
References: <362@linus.UUCP> <106@tg.UUCP> <1556@trwrb.UUCP>
Sender: daemon@cartan.Berkeley.EDU
Reply-To: rusty@weyl.Berkeley.EDU (Rusty Wright)
Distribution: comp.text
Organization: Math Dept. UC Berkeley
Lines: 21
Keywords: TeX, troff

One of the TeX advantages that you forgot is font compatibility.  If
you use TeX and stick with TeX's Computer Modern font then you can be
confident that your output will be the same regardless of what output
device you use.  With troff you never know what fonts will be
available at some place until you get there (or ask beforehand).

Another problem with troff that has been implied by postings by
several people is that many people hack on the troff, eqn, tbl, etc.
source code or the macros so that what works at one site may not work
at another.

One of the goals of Knuth is that any implementation that labels
itself as TeX (passes the trip test) should be font and macro (e.g.
Plain) compatible with other implementations of TeX.  Everything in
Knuth's _The TeXbook_ must work.

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	rusty c. wright
	rusty@weyl.berkeley.edu
	ucbvax!weyl!rusty