This is the README file for the GNU Texinfo distribution.
Please email bugs or suggestions to bug-texinfo@prep.ai.mit.edu.
Files within this distribution have their own version and edition
numbers. When you refer to a file, please mention its own version, as
well as the version number of the Texinfo distribution.
For instructions on compiling and installing info, makeinfo, texi2dvi,
and texindex, please read the file `INSTALL'. Also:
* The Emacs Lisp files are not compiled or installed by default; to
install them, use `make install' in the `emacs' subdirectory. See
./emacs/README for some considerations.
* The Info tree uses a file `dir' as its root node; the `dir-example'
file in this distribution is included for informative purposes.
Use it or not as you like.
* You can create a file texinfo.cnf to be read by TeX when
processing Texinfo manuals. For example, it might contain the
command @afourpaper. See the `Preparing for TeX' node in
texinfo.texi for more details.
Texinfo is a documentation system that uses a single source file to
produce both online information and printed output. This means that
instead of writing two different documents, one for the online help or
other online information and the other for a typeset manual or other
printed work, you need write only one document. When the work is
revised, you need revise only one document. You can read the online
information, known as an "Info file", with an Info documentation-reading
program. By convention, Texinfo source file names end with a `.texi' or
`.texinfo' extension. Texinfo is described in the Texinfo manual (the
file ./doc/texinfo.texi).
You can write and format Texinfo files into Info files within GNU Emacs,
and read them using the Emacs Info reader. If you do not have Emacs,
you can format Texinfo files into Info files using `makeinfo' and read
them using `info'. Use TeX, which is not included in this package (see
`How to Obtain TeX' in the Texinfo manual for information), to typeset
Texinfo files for printing.
This distribution includes (but is not limited to) the following files:
README This file.
INTRODUCTION This file tells you how to create
readable files from the Texinfo source
files in this distribution.
Texinfo source files (in ./doc):
texinfo.texi This manual describes Texinfo. It
tells how to use Texinfo to write
documentation, how to use Texinfo mode
in GNU Emacs, how to use TeX,
makeinfo, and the Emacs Lisp Texinfo
formatting commands.
info.texi This manual tells you how to use
Info. This document comes as part of
GNU Emacs. If you do not have Emacs,
you can format this Texinfo source
file with makeinfo or TeX and then
read the resulting Info file with the
standalone Info reader that is part of
this distribution.
info-stnd.texi This manual tells you how to use
the standalone GNU Info reader that is
included in this distribution as C
source (./info).
Printing related files:
texinfo.tex This TeX definitions file tells
the TeX program how to typeset a
Texinfo file into a DVI file ready for
printing.
util/texindex.c This file contains the source for
the `texindex' program that generates
sorted indices used by TeX when
typesetting a file for printing.
util/texi2dvi This is a shell script for
producing an indexed DVI file using
TeX and texindex. Must be used if the
source document uses Texinfo @macros.
GNU Emacs related files (in ./emacs):
texinfmt.el This Emacs Lisp file provides the
functions that GNU Emacs uses to
format a Texinfo file into an Info
file.
texinfo.el This file provides Texinfo mode
for GNU Emacs.
texnfo-upd.el These files provides commands to
makeinfo.el help you write Texinfo files
using GNU Emacs Texinfo mode.
info.el These are the standard GNU Emacs
informat.el Info reading and support files,
included here for your convenience.
Source files for standalone C programs (./lib, ./makeinfo, ./info):
makeinfo.c This file contains the source for
the `makeinfo' program that you can
use to create an Info file from a
Texinfo file.
info.c This file contains the source for
the `info' program that you can use to
view Info files on an ASCII terminal.
getopt.c Various support files
getopt1.c
getopt.h
Installation files:
configure This file creates creates a Makefile
which in turn creates an `info' or
`makeinfo' executable, or a C sources
distribution.
configure.in This is a template for creating
`configure' using Autoconf.
Makefile.in This is a template for `configure'
to use to make a Makefile. Created by
Automake.
Makefile.am This is a template for Automake
to use to make a Makefile.in.
Other files:
NEWS This contains a summary of new
features since the first edition
of Texinfo.
fixfonts This is a shell script to install the
`lcircle10' TeX fonts as an alias for
the `circle10' fonts. In some older
TeX distributions the names are
different.
tex3patch This handles a bug for version
3.0 of TeX that does not occur in
more recent versions.
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