1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176
177
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202
203
204
205
206
207
208
209
210
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
|
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<!-- Created by GNU Texinfo 7.0.3, https://www.gnu.org/software/texinfo/ -->
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1">
<!-- This manual documents GNU troff version 1.23.0.
Copyright � 1994-2023 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or
any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. A
copy of the license is included in the section entitled "GNU Free
Documentation License". -->
<title>Operators in Conditionals (The GNU Troff Manual)</title>
<meta name="description" content="Operators in Conditionals (The GNU Troff Manual)">
<meta name="keywords" content="Operators in Conditionals (The GNU Troff Manual)">
<meta name="resource-type" content="document">
<meta name="distribution" content="global">
<meta name="Generator" content="makeinfo">
<meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width,initial-scale=1">
<link href="index.html" rel="start" title="Top">
<link href="Request-Index.html" rel="index" title="Request Index">
<link href="index.html#SEC_Contents" rel="contents" title="Table of Contents">
<link href="Conditionals-and-Loops.html" rel="up" title="Conditionals and Loops">
<link href="if_002dthen.html" rel="next" title="if-then">
<link href="Conditionals-and-Loops.html" rel="prev" title="Conditionals and Loops">
<style type="text/css">
<!--
a.copiable-link {visibility: hidden; text-decoration: none; line-height: 0em}
div.example {margin-left: 3.2em}
span:hover a.copiable-link {visibility: visible}
-->
</style>
</head>
<body lang="en">
<div class="subsection-level-extent" id="Operators-in-Conditionals">
<div class="nav-panel">
<p>
Next: <a href="if_002dthen.html" accesskey="n" rel="next">if-then</a>, Previous: <a href="Conditionals-and-Loops.html" accesskey="p" rel="prev">Conditionals and Loops</a>, Up: <a href="Conditionals-and-Loops.html" accesskey="u" rel="up">Conditionals and Loops</a> [<a href="index.html#SEC_Contents" title="Table of contents" rel="contents">Contents</a>][<a href="Request-Index.html" title="Index" rel="index">Index</a>]</p>
</div>
<hr>
<h4 class="subsection" id="Operators-in-Conditionals-1">5.23.1 Operators in Conditionals</h4>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-if-request_002c-operators-to-use-with"></a>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-ie-request_002c-operators-to-use-with"></a>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-while-request_002c-operators-to-use-with"></a>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-conditional-expressions"></a>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-expressions_002c-conditional"></a>
<p>In <code class="code">if</code>, <code class="code">ie</code>, and <code class="code">while</code> requests, in addition to the
numeric expressions described in <a class="ref" href="Numeric-Expressions.html">Numeric Expressions</a>, several
Boolean operators are available; the members of this expanded class are
termed <em class="dfn">conditional expressions</em>.
</p>
<dl class="table">
<dt><code class="code">c <var class="var">glyph</var></code></dt>
<dd><p>True if <var class="var">glyph</var> is available, where <var class="var">glyph</var> is an ordinary
character, a special character ‘<samp class="samp">\(<var class="var">xx</var></samp>’ or ‘<samp class="samp">\[<var class="var">xxx</var>]</samp>’,
‘<samp class="samp">\N'<var class="var">xxx</var>'</samp>’, or has been defined by any of the <code class="code">char</code>,
<code class="code">fchar</code>, <code class="code">fschar</code>, or <code class="code">schar</code> requests.
</p>
</dd>
<dt><code class="code">d <var class="var">name</var></code></dt>
<dd><p>True if a string, macro, diversion, or request called <var class="var">name</var> exists.
</p>
</dd>
<dt><code class="code">e</code></dt>
<dd><p>True if the current page is even-numbered.
</p>
</dd>
<dt><code class="code">F <var class="var">font</var></code></dt>
<dd><p>True if <var class="var">font</var> exists. <var class="var">font</var> is handled as if it were opened
with the <code class="code">ft</code> request (that is, font translation and styles are
applied), without actually mounting it.
</p>
</dd>
<dt><code class="code">m <var class="var">color</var></code></dt>
<dd><p>True if <var class="var">color</var> is defined.
</p>
</dd>
<dt id='index-conditional-output-for-terminal-_0028TTY_0029'><span><code class="code">n</code><a class="copiable-link" href='#index-conditional-output-for-terminal-_0028TTY_0029'> ¶</a></span></dt>
<dd><a class="index-entry-id" id="index-TTY_002c-conditional-output-for"></a>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-terminal_002c-conditional-output-for"></a>
<p>True if the document is being processed in <code class="code">nroff</code> mode.
See <a class="xref" href="troff-and-nroff-Modes.html"><code class="code">troff</code> and <code class="code">nroff</code> Modes</a>.
</p>
</dd>
<dt><code class="code">o</code></dt>
<dd><p>True if the current page is odd-numbered.
</p>
</dd>
<dt><code class="code">r <var class="var">register</var></code></dt>
<dd><p>True if <var class="var">register</var> exists.
</p>
</dd>
<dt><code class="code">S <var class="var">style</var></code></dt>
<dd><p>True if <var class="var">style</var> is available for the current font family. Font
translation is applied.
</p>
</dd>
<dt><code class="code">t</code></dt>
<dd><p>True if the document is being processed in <code class="code">troff</code> mode.
See <a class="xref" href="troff-and-nroff-Modes.html"><code class="code">troff</code> and <code class="code">nroff</code> Modes</a>.
</p>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-vtroff"></a>
</dd>
<dt><code class="code">v</code></dt>
<dd><p>Always false. This condition is recognized only for compatibility with
certain other <code class="code">troff</code> implementations.<a class="footnote" id="DOCF88" href="groff.html_fot.html#FOOT88"><sup>88</sup></a>
</p></dd>
</dl>
<p>If the first argument to an <code class="code">if</code>, <code class="code">ie</code>, or <code class="code">while</code>
request begins with a non-alphanumeric character apart from <code class="code">!</code>
(see below); it performs an <i class="slanted">output comparison test</i>.
<a class="footnote" id="DOCF89" href="groff.html_fot.html#FOOT89"><sup>89</sup></a>
</p>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-output-comparison-operator"></a>
<dl class="table">
<dt><code class="code"><code class="code">'</code><var class="var">xxx</var><code class="code">'</code><var class="var">yyy</var><code class="code">'</code></code></dt>
<dd><p>True if formatting the comparands <var class="var">xxx</var> and <var class="var">yyy</var> produces the
same output commands. The delimiter need not be a neutral apostrophe:
the output comparison operator accepts the same delimiters as most
escape sequences; see <a class="ref" href="Delimiters.html">Delimiters</a>. This <em class="dfn">output comparison
operator</em> formats <var class="var">xxx</var> and <var class="var">yyy</var> in separate environments;
after the comparison, the resulting data are discarded.
</p>
<div class="example">
<div class="group"><pre class="example-preformatted">.ie "|"\fR|\fP" true
.el false
⇒ true
</pre></div></div>
<p>The resulting glyph properties, including font family, style, size, and
slant, must match, but not necessarily the requests and/or escape
sequences used to obtain them. In the previous example, ‘<samp class="samp">|</samp>’ and
‘<samp class="samp">\fR|\fP</samp>’ result in ‘<samp class="samp">|</samp>’ glyphs in the same typefaces at the
same positions, so the comparands are equal. If ‘<samp class="samp">.ft I</samp>’ had
been added before the ‘<samp class="samp">.ie</samp>’, they would differ: the first ‘<samp class="samp">|</samp>’
would produce an italic ‘<samp class="samp">|</samp>’, not a roman one. Motions must match
in orientation and magnitude to within the applicable horizontal and
vertical motion quanta of the device, after rounding. ‘<samp class="samp">.if
"\u\d"\v'0'"</samp>’ is false even though both comparands result in zero net
motion, because motions are not interpreted or optimized but sent as-is
to the output.<a class="footnote" id="DOCF90" href="groff.html_fot.html#FOOT90"><sup>90</sup></a> On the other hand, ‘<samp class="samp">.if "\d"\v'0.5m'"</samp>’ is true, because
<code class="code">\d</code> is defined as a downward motion of one-half em.<a class="footnote" id="DOCF91" href="groff.html_fot.html#FOOT91"><sup>91</sup></a>
</p>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-string-comparison"></a>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-comparison-of-strings"></a>
<p>Surround the comparands with <code class="code">\?</code> to avoid formatting them; this
causes them to be compared character by character, as with string
comparisons in other programming languages.
</p>
<div class="example">
<div class="group"><pre class="example-preformatted">.ie "\?|\?"\?\fR|\fP\?" true
.el false
⇒ false
</pre></div></div>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-_005c_003f_002c-and-copy-mode"></a>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-copy-mode_002c-and-_005c_003f"></a>
<a class="index-entry-id" id="index-mode_002c-copy_002c-and-_005c_003f"></a>
<p>Since comparands protected with <code class="code">\?</code> are read in copy mode
(see <a class="pxref" href="Copy-Mode.html">Copy Mode</a>), they need not even be valid <code class="code">groff</code> syntax.
The escape character is still lexically recognized, however, and
consumes the next character.
</p>
<div class="example">
<div class="group"><pre class="example-preformatted">.ds a \[
.ds b \[
.if '\?\*a\?'\?\*b\?' a and b equivalent
.if '\?\\?'\?\\?' backslashes equivalent
⇒ a and b equivalent
</pre></div></div>
</dd>
</dl>
<p>The above operators can’t be combined with most others, but a leading
‘<samp class="samp">!</samp>’, not followed immediately by spaces or tabs, complements an
expression.
</p>
<div class="example">
<div class="group"><pre class="example-preformatted">.nr x 1
.ie !r x register x is not defined
.el register x is defined
⇒ register x is defined
</pre></div></div>
<p>Spaces and tabs are optional immediately after the ‘<samp class="samp">c</samp>’, ‘<samp class="samp">d</samp>’,
‘<samp class="samp">F</samp>’, ‘<samp class="samp">m</samp>’, ‘<samp class="samp">r</samp>’, and ‘<samp class="samp">S</samp>’ operators, but right after
‘<samp class="samp">!</samp>’, they end the predicate and the conditional evaluates
true.<a class="footnote" id="DOCF92" href="groff.html_fot.html#FOOT92"><sup>92</sup></a>
</p>
<div class="example">
<div class="group"><pre class="example-preformatted">.nr x 1
.ie ! r x register x is not defined
.el register x is defined
⇒ r x register x is not defined
</pre></div></div>
<p>The unexpected ‘<samp class="samp">r x</samp>’ in the output is a clue that our conditional
was not interpreted as we planned, but matters may not always be so
obvious.
</p>
</div>
<hr>
<div class="nav-panel">
<p>
Next: <a href="if_002dthen.html">if-then</a>, Previous: <a href="Conditionals-and-Loops.html">Conditionals and Loops</a>, Up: <a href="Conditionals-and-Loops.html">Conditionals and Loops</a> [<a href="index.html#SEC_Contents" title="Table of contents" rel="contents">Contents</a>][<a href="Request-Index.html" title="Index" rel="index">Index</a>]</p>
</div>
</body>
</html>
|