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Re: @node in TeX ignored if not associated with a sectioning command
From: |
Karl Berry |
Subject: |
Re: @node in TeX ignored if not associated with a sectioning command |
Date: |
Fri, 30 Mar 2012 14:50:47 -0400 |
In my opinion, @node should be treated similarly with an @anchor, so a
lone mode should not be problematic.
Well, it could be done (though it's not exactly trivial), but I'm not
sure I agree. @anchor was invented precisely to mark an arbitary
location that can be referred to. I don't see particular usefulness in
doing the same with @node. Especially since it has never worked and no
one has ever asked for it. Am I missing something?
As for the manual, I don't think it explicitly addressed this question.
I rewrote the paragraph at the end of the "node" node (not committed
yet):
@TeX{} uses @code{@@node} names and chapter-structuring names in
combination in the output for cross references. For this reason, you
must write @code{@@node} lines in a Texinfo file that you intend to
format for printing, even if you do not intend to format it for Info;
and conversely, you must include a chapter-structuring command after a
node for it to be a valid cross-reference target. You can use
@code{@@anchor} (@pxref{anchor,, @code{@@anchor}}) to make
cross-references to an arbitrary position in a document. (Cross
references, such as the one at the end of this sentence, are made with
@code{@@xref} and related commands; see @ref{Cross References}.)
It's too complicated, but I think that's the information we want to
convey.
I'd suggest having makeinfo warn when it encounters a reference to a
node without a chapter-structuring command, but I guess that would
effectively disallow documents with only nodes, which doesn't seem like
a good idea.
Wdyt?
Thanks,
Karl