texinfo: Custom Headings

Headings

Heading Choice

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D.4 How to Make Your Own Headings
=================================

You can use the standard headings provided with Texinfo or specify your
own.  By default, Texinfo has no footers, so if you specify them, the
available page size for the main text will be slightly reduced.

  Texinfo provides six commands for specifying headings and footings:
   * '@everyheading' and '@everyfooting' generate page headers and
     footers that are the same for both even- and odd-numbered pages.
   * '@evenheading' and '@evenfooting' command generate headers and
     footers for even-numbered (left-hand) pages.
   * '@oddheading' and '@oddfooting' generate headers and footers for
     odd-numbered (right-hand) pages.

  Write custom heading specifications in the Texinfo file immediately
after the '@end titlepage' command.  You must cancel the predefined
heading commands with the '@headings off' command before defining your
own specifications.

  Here is how to tell TeX to place the chapter name at the left, the
page number in the center, and the date at the right of every header for
both even- and odd-numbered pages:

     @headings off
     @everyheading @thischapter @| @thispage @| @today{}

You need to divide the left part from the central part and the central
part from the right part by inserting '@|' between parts.  Otherwise,
the specification command will not be able to tell where the text for
one part ends and the next part begins.

  Each part can contain text or @-commands.  The text is printed as if
the part were within an ordinary paragraph in the body of the page.  The
@-commands replace themselves with the page number, date, chapter name,
or whatever.

  Here are the six heading and footing commands:

'@everyheading LEFT @| CENTER @| RIGHT'
'@everyfooting LEFT @| CENTER @| RIGHT'
     The 'every' commands specify the format for both even- and
     odd-numbered pages.  These commands are for documents that are
     printed on one side of each sheet of paper, or for documents in
     which you want symmetrical headers or footers.

'@evenheading LEFT @| CENTER @| RIGHT'
'@oddheading LEFT @| CENTER @| RIGHT'
'@evenfooting LEFT @| CENTER @| RIGHT'
'@oddfooting LEFT @| CENTER @| RIGHT'
     The 'even' and 'odd' commands specify the format for even-numbered
     pages and odd-numbered pages.  These commands are for books and
     manuals that are printed on both sides of each sheet of paper.

  Use the '@this...' series of @-commands to provide the names of
chapters and sections and the page number.  You can use the '@this...'
commands in the left, center, or right portions of headers and footers,
or anywhere else in a Texinfo file so long as they are between '@iftex'
and '@end iftex' commands.

  Here are the '@this...' commands:

'@thispage'
     Expands to the current page number.

'@thissectionname'
     Expands to the name of the current section.

'@thissectionnum'
     Expands to the number of the current section.

'@thissection'
     Expands to the number and name of the current section, in the
     format 'Section 1: Title'.

'@thischaptername'
     Expands to the name of the current chapter.

'@thischapternum'
     Expands to the number of the current chapter, or letter of the
     current appendix.

'@thischapter'
     Expands to the number and name of the current chapter, in the
     format 'Chapter 1: Title'.

'@thistitle'
     Expands to the name of the document, as specified by the
     '@settitle' command.

'@thisfile'
     For '@include' files only: expands to the name of the current
     '@include' file.  If the current Texinfo source file is not an
     '@include' file, this command has no effect.  This command does
     _not_ provide the name of the current Texinfo source file unless it
     is an '@include' file.  (Note: Include Files, for more
     information about '@include' files.)

You can also use the '@today{}' command, which expands to the current
date, in '1 Jan 1900' format.

  Other @-commands and text are printed in a header or footer just as if
they were in the body of a page.  It is useful to incorporate text,
particularly when you are writing drafts:

     @headings off
     @everyheading @emph{Draft!} @| @thispage @| @thischapter
     @everyfooting @| @| Version: 0.27: @today{}

  Beware of overlong titles: they may overlap another part of the header
or footer and blot it out.

  If you have very short chapters and/or sections, several of them can
appear on a single page.  You can specify which chapters and sections
you want '@thischapter', '@thissection' and other such macros to refer
to on such pages as follows:

'@everyheadingmarks REF'
'@everyfootingmarks REF'
     The REF argument can be either 'top' (the '@this...' commands will
     refer to the chapter/section at the top of a page) or 'bottom' (the
     commands will reflect the situation at the bottom of a page).
     These '@every...' commands specify what to do on both even- and
     odd-numbered pages.

'@evenheadingmarks REF'
'@oddheadingmarks REF'
'@evenfootingmarks REF'
'@oddfootingmarks REF'
     These '@even...' and '@odd...' commands specify what to do on only
     even- or odd-numbered pages, respectively.  The REF argument is the
     same as with the '@every...' commands.

  Write these commands immediately after the '@...contents' commands, or
after the '@end titlepage' command if you don't have a table of contents
or if it is printed at the end of your manual.

  By default the '@this...' commands reflect the situation at the bottom
of a page both in headings and in footings.