Re: Groff 1.23.0.rc3 changes comparing to version 1.22.4

[G. Branden Robinson]

Hi Michał,

Thank you very much for evaluating groff 1.23.0.rc3.

At 2023-04-04T10:56:46+0000, Michał Kruszewski via wrote:
> Because of some bugs related with page numbering in case of ToC placed
> at the beginning of the document (pdfroff) I have today installed and
> tried 1.23.0.rc3.  However, the generated document layout in my case
> significantly differs from what is generated with 1.22.4.
> 
> - .bp seems not to work. It does not break/begin new page anymore.
> - Page bottom margin is smaller.
> - ToC has constant line spacing. In version 1.22.4 the spacing in ToC 
> depended on the header level.
> - In 1.22.4 it was possible to replace roman numbers with arabic numbers on 
> ToC pages using .EH ''%'' .OH ''%''. It no longer works.

This is an alarming set of defects!

Judging by the names of the macros you're using, it sounds like the
document prepared uses either the ms or mm macro packages.  There have
indeed been many changes (mostly by me) to groff ms, but none of the
behavioral alternations you describe was intended.  Some improvements
were made to groff ms's compatibility with AT&T ms.[1]

> Are all of the above conscious changes?

None of them sound like deliberate changes to me.

> If they are, how can I bring back what I had in 1.22.4 using
> 1.23.0.rc3?

Do you have a document you can share that reproduces these issues?

> I have skimmed the changelog, but to be honest i do not feel it is
> useful in my case.

If you're using mm rather than ms, then because mm is a "contrib"
project, you will need to consult its separate change log file.

https://git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/groff.git/tree/contrib/mm/ChangeLog?h=1.23.0.rc3

Another possible source of difference is if the default page format was
U.S. letter in the groff 1.22.4 installation you were using, but A4 in
your build of 1.23.0.rc.3--or vice versa.  If that is the problem, you
can address it by rebuilding groff with the correct paper format.

$ make uninstall # maybe with sudo
$ make distclean
$ PAGE=A4 ./configure # or PAGE=letter, depending on your locale
$ make -j check # will build groff and run its automated tests
$ make install install-doc # maybe with sudo

See the "INSTALL.extra" file in the distribution archive for further
discussion of build procedures.

Please advise regarding a reproducing document.

Regards,
Branden

[1] https://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/groff/2022-07/msg00000.html

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