[tex-live] Bug in syntax package

[Robin Fairbairns]

> The syntax.sty package that ships with the 20051102 version of TeX Live has
> a serious bug: Line 191 refers to a nonexistent \@foundunderscore macro
> that gets triggered when an underscore is used in the right-hand side of a
> rule.  (At least, that's how I encountered the problem.)  I have no idea
> where this version of syntax.sty comes from.  The version on CTAN, which
> doesn't have this \@foundunderscore bug, is dated 1996/05/17 and is version
> 1.07.  The TeX Live version is also dated 1996/05/17 but is version 1.9.
> Here's a diff of the two versions:
> 
> <                 [1996/05/17 1.9 Syntax typesetting (MDW)]
> ---
>  >                 [1996/05/17 1.07 Syntax typesetting (MDW)]
> 191c191
> <       {\act_{\@foundunderscore}}%
> ---
>  >       {\act_{\@uscore.}}%
> 252,255d251
> < \let\gr at leftsq\[
> < \let\gr at rightsq\]
> < \def\[{\gr at leftsq}
> < \def\]{\gr at rightsq}
> 281a278,279
>  >   \let\gr at leftsq\[%
>  >   \let\gr at rightsq\]%
> 459,464d456
> <   \def\gr at leftsq{\begin{stack}\\}%
> <   \def\gr at rightsq{\end{stack}}%
> <   \def\({\begin{stack}}%
> <   \def\){\end{stack}}%
> <   \def\<{\begin{rep}}%
> <   \def\>{\end{rep}}%
> 
> And here's a minimal example demonstrating the problem:
> 
>      \documentclass{article}
>      \usepackage{syntax}
> 
>      \begin{document}
> 
>      \begin{grammar}
>      <this_works> ::= <this_does_not>
>      \end{grammar}
> 
>      \end{document}

it's from mark wooding's mdwtools, and the licence is gpl.  i do
occasionally hear from mark (he was briefly on the uktug committee),
but he seems to hop email addresses and i don't know where he is now.

i'll have a try at contacting him again.

meanwhile, please submit a corrected copy of the .dtx and we'll get it
to ctan in time for the next texlive.

1999/03/24 |      87940 | macros/latex/contrib/mdwtools/syntax.dtx
1999/03/24 |     184176 | macros/latex/contrib/mdwtools/syntax.dvi
1999/03/24 |      19268 | macros/latex/contrib/mdwtools/syntax.sty

we don't want the .dvi again...

(send it to cambridge, for choice...)

robin