Accent marks sync'd with current groff.

[mandoc.git] / man.7

diff --git a/man.7 b/man.7
index 40d6543cd6be3212d6006813dd1c5379d31fbcaf..c0f93cd5c6ffa0c1cf5e10a6b6ca30618a16160e 100644 (file)
--- a/man.7
+++ b/man.7
@@ -1,4 +1,4 @@
-.\"    $Id: man.7,v 1.22 2009/08/13 11:45:29 kristaps Exp $
+.\"    $Id: man.7,v 1.37 2009/09/05 10:37:09 kristaps Exp $

 .\"
 .\" Copyright (c) 2009 Kristaps Dzonsons <kristaps@kth.se>
 .\"
 .\"
 .\" Copyright (c) 2009 Kristaps Dzonsons <kristaps@kth.se>
 .\"


@@ -14,14 +14,16 @@
 .\" ACTION OF CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE OR OTHER TORTIOUS ACTION, ARISING OUT OF
 .\" OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OR PERFORMANCE OF THIS SOFTWARE.
 .\"
 .\" ACTION OF CONTRACT, NEGLIGENCE OR OTHER TORTIOUS ACTION, ARISING OUT OF
 .\" OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OR PERFORMANCE OF THIS SOFTWARE.
 .\"

-.Dd $Mdocdate: August 13 2009 $
+.Dd $Mdocdate: September 5 2009 $

 .Dt MAN 7
 .Os
 .Dt MAN 7
 .Os

-.\" SECTION
+.
+.

 .Sh NAME
 .Nm man
 .Nd man language reference
 .Sh NAME
 .Nm man
 .Nd man language reference

-.\" SECTION
+.
+.

 .Sh DESCRIPTION
 The
 .Nm man
 .Sh DESCRIPTION
 The
 .Nm man


@@ -29,6 +31,7 @@ language was historically used to format
 .Ux
 manuals.  This reference document describes its syntax, structure, and
 usage.
 .Ux
 manuals.  This reference document describes its syntax, structure, and
 usage.

+.

 .Pp
 .Bf -emphasis
 Do not use
 .Pp
 .Bf -emphasis
 Do not use


@@ -38,7 +41,7 @@ to write your manuals.
 Use the
 .Xr mdoc 7
 language, instead.
 Use the
 .Xr mdoc 7
 language, instead.

-.\" PARAGRAPH
+.

 .Pp
 An
 .Nm
 .Pp
 An
 .Nm


@@ -51,16 +54,19 @@ prior macros:
 \&.SH Macro lines change control state.
 Other lines are interpreted within the current state.
 .Ed
 \&.SH Macro lines change control state.
 Other lines are interpreted within the current state.
 .Ed

-.\" SECTION
+.
+.

 .Sh INPUT ENCODING
 .Nm
 documents may contain only graphable 7-bit ASCII characters, the
 space character, and the tabs character.  All manuals must have
 .Ux
 line termination.
 .Sh INPUT ENCODING
 .Nm
 documents may contain only graphable 7-bit ASCII characters, the
 space character, and the tabs character.  All manuals must have
 .Ux
 line termination.

+.

 .Pp
 Blank lines are acceptable; where found, the output will assert a
 vertical space.
 .Pp
 Blank lines are acceptable; where found, the output will assert a
 vertical space.

+.

 .Pp
 The
 .Sq \ec
 .Pp
 The
 .Sq \ec


@@ -68,7 +74,8 @@ escape is common in historical
 .Nm
 documents; if encountered at the end of a word, it ensures that the
 subsequent word isn't off-set by whitespace.
 .Nm
 documents; if encountered at the end of a word, it ensures that the
 subsequent word isn't off-set by whitespace.

-.\" SUB-SECTION
+.
+.

 .Ss Comments
 Text following a
 .Sq \e\*" ,
 .Ss Comments
 Text following a
 .Sq \e\*" ,


@@ -77,7 +84,8 @@ line.  A macro line with only a control character and comment escape,
 .Sq \&.\e" ,
 is also ignored.  Macro lines with only a control charater and
 optionally whitespace are stripped from input.
 .Sq \&.\e" ,
 is also ignored.  Macro lines with only a control charater and
 optionally whitespace are stripped from input.

-.\" SUB-SECTION
+.
+.

 .Ss Special Characters
 Special characters may occur in both macro and free-form lines.
 Sequences begin with the escape character
 .Ss Special Characters
 Special characters may occur in both macro and free-form lines.
 Sequences begin with the escape character


@@ -96,49 +104,62 @@ for a complete list.  Examples include
 and
 .Sq \ee
 .Pq back-slash .
 and
 .Sq \ee
 .Pq back-slash .

-.\" SUB-SECTION----------------------
+.
+.

 .Ss Text Decoration
 Terms may be text-decorated using the
 .Sq \ef
 escape followed by an indicator: B (bold), I, (italic), or P and R
 (Roman, or reset).
 .Ss Text Decoration
 Terms may be text-decorated using the
 .Sq \ef
 escape followed by an indicator: B (bold), I, (italic), or P and R
 (Roman, or reset).

-.\" SUB-SECTION----------------------
+.
+.

 .Ss Whitespace
 Unless specifically escaped, consecutive blocks of whitespace are pruned
 from input.  These are later re-added, if applicable, by a front-end
 utility such as
 .Xr mandoc 1 .
 .Ss Whitespace
 Unless specifically escaped, consecutive blocks of whitespace are pruned
 from input.  These are later re-added, if applicable, by a front-end
 utility such as
 .Xr mandoc 1 .

-.\" SECTION
+.
+.

 .Sh MANUAL STRUCTURE
 Each
 .Nm
 document must contain contains at least the
 .Sh MANUAL STRUCTURE
 Each
 .Nm
 document must contain contains at least the

-.Sq \&TH
+.Sq TH

 macro describing the document's section and title.  It may occur
 anywhere in the document, although conventionally, it appears as the
 first macro.
 macro describing the document's section and title.  It may occur
 anywhere in the document, although conventionally, it appears as the
 first macro.

+.

 .Pp
 Beyond
 .Pp
 Beyond

-.Sq \&TH ,
+.Sq TH ,

 at least one macro or text node must appear in the document.  Documents
 are generally structured as follows:
 .Bd -literal -offset indent
 \&.TH FOO 1 "13 Aug 2009"
 \&.
 \&.SH NAME
 at least one macro or text node must appear in the document.  Documents
 are generally structured as follows:
 .Bd -literal -offset indent
 \&.TH FOO 1 "13 Aug 2009"
 \&.
 \&.SH NAME

-foo \e- a description goes here
+\efBfoo\efR \e(en a description goes here
+\&.\e\*q The next is for sections 2 & 3 only.
+\&.\e\*q .SH LIBRARY

 \&.
 \&.SH SYNOPSIS
 \efBfoo\efR [\efB\e-options\efR] arguments...
 \&.
 \&.SH DESCRIPTION
 \&.
 \&.SH SYNOPSIS
 \efBfoo\efR [\efB\e-options\efR] arguments...
 \&.
 \&.SH DESCRIPTION

-The \efBfoo\efR utility does...
+The \efBfoo\efR utility processes files...

 \&.
 \&.

+\&.\e\*q .SH IMPLEMENTATION NOTES
+\&.\e\*q The next is for sections 1 & 8 only.
+\&.\e\*q .SH EXIT STATUS
+\&.\e\*q The next is for sections 2, 3, & 9 only.

 \&.\e\*q .SH RETURN VALUES
 \&.\e\*q .SH RETURN VALUES

+\&.\e\*q The next is for sections 1, 6, 7, & 8 only.

 \&.\e\*q .SH ENVIRONMENT
 \&.\e\*q .SH FILES
 \&.\e\*q .SH EXAMPLES
 \&.\e\*q .SH ENVIRONMENT
 \&.\e\*q .SH FILES
 \&.\e\*q .SH EXAMPLES

+\&.\e\*q The next is for sections 1, 4, 6, 7, & 8 only.

 \&.\e\*q .SH DIAGNOSTICS
 \&.\e\*q .SH DIAGNOSTICS

+\&.\e\*q The next is for sections 2, 3, & 9 only.

 \&.\e\*q .SH ERRORS
 \&.\e\*q .SH SEE ALSO
 \&.\e\*q \efBbar\efR(1)
 \&.\e\*q .SH ERRORS
 \&.\e\*q .SH SEE ALSO
 \&.\e\*q \efBbar\efR(1)


@@ -147,127 +168,183 @@ The \efBfoo\efR utility does...
 \&.\e\*q .SH AUTHORS
 \&.\e\*q .SH CAVEATS
 \&.\e\*q .SH BUGS
 \&.\e\*q .SH AUTHORS
 \&.\e\*q .SH CAVEATS
 \&.\e\*q .SH BUGS

+\&.\e\*q .SH SECURITY CONSIDERATIONS

 .Ed
 .Ed

-.\" SECTION
+.
+.

 .Sh MACRO SYNTAX
 Macros are one to three three characters in length and begin with a
 control character ,
 .Sq \&. ,
 at the beginning of the line.  An arbitrary amount of whitespace may
 sit between the control character and the macro name.  Thus,
 .Sh MACRO SYNTAX
 Macros are one to three three characters in length and begin with a
 control character ,
 .Sq \&. ,
 at the beginning of the line.  An arbitrary amount of whitespace may
 sit between the control character and the macro name.  Thus,

-.Sq \&.PP
+.Sq .PP

 and
 and

-.Sq \&.\ \ \ \&PP
+.Sq \&.\ \ \ PP

 are equivalent.
 are equivalent.

+.

 .Pp
 The
 .Nm
 .Pp
 The
 .Nm

-macros are classified by scope: line scope or block scope.  Line-scoped
+macros are classified by scope: line scope or block scope.  Line

 macros are only scoped to the current line (and, in some situations,
 the subsequent line).  Block macros are scoped to the current line and
 subsequent lines until closed by another block macro.
 macros are only scoped to the current line (and, in some situations,
 the subsequent line).  Block macros are scoped to the current line and
 subsequent lines until closed by another block macro.

-.\" SUBSECTION
+.
+.

 .Ss Line Macros
 .Ss Line Macros

-Line-macros are scoped to the current line, with the body consisting of
-zero or more arguments.  If a macro is next-line scoped and the line
-arguments are empty, the next line is used instead.  Thus:
+Line macros are generally scoped to the current line, with the body
+consisting of zero or more arguments.  If a macro is scoped to the next
+line and the line arguments are empty, the next line is used instead,
+else the general syntax is used.  Thus:

 .Bd -literal -offset indent
 .Bd -literal -offset indent

-\&.RI
+\&.I

 foo
 .Ed
 foo
 .Ed

-.\" PARAGRAPH
+.

 .Pp
 is equivalent to
 .Pp
 is equivalent to

-.Sq \&.RI foo .
-.\" PARAGRAPH
-Consecutive next-line invocations are disallowed.
+.Sq \&.I foo .
+If next-line macros are invoked consecutively, only the last is used.
+If a next-line macro is proceded by a block macro, it is ignored.

 .Bd -literal -offset indent
 \&.YO \(lBbody...\(rB
 \(lBbody...\(rB
 .Ed
 .Bd -literal -offset indent
 \&.YO \(lBbody...\(rB
 \(lBbody...\(rB
 .Ed

-.\" PARAGRAPH
+.

 .Pp
 .Bl -column -compact -offset indent "MacroX" "ArgumentsX" "ScopeXXXXX"
 .It Em Macro Ta Em Arguments Ta Em Scope
 .Pp
 .Bl -column -compact -offset indent "MacroX" "ArgumentsX" "ScopeXXXXX"
 .It Em Macro Ta Em Arguments Ta Em Scope

-.It  \&B     Ta    n         Ta    next-line
-.It  \&BI    Ta    n         Ta    current
-.It  \&BR    Ta    n         Ta    current
-.It  \&I     Ta    n         Ta    next-line
-.It  \&IB    Ta    n         Ta    current
-.It  \&IR    Ta    n         Ta    current
-.It  \&R     Ta    n         Ta    next-line
-.It  \&RB    Ta    n         Ta    current
-.It  \&RI    Ta    n         Ta    current
-.It  \&SB    Ta    n         Ta    next-line
-.It  \&SM    Ta    n         Ta    next-line
-.It  \&TH    Ta    >1, <6    Ta    current
-.It  \&br    Ta    0         Ta    current
-.It  \&fi    Ta    0         Ta    current
-.It  \&i     Ta    n         Ta    current
-.It  \&na    Ta    0         Ta    current
-.It  \&nf    Ta    0         Ta    current
-.It  \&r     Ta    0         Ta    current
-.It  \&sp    Ta    1         Ta    current
+.It    B     Ta    n         Ta    next-line
+.It    BI    Ta    n         Ta    current
+.It    BR    Ta    n         Ta    current
+.It    DT    Ta    0         Ta    current
+.It    I     Ta    n         Ta    next-line
+.It    IB    Ta    n         Ta    current
+.It    IR    Ta    n         Ta    current
+.It    R     Ta    n         Ta    next-line
+.It    RB    Ta    n         Ta    current
+.It    RI    Ta    n         Ta    current
+.It    SB    Ta    n         Ta    next-line
+.It    SM    Ta    n         Ta    next-line
+.It    TH    Ta    >1, <6    Ta    current
+.It    UC    Ta    n         Ta    current
+.It    br    Ta    0         Ta    current
+.It    fi    Ta    0         Ta    current
+.It    i     Ta    n         Ta    current
+.It    na    Ta    0         Ta    current
+.It    nf    Ta    0         Ta    current
+.It    r     Ta    0         Ta    current
+.It    sp    Ta    1         Ta    current

 .El
 .El

-.\" PARAGRAPH
+.

 .Pp
 .Pp

-The lower-case 
-.Sq \&br ,
-.Sq \&fi ,
-.Sq \&i ,
-.Sq \&na ,
-.Sq \&nf ,
-.Sq \&r ,
+The
+.Sq RS ,
+.Sq RE ,
+.Sq UC ,
+.Sq br ,
+.Sq fi ,
+.Sq i ,
+.Sq na ,
+.Sq nf ,
+.Sq r ,

 and
 and

-.Sq \&sp
-macros aren't historically part of
-.Nm
-and should not be used.  They're included for compatibility.
-.\" SUBSECTION
+.Sq sp
+macros should not be used.  They're included for compatibility.
+.
+.

 .Ss Block Macros
 .Ss Block Macros

-Block macros are comprised of a head and body.  The head is scoped to
-the current line and, in one circumstance, the next line; the body is
-scoped to subsequent lines and is closed out by a subsequent block macro
-invocation.
+Block macros are comprised of a head and body.  Like for in-line macros,
+the head is scoped to the current line and, in one circumstance, the
+next line; the body is scoped to subsequent lines and is closed out by a
+subsequent block macro invocation.

 .Bd -literal -offset indent
 \&.YO \(lBhead...\(rB
 \(lBhead...\(rB
 \(lBbody...\(rB
 .Ed
 .Bd -literal -offset indent
 \&.YO \(lBhead...\(rB
 \(lBhead...\(rB
 \(lBbody...\(rB
 .Ed

-.\" PARAGRAPH
+.
+.Pp
+The closure of body scope may be to the section, where a macro is closed
+by
+.Sq SH ;
+sub-section, closed by a section or
+.Sq SS ;
+part, closed by a section, sub-section, or
+.Sq RE ;
+or paragraph, closed by a section, sub-section, part, 
+.Sq HP ,
+.Sq IP ,
+.Sq LP ,
+.Sq P ,
+.Sq PP ,
+or
+.Sq TP .
+No closure refers to an explicit block closing macro.
+.
+.Pp
+.Bl -column "MacroX" "ArgumentsX" "Head ScopeX" "sub-sectionX" -compact -offset indent
+.It Em Macro Ta Em Arguments Ta Em Head Scope Ta Em Body Scope
+.It   HP     Ta    <2        Ta    current    Ta    paragraph
+.It   IP     Ta    <3        Ta    current    Ta    paragraph
+.It   LP     Ta    0         Ta    current    Ta    paragraph
+.It   P      Ta    0         Ta    current    Ta    paragraph
+.It   PP     Ta    0         Ta    current    Ta    paragraph
+.It   RE     Ta    0         Ta    current    Ta    none
+.It   RS     Ta    1         Ta    current    Ta    part
+.It   SH     Ta    >0        Ta    next-line  Ta    section
+.It   SS     Ta    >0        Ta    next-line  Ta    sub-section
+.It   TP     Ta    n         Ta    next-line  Ta    paragraph
+.El
+.

 .Pp
 If a block macro is next-line scoped, it may only be followed by in-line
 macros (excluding
 .Pp
 If a block macro is next-line scoped, it may only be followed by in-line
 macros (excluding

+.Sq DT ,
+.Sq TH ,
+.Sq UC ,
+.Sq br ,

 .Sq na ,
 .Sq sp ,
 .Sq nf ,
 .Sq na ,
 .Sq sp ,
 .Sq nf ,

-.Sq fi ,

 and
 and

-.Sq TH ) .
-.\" PARAGRAPH
-.Pp
-.Bl -column "MacroX" "Arguments" "ScopeXXXX" -compact -offset indent
-.It Em Macro Ta Em Arguments Ta Em Scope
-.It \&HP     Ta    <2        Ta    current
-.It \&IP     Ta    <3        Ta    current
-.It \&LP     Ta    0         Ta    current
-.It \&P      Ta    0         Ta    current
-.It \&PP     Ta    0         Ta    current
-.It \&SH     Ta    >0        Ta    current
-.It \&SS     Ta    >0        Ta    current
-.It \&TP     Ta    n         Ta    next-line
-.El
-.\" SECTION
+.Sq fi ) .
+.
+.

 .Sh REFERENCE
 This section is a canonical reference to all macros, arranged
 alphabetically.  For the scoping of individual macros, see
 .Sx MACRO SYNTAX .
 .Sh REFERENCE
 This section is a canonical reference to all macros, arranged
 alphabetically.  For the scoping of individual macros, see
 .Sx MACRO SYNTAX .

-.Bl -tag -width Ds -offset indent
-.It \&B
+.
+.
+.Ss Definitions
+In this reference, a numerical width may be either a standalone natural
+number (such as 3, 4, 10, etc.) or a natural number followed by a width
+multiplier 
+.Qq n ,
+corresponding to the width of the formatted letter n, or
+.Qq m ,
+corresponding to the width of the formatted letter m.  The latter is the
+default, if unspecified.  Thus,
+.Bd -literal -offset indent
+\&.HP 12n
+.Ed
+.
+.Pp
+indicates an offset of 12 
+.Qq n
+.Ns -sized
+letters.
+.
+.
+.Ss Macro Reference
+.Bl -tag -width Ds
+.It B

 Text is rendered in bold face.
 Text is rendered in bold face.

-.It \&BI
+.It BI

 Text is rendered alternately in bold face and italic.  Thus, 
 Text is rendered alternately in bold face and italic.  Thus, 

-.Sq \&.BI this word and that
+.Sq .BI this word and that

 causes
 .Sq this
 and
 causes
 .Sq this
 and


@@ -277,49 +354,94 @@ to render in bold face, while
 and
 .Sq that
 render in italics.  Whitespace between arguments is omitted in output.
 and
 .Sq that
 render in italics.  Whitespace between arguments is omitted in output.

-.It \&BR
+.It BR

 Text is rendered alternately in bold face and roman (the default font).
 Whitespace between arguments is omitted in output.
 Text is rendered alternately in bold face and roman (the default font).
 Whitespace between arguments is omitted in output.

-.It \&HP
-.\" TODO.
-.It \&I
+.It DT
+Has no effect.  Included for compatibility.
+.It HP
+Begin a paragraph whose initial output line is left-justified, but
+subsequent output lines are indented, with the following syntax:
+.Bd -literal -offset indent
+\&.HP [width]
+.Ed
+.
+.Pp
+If 
+.Va width
+is specified, it's saved for later paragraph left-margins; if
+unspecified, the saved or default width is used.
+.It I

 Text is rendered in italics.
 Text is rendered in italics.

-.It \&IB
+.It IB

 Text is rendered alternately in italics and bold face.  Whitespace
 between arguments is omitted in output.
 Text is rendered alternately in italics and bold face.  Whitespace
 between arguments is omitted in output.

-.It \&IP
-.\" TODO.
-.It \&IR
+.It IP
+Begin a paragraph with the following syntax:
+.Bd -literal -offset indent
+\&.IP [head [width]]
+.Ed
+.
+.Pp
+This follows the behaviour of the
+.Sq TP
+except for the macro syntax (all arguments on the line, instead of
+having next-line scope).  If
+.Va width
+is specified, it's saved for later paragraph left-margins; if
+unspecified, the saved or default width is used.
+.It IR

 Text is rendered alternately in italics and roman (the default font).
 Whitespace between arguments is omitted in output.
 Text is rendered alternately in italics and roman (the default font).
 Whitespace between arguments is omitted in output.

-.It \&LP, \&P, \&PP
+.It LP, P, PP

 Begin an undecorated paragraph.  The scope of a paragraph is closed by a
 Begin an undecorated paragraph.  The scope of a paragraph is closed by a

-subsequent paragraph, sub-section, section, or end of file.
-.It \&R
+subsequent paragraph, sub-section, section, or end of file.  The saved
+paragraph left-margin width is re-set to the default.
+.It R

 Text is rendered in roman (the default font).
 Text is rendered in roman (the default font).

-.It \&RB
+.It RB

 Text is rendered alternately in roman (the default font) and bold face.
 Whitespace between arguments is omitted in output.
 Text is rendered alternately in roman (the default font) and bold face.
 Whitespace between arguments is omitted in output.

-.It \&RI
+.It RE
+Explicitly close out the scope of a prior
+.Sq RS .
+.It RI

 Text is rendered alternately in roman (the default font) and italics.
 Whitespace between arguments is omitted in output.
 Text is rendered alternately in roman (the default font) and italics.
 Whitespace between arguments is omitted in output.

-.It \&SB
+.It RS
+Begin a part setting the left margin.  The left margin controls the
+offset, following an initial indentation, to un-indented text such as
+that of
+.Sq PP .
+The width may be specified as following:
+.Bd -literal -offset indent
+\&.RS [width]
+.Ed
+.
+.Pp
+If
+.Va width
+is not specified, the saved or default width is used. 
+.It SB

 Text is rendered in small size (one point smaller than the default font)
 bold face.
 Text is rendered in small size (one point smaller than the default font)
 bold face.

-.It \&SH
+.It SH

 Begin a section.  The scope of a section is only closed by another
 Begin a section.  The scope of a section is only closed by another

-section or the end of file.
-.It \&SM
+section or the end of file.  The paragraph left-margin width is re-set
+to the default.
+.It SM

 Text is rendered in small size (one point smaller than the default
 font).
 Text is rendered in small size (one point smaller than the default
 font).

-.It \&SS
+.It SS

 Begin a sub-section.  The scope of a sub-section is closed by a
 Begin a sub-section.  The scope of a sub-section is closed by a

-subsequent sub-section, section, or end of file.
-.It \&TH
+subsequent sub-section, section, or end of file.  The paragraph
+left-margin width is re-set to the default.
+.It TH

 Sets the title of the manual page with the following syntax:
 .Bd -literal -offset indent
 Sets the title of the manual page with the following syntax:
 .Bd -literal -offset indent

-\&.TH title section date source volume
+\&.TH title section [date [source [volume]]]

 .Ed
 .Ed

+.

 .Pp
 At least the 
 .Va title
 .Pp
 At least the 
 .Va title


@@ -336,48 +458,84 @@ The
 string specifies the organisation providing the utility.  The
 .Va volume
 replaces the default rendered volume as dictated by the manual section.
 string specifies the organisation providing the utility.  The
 .Va volume
 replaces the default rendered volume as dictated by the manual section.

-.It \&TP
-.\" TODO.
-.It \&br
+.It TP
+Begin a paragraph where the head, if exceeding the indentation width, is
+followed by a newline; if not, the body follows on the same line after a
+buffer to the indentation width.  Subsequent output lines are indented.
+.
+.Pp
+The indentation width may be set as follows:
+.Bd -literal -offset indent
+\&.TP [width]
+.Ed
+.
+.Pp
+Where
+.Va width
+must be a properly-formed numeric width.  If
+.Va width
+is specified, it's saved for later paragraph left-margins; if
+unspecified, the saved or default width is used.
+.It UC
+Has no effect.  Included for compatibility.
+.It br

 Breaks the current line.  Consecutive invocations have no further effect.
 Breaks the current line.  Consecutive invocations have no further effect.

-.\" TODO.
-.It \&fi
+.It fi

 End literal mode begun by
 End literal mode begun by

-.Sq \&nf .
-.It \&i
+.Sq nf .
+.It i

 Italicise arguments.  If no arguments are specified, all subsequent text
 is italicised.
 Italicise arguments.  If no arguments are specified, all subsequent text
 is italicised.

-.It \&na
-No alignment to the right margin.
-.It \&nf
+.It na
+Don't align to the right margin.
+.It nf

 Begin literal mode: all subsequent free-form lines have their end of
 line boundaries preserved.  May be ended by
 Begin literal mode: all subsequent free-form lines have their end of
 line boundaries preserved.  May be ended by

-.Sq \&fi .
-.It \&r
+.Sq fi .
+.It r

 Fonts and styles (bold face, italics) reset to roman (default font).
 Fonts and styles (bold face, italics) reset to roman (default font).

-.It \&sp
+.It sp

 Insert n spaces, where n is the macro's positive numeric argument.  If
 0, this is equivalent to the
 .Sq br
 macro.
 .El
 Insert n spaces, where n is the macro's positive numeric argument.  If
 0, this is equivalent to the
 .Sq br
 macro.
 .El

-.\" SECTION
+.
+.

 .Sh COMPATIBILITY
 .Sh COMPATIBILITY

-See
-.Xr mdoc 7
-for groff compatibility notes.
-.\" SECTION
+This section documents compatibility with other roff implementations, at
+this time limited to
+.Xr groff 1 .
+.Bl -hyphen
+.It
+In quoted literals, groff allowed pair-wise double-quotes to produce a
+standalone double-quote in formatted output.  This idiosyncratic
+behaviour is no longer applicable.
+.It
+The
+.Sq sp
+macro does not accept negative numbers.
+.It
+Blocks of whitespace are stripped from both macro and free-form text
+lines (except when in literal mode), while groff would retain whitespace
+in free-form text lines.
+.El
+.
+.

 .Sh SEE ALSO
 .Xr mandoc 1 ,
 .Xr mandoc_char 7
 .Sh SEE ALSO
 .Xr mandoc 1 ,
 .Xr mandoc_char 7

-.\" SECTION
+.
+.

 .Sh AUTHORS
 The
 .Nm
 .Sh AUTHORS
 The
 .Nm

-utility was written by
+reference was written by

 .An Kristaps Dzonsons Aq kristaps@kth.se .
 .An Kristaps Dzonsons Aq kristaps@kth.se .

-.\" SECTION
+.
+.

 .Sh CAVEATS
 Do not use this language.  Use
 .Xr mdoc 7 ,
 instead.
 .Sh CAVEATS
 Do not use this language.  Use
 .Xr mdoc 7 ,
 instead.

+.