Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ames!haven!purdue!decwrl!shelby!polya!rokicki
From: rokicki@polya.Stanford.EDU (Tomas G. Rokicki)
Newsgroups: comp.text
Subject: Re: TeX cursor positioning
Message-ID: <7994@polya.Stanford.EDU>
Date: 24 Mar 89 23:45:42 GMT
References: <54703@yale-celray.yale.UUCP>
Sender: Tomas G. Rokicki <rokicki@polya.Stanford.EDU>
Reply-To: rokicki@polya.Stanford.EDU (Tomas G. Rokicki)
Organization: Stanford University
Lines: 16


(In reference to discussions about forcing specials to occur
at current positions on the page by sending bogus characters
or infinitesimal rules . . .)

TeX most certainly does position specials correctly, sending
out the correct positioning commands before each special.
It's the dvi drivers that don't.  Fix the driver, don't kludge
in unnecessary dummy fonts or small rules.  If you don't believe
me, run the following file through TeX and then dvitype:

Test\vskip10pt \special{A}\vskip10pt
\line{\special{B}\hfil \special{C}}\vskip 10pt
That's all!\bye

-tom