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MPOST !!!MPOST NAME SYNOPSIS DESCRIPTION OPTIONS ENVIRONMENT FILES SUGGESTED READING SEE ALSO AUTHORS TRIVIA ---- !!NAME mpost, inimpost, virmpost - !MetaPost, a system for drawing pictures !!SYNOPSIS __mpost__ [[''options''] [[''commands''] !!DESCRIPTION This manual page is not meant to be exhaustive. The complete documentation for this version of TEX can be found in the info file or manual ''Web2C: A TeX implementation''. !MetaPost interprets the !MetaPost language and produces !PostScript pictures. The !MetaPost language is similar to Knuth's M ETAFONT with additional features for including tex(1) or troff(1) commands and accessing features of !PostScript not found in M ETAFONT . Like TEX and M ETAFONT , !MetaPost is normally used with a large body of precompiled macros. This version of !MetaPost looks at its command line to see what name it was called under. Both __inimpost__ and __virmpost__ are symlinks to the __mpost__ executable. When called as __inimpost__ (or when the __--ini__ option is given) it can be used to precompile macros into a ''.mem'' file. When called as __virmpost__ it will use the ''plain'' mem. When called under any other name, !MetaPost will use that name as the name of the mem to use. For example, when called as __mpost__ the ''mpost'' mem is used, which is identical to the ''plain'' mem. Other mems than ''plain'' are rarely used. The ''commands'' given on the command line to the program are passed to it as the first input line. (But it is often easier to type extended arguments as the first input line, since UNIX shells tend to gobble up or misinterpret !MetaPost's favorite symbols, like semicolons, unless you quote them.) The first line should begin with a filename, a \''controlsequence'', or a ''''. The normal usage is to say ''mp figs'' to process the file ''figs.mp''. The basename of ''figs'' becomes the ``jobname'', and is used in forming output file names. If no file is named, the jobname becomes ''mpout''. The default extension, ''.mp'', can be overridden by specifying an extension explicitly. There is normally one output file for each picture generated, and the output files are named ''jobname''__.__''nnn'', where ''nnn'' is a number passed to the ''beginfig'' macro. The output file name can also be ''jobname''__.__''ps'' if this number is negative. The output files can be used as figures in a TEX document by including __special{psfile=__''jobname.nnn''__}__ in the TEX document. Alternatively, one can __input epsf.tex__ and then use the macro __epsfbox{__''jobname.nnn''__}__ to produce a box of the appropriate size containing the figure. __btex__ ''TeX commands'' __etex__ This causes ''mp'' to generate a !MetaPost picture expression that corresponds to the TEX commands. If the TEX commands generate more than one line of text, it must be in a ''vbox'' or a minipage environment. __verbatimtex__ ''TeX commands'' __etex__ This is ignored by ''mp'' except that the TEX commands are passed on to TEX. When using L A TEX instead of TEX the input file must start with a ''verbatimtex'' block that gives the ''documentstyle'' and ''begin{document}'' commands. You can use the `% '' Since most TEX fonts have to be downloaded as bitmaps, the ''btex'' feature works best when the output of ''mp'' is to be included in a TEX document so that dvips(1) can download the fonts. For self-contained !PostScript output that can be used directly or included in a ''troff'' document, start your !MetaPost input file with the command ''prologues:=1'' and stick to standard !PostScript fonts. TEX and !MetaPost use the names in the third column of the file ''trfonts.map'', which can be found in the directories with support files for !MetaPost. !MetaPost output can be included in a ''troff'' document via the ''-m pictures'' macro package. In this case ''mp'' should be invoked with the __-T__ flag so that the commands between ''btex'' and ''etex'' or between ''verbatimtex'' and ''etex'' are interpreted as ''troff'' instead of TEX. (This automatically sets ''prologues:=1'' ). !!OPTIONS This version of !MetaPost understands the following command line options. __--file-line-error-style__ Print error messages in the form ''file:line:error'' which is similar to the way many compilers format them. __--help__ Print help message and exit. __--ini__ Be __inimpost__, for dumping bases; this is implicitly true if the program is called as __inimpost__. __--interaction__ ''mode'' Sets the interaction mode. The mode can be one of ''batchmode'', ''nonstopmode'', ''scrollmode'', and ''errorstopmode''. The meaning of these modes is the same as that of the corresponding commands. __--kpathsea-debug__ ''bitmask'' Sets path searching debugging flags according to the bitmask. See the ''Kpathsea'' manual for details. __--mem__ ''mem'' Use ''mem'' as the name of the mem to be used, instead of the name by which !MetaPost was called or a ''%'' line. __--progname__ ''name'' Pretend to be program ''name''. This affects both the format used and the search paths. __--recorder__ Enable the filename recorder. This leaves a trace of the files opened for input and output in a file with extension ''.fls''. __-T__ Produce TROFF output. __--translate-file__ ''tcxname'' Use the ''tcxname'' translation table. __--troff__ As __-T__. __--version__ Print version information and exit. !!ENVIRONMENT See the Kpathsearch library documentation (the `Path specifications' node) for the details of how the environment variables are use when searching. The __kpsewhich__ utility can be used to query the values of the variables. If the environment variable TEXMFOUTPUT is set, !MetaPost attempts to put its output files in it, if they cannot be put in the current directory. Here is a list of the environment variables affect the behavior of ''mp'': MPINPUTS Search path for ''input'' files. MFINPUTS Auxiliary search path for ''input'' files with ''.mf'' extensions. MPSUPPORT Directory for various tables for handling included ''tex'' and ''troff''. MPXCOMMAND The name of a shell script that converts embedded typesetting commands to a form that !MetaPost understands. Defaults: ''makempx'' for ''tex'' and ''troffmpx'' for ''troff''. TEX The version of TEX - or L A TEX - to use when processing ''btex'' and ''verbatimtex'' commands. Default ''tex''. This version of !MetaPost allows you to use a `%'' TROFF The ''troff'' pipeline for ''btex'' and ''verbatimtex'' commands. Default ''eqn -d$$ | troff'' MPEDIT A command template for invoking an editor. A ''.mem'' file is a binary file that permits fast loading of macro packages. ''mpost'' reads the default ''plain.mem'' unless another ''.mem'' file is specified at the start of the first line with an '''' just before it. There is also an that simulates plain M ETAFONT so that ''mpost'' can read ''.mf'' fonts. (Plain M ETAFONT is described in ''The M ETAFONT book''). Experts can create ''.mem'' files be invoking ''inimpost'' and giving macro definitions followed by a ''dump'' command. The !MetaPost language is similar to M ETAFONT , but the manual ''A User's Manual for !MetaPost'' assumes no knowledge of M ETAFONT . !MetaPost does not have bitmap output commands or M ETAFONT 's online display mechanism. !!FILES ''mpost.pool'' Encoded text of !MetaPost's messages. ''*.mem'' Predigested !MetaPost mem files. ''plain.mp'' The standard mem file. ''mfplain.mp'' The M ETAFONT -compatible mem file. This is loaded when ''virmp'' is invoked via a symbolic link as ''mfmp''. ''$TEXMFMAIN/metapost/base/*.mp'' The standard !MetaPost macros included in the original distribution. ''$TEXMFMAIN/metapost/support/*'' Various tables for handling included ''tex'' and ''troff''. ''$TEXMFMAIN/metapost/support/trfonts.map'' Table of corresponding font names for ''troff'' and !PostScript. ''psfonts.map'' Table of corresponding font names for ''tex'' and !PostScript. ''$TEXMFMAIN/doc/metapost/examples.mp'' The source file for a few sample figures that are part of a L A TEX document ''$TEXMFMAIN/doc/metapost/mpintro.tex'' that describes the !MetaPost system in a little more detail. !!SUGGESTED READING Donald E. Knuth, ''The M ETAFONT book'' (Volume C of ''Computers and Typesetting''), Addison-Wesley, 1986, ISBN 0-201-13445-4. John D. Hobby, ''A User's Manual for !MetaPost'', CSTR 162, AT'' John D. Hobby, ''Drawing Graphs with !MetaPost'', CSTR 164, AT'' TUGboat'' (the journal of the TEX Users Group). !!SEE ALSO tex(1), mf(1), dvips(1). !!AUTHORS !MetaPost was designed by John D. Hobby, incorporating algorithms from M ETAFONT by Donald E. Knuth. It was originally implemented on Unix, incorporating system-dependent routines from __web2c__, while not relying on it except for the actual W EB -to-C translator. Ulrik Vieth adapted !MetaPost to take advantage of the advanced path searching features in more recent versions of __web2c__ and worked towards fully integrating !MetaPost into the canonical Unix TEX distribution. He also updated and extended this manual page. !!TRIVIA Unlike TEX and M ETAFONT , !MetaPost originally didn't use any fancy logo. John Hobby says he prefers the spelling ``!MetaPost'', yet Don Knuth has updated the M ETAFONT ''logo.mf'' font to be able to typeset a proper !MetaPost logo similar to the M ETAFONT logo. Feel free to use whatever you think is more appropriate! ----
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