Copyright (C) 1989-2023 Free Software Foundation, Inc. Copying and distribution of this file, with or without modification, are permitted in any medium without royalty provided the copyright notice and this notice are preserved. This is the 'groff' document formatting system, a reimplementation and extension of the AT&T Unix 'troff' system. The version number is given in the file '.tarball-version' if you are building from a distribution archive; otherwise, building from its Git repository will store it in the file '.version'. This release includes original implementations (not derived from AT&T Unix code) of the 'troff', 'nroff', 'pic', 'eqn', 'tbl', 'refer', and 'soelim' programs; the 'man' and 'ms' macro packages; and output drivers for PostScript, PDF, and TeX DVI file formats, HP LaserJet 4- and Canon CaPSL-compatible printers, HTML and XHTML (in beta status), and typewriter/terminal devices. It also provides modified versions of BSD Unix additions to Unix troff: the 'grn' preprocessor, and the 'mdoc' and 'me' macro packages. 'gxditview', an enhanced version of the X11 'xditview' previewer for 'troff' device-independent output, originates from X11R5. Contributed components feature a reimplementation and extension of the DWB 'troff' 'mm' macro package by Joergen Haegg, Peter Schaffter's 'mom' macro package, and Bernd Warken's reimplementation of the 'chem' preprocessor in Perl. See the file 'INSTALL.extra' for instructions on how to install from a distribution archive, such as a release, beta, or release candidate. The file 'INSTALL.REPO' contains supplementary instructions for building directly from a clone of the Git repository. The file 'NEWS' contains a history of user-visible changes to 'groff'. 'groff' is free software. See the file 'COPYING' for copying permissions, and 'LICENSES' for further detail. The file 'PROBLEMS' describes various issues that users have encountered in compiling, installing, and running 'groff'. The file 'MORE.STUFF' describes some third-party programming and documentary resources useful with 'groff'. Current and historical releases of 'groff' are available via HTTPS and anonymous FTP from the host 'ftp.gnu.org' in the directory 'gnu/groff'. 'groff' has a home page at the GNU Project. https://www.gnu.org/software/groff/ Administration of the project is done through GNU Savannah. https://savannah.gnu.org/git/?group=groff 'groff' is developed at its Git repository, which has a web interface. https://git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/groff.git You can view any commit in isolation, and browse the entire source tree corresponding to its state as of that commit. Click the summary line of the commit message to expose these options. Build requirements are discussed in the 'INSTALL.extra' and 'INSTALL.REPO' files noted above. 'groff' also has runtime dependencies. Ghostscript is required for creation of PDF and (X)HTML output. Production of (X)HTML furthermore demands tools from the 'netpbm' and 'psutils' packages. Perl is required for production of PDF output using the 'gropdf' output driver. (You can alternatively produce PostScript with 'grops' and convert that to PDF using Ghostscipt.) The 'chem', 'gperl', and 'gpinyin' preprocessors and several utilities, such as 'grog', are also written in Perl. If 'groff' is configured with 'lp' or 'lpr' support, the corresponding program must remain available on the system for the 'groff' command's '-l' option to work. Similarly, build-time detection of development headers for the 'uchardet', 'Xaw', and 'Xmu' libraries (and their dependencies) assumes that their runtime counterparts will remain installed to support the 'groff' that is built. You can view or add to to groff's bug database via its issue tracker on the Savannah site (also linked from the groff home page). http://savannah.gnu.org/bugs/?group=groff To report a problem, you may use the form in the file 'BUG-REPORT'; its purpose is to make sure that FSF has all the information it needs to fix the bug. At the very least, read the 'BUG-REPORT' form and make sure that you supply all the information that it asks for. Even if you are not sure that something is a bug, please report it so we can determine whether it is a software defect, or an omission from our documentation. If you'd like to modify 'groff' or participate in its development, files 'HACKING' and 'MANIFEST' will familiarize you with the structure of the code and the project's conventions for maintaining it. Three mailing lists are available. bug-groff@gnu.org a read-only list for following bug reports groff@gnu.org for general discussion of groff groff-commit@gnu.org a read-only list for following commits to the Git repository To subscribe, send a mail to -request@ (example: groff-request@gnu.org for the 'groff' list) with the word 'subscribe' in either the subject or body of the email (don't include the quotes). Alternatively, subscribe via our web pages by completing an HTML form. https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/bug-groff https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/groff https://lists.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/groff-commit Each of these web pages also provides a link to a browseable archive of postings to the corresponding mailing list. 'groff' was primarily written by James Clark . ##### Editor settings Local Variables: fill-column: 72 mode: text End: vim: set textwidth=72: