eqn matrices

[Liam R. E. Quin]

kenmoore at unix.cis.pitt.edu (Kenneth L Moore) writes:
> <1526 at gwusun.gwu.edu> fc121102 at gwusun.gwu.edu (Michael J. Lamoureux) writes:
> ==>I can't seem to get eqn to parse the
> ==>matrix command.  It just chokes and says syntax error.  
>
> One problem may be that you are not forcing a break page.
Well, that (and the other things you describe) might cause problems,
but not a syntax error from eqn.

Some common problems are:
* Using tabs -- tabs are not white-space in eqn, tbl, troff etc
* getting braces wrong
* using "over" instead of "above" inside a column
* leaving off the ccol (or rcol, etc)

A matrix looks like
.EQ
matrix {
 ccol { a above b }
 ccol { b above d }
}

Using a tab before "ccol" will get you a syntax error, as will leaving out
the { after "matrix".

> Also, try the size command. Something like:
> .EQ
> size 8 {expression}
> .EN
> to reduce the size of the characters.
You should never have to do this -- your troff sounds broken!

> ==>	While I'm asking, does anyone know how to get a multiplication dot in
> ==>eqn or troff?  I tried \(m. but that doesn't work.  Am I just SOL?
> X dot Y

X dot Y				X cdot Y

   .					(the . is at the x-height, not the
   XY				X . Y    baseline, but I can't show that!)


> Take these answers with a grain of salt as I haven't used eqn in a 
> while. But they may put you in the ball park.

Hope the above comments help.  I originally sent them by mail (along with
some other "eqn" tips), but it seems worth posting judging by the number
of follow-ups.

Lee
-- 
Liam R. Quin, Unixsys (UK) Ltd [note: not an employee of "sq" - a visitor!]
lee at sq.com (Whilst visiting Canada from England, until Christmas)
utai!anduk.uucp!lee (after Christmas)
 ...striving to promote the interproduction of epimorphistic conformability