Subject: Re: Commit: Page Numbers Dialog
From: Martin Sevior (msevior@mccubbin.ph.unimelb.edu.au)
Date: Mon Dec 18 2000 - 14:44:37 CST
On Mon, 18 Dec 2000, WJCarpenter wrote:
>
> 1. Headers and footers are special section types in the ABW format,
> but they otherwise look like any other document section. In
> particular, they can have many lines, format changes, field elements,
> even lists and tables. (The only real constraint should come from some
> sanity check that the total size of the header and footer isn't too
> big for the overall page size. There might also be some "rules of
> engagement" about the order in which things are calculated to break
> circular dependencies among the header, footer, and main document
> body.)
>
> 2. Headers and footers can use fields, and that use is not
> particularly different from the use of fields any place else in a
> document. Some fields may seem more sensible in a header/footer (eg,
> page numbering stuff), but that's our human semantic bias.
>
> 3. Dialogs like the one Dom just submitted for page numbers are
> "convenience" dialogs. It should ultimately be possible to have
> something like "edit header" or "edit footer" that opens a window (or
> switches the window or whatever) to the header/footer contents, but
> the window otherwise looks a heck of a lot like a normal AbiWord
> window, with all the buttons and menus and goop.
>
> Is that how everybody else is thinking about it?
This is precisely right Bill. We have an unimplemented function in our
menus "edit headers/footers" that will allow this. I've been thinking
about how to implement it. Basically I think we have to modify
mapXYtoPostion so that mouse clicks in the header/footer region get mapped
to the document location containing the header/footer. Then in principle
ordinary abi editting commands can be used to modify the contents of the
header/footer. You should be able to put whatever text you want in the
header/footer region.
We should also provide some visual feedback to the user to show the
header/footers are being modified by changing the left ruler somehow.
Maybe ungrey the the allowed header/footer region and provide some marks
on the ruler to change the size the size the region like the top ruler.
Are you interested in working on this? I can provide some backup to help
if you need it.
Cheers
Martin
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