UNIX® Text Processing

Today, writers not only work with words, they work with computers and the software programs, printers, and terminals that are part of a computer system.

UNIX Text Processing reveals how computers can be used effectively in the preparation of written documents, particularly major book-length projects. The useful tools and techniques featured in UNIX Text Processing can help you unlock the resources and power of a computer system to tackle such writing projects as technical manuals, reports, and proposals.

In these pages, you'll learn:

• What's in the UNIX toolbox for writers, including format design, printing, and editing.
• How to make the computer do most of the work, using shell scripts and editing scripts.
• How to make use of the awk programming language for managing information.
• How to create simple line drawings, tables, and equations.
• How troff helps you take advantage of the capabilities of laser printers and typesetters.
• How to customize macros for document formatting.

1. From Typewriters to Word Processors
   • A Workspace
   • Tools for Editing
   • Document Formatting
   • Printing
   • Other UNIX Text-Processing Tools
2. UNIX Fundamentals
   • The UNIX Shell
   • Output Redirection
   • Special Characters
   • Environment Variables
   • Pipes and Filters
   • Shell Scripts
3. Learning vi
   • Session 1: Basic Commands
   • Opening a File
   • Moving the Cursor
   • Simple Edits
   • Session 2: Moving Around in a Hurry
   • Movement by Screens
   • Movement by Text Blocks
   • Movement by Searches
   • Movement by Line Numbers
   • Session 3: Beyond the Basics
   • Command-Line Options
   • Customizing vi
   • Edits and Movement
   • More Ways to Insert Text
   • Using Buffers
   • Marking Your Place
   • Other Advanced Edits
4. nroff and troff
   • What the Formatter Does
   • Using nroff
   • Using troff
   • The Markup Language
   • Turning Filling On and Off
   • Controlling Justification
   • Hyphenation
   • Page Layout
   • Page Transitions
   • Changing Fonts
   • A First Look at Macros
5. The ms Macros
   • Formatting a Text File with ms
   • Page Layout
   • Paragraphs
   • Changing Font and Point Size
   • Displays
   • Headings
   • Cover Sheet Macros
   • Miscellaneous Features
   • Page Headers and Footers
   • Problems on the First Page
   • Extensions to ms
6. The mm Macros
   • Formatting a Text File
   • Page Layout
   • Justification
   • Word Hyphenation
   • Displays
   • Changing Font and Point Size
   • More about Displays
   • Forcing a Page Break
   • Formatting Lists
   • Headings
   • Table of Contents
   • Footnotes and References
   • Extensions to mm
7. Advanced Editing
   • The ex Editor
   • Using ex Commands in vi
   • Write Locally, Edit Globally
   • Pattern Matching
   • Writing and Quitting Files
   • Reading In a File
   • Executing UNIX Commands
   • Editing Multiple Files
   • Word Abbreviation
   • Saving Commands with map
8. Formatting with tbl
   • Using tbl
   • Specifying Tables
   • A Simple Table Example
   • Laying Out a Table
   • Describing Column Formats
   • Changing the Format within a Table
   • Putting Text Blocks in a Column
   • Breaking Up Long Tables
   • Putting Titles on Tables
   • A tbl Checklist
   • Some Complex Tables
9. Typesetting Equations with eqn
   • A Simple eqn Example
   • Using eqn
   • Specifying Equations
   • Spaces in Equations
   • Using Braces for Grouping
   • Special Character Names
   • Special Symbols
   • Other Positional Notation
   • Diacritical Marks
   • Defining Terms
   • Quoted Text
   • Fine-Tuning the Document
   • Keywords and Precedence
   • Problem Checklist
10. Drawing Pictures
    • The pic Preprocessor
    • From Describing to Programming Drawings
    • pic Enhancements
11. A Miscellany of UNIX Commands
    • Managing Your Files
    • Viewing the Contents of a File
    • Searching for Information in a File
    • Proofing Documents
    • Comparing Versions of the Same Document
    • Manipulating Data
    • Cleaning Up and Backing Up
    • Compressing Files
    • Communications
    • Scripts of UNIX Sessions
12. Let the Computer Do the Dirty Work
    • Shell Programming
    • ex Scripts
    • Stream Editing (sed)
    • A Proofreading Tool You Can Build
13. The awk Programming Language
    • Invoking awk
    • Records and Fields
    • Testing Fields
    • Passing Parameters from a Shell Script
    • Changing the Field Separator
    • System Variables
    • Looping
    • awk Applications
    • Testing Programs
14. Writing nroff and troff Macros
    • Comments
    • Defining Macros
    • Macro Names
    • Macro Arguments
    • Nested Macro Definitions
    • Conditional Execution
    • Interrupted Lines
    • Number Registers
    • Defining Strings
    • Diversions
    • Environment Switching
    • Redefining Control and Escape Characters
    • Debugging Your Macros
    • Error Handling
    • Macro Style
15. Figures and Special Effects
    • Formatter Escape Sequences
    • Local Vertical Motions
    • Local Horizontal Motions
    • Absolute Motions
    • Line Drawing
    • Talking Directly to the Printer
    • Marking a Vertical Position
    • Overstriking Words or Characters
    • Tabs, Leaders, and Fields
    • Constant Spacing
    • Pseudo-Fonts
    • Character Output Translations
    • Output Line Numbering
    • Change Bars
    • Form Letters
    • Reading in Other Files or Program Output
16. What's in a Macro Package?
    • Just What Is a Macro Package, Revisited
    • Building a Consistent Framework
    • Page Transitions
    • Page Transitions in ms
    • Some Extensions to the Basic Package
    • Other Exercises in Page Transition
17. An Extended ms Macro Package
    • Creating a Custom Macro Package
    • Structured Technical Documents
    • Figure and Table Headings
    • Lists, Lists, and More Lists
    • Source Code and Other Examples
    • Notes, Cautions, and Warnings
    • Table of Contents, Index, and Other End Lists
18. Putting It All Together
    • Saving an External Table of Contents
    • Index Processing
    • Let make Remember the Details
    • Where to Go from Here

1. Editor Command Summary
   • Pattern-Matching Syntax
   • The vi Editor
   • The ex Editor
   • The sed Editor
   • awk
2. Formatter Command Summary
   • nroff/troff Command-Line Syntax
   • nroff/troff Requests
   • Escape sequences
   • Predefined Number Registers
   • Special Characters
   • The ms macros
   • The mm Macros
   • tbl Command Characters and Words
   • eqn Command Characters
   • The pic Preprocessor
3. Shell Command Summary
4. Format of troff Width Tables
   • The DESC File
   • Font Description Files
   • Compiling Font Files
   • Font Usage Limitations
5. Comparing mm and ms
   • Paragraphs
   • Justification
   • Displays
   • Formatting Lists
   • Change Font
   • Change Point Size
   • Headers and Footers
   • Section Headings
   • Footnotes
6. The format Macros
   • Summary of the Macros
7. Selected Readings
   • Introductory UNIX Texts
   • Advanced Topics

This book is the most referenced book I have ever owned.

You're only an old-timer if you've written hundreds of presentations with troff, pic, etc.

Excellent book and a lifesaver a number of times.