texinfo: First Line

Texinfo File Header

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3.2.1 The First Line of a Texinfo File
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Every Texinfo file that is to be the top-level input to TeX must begin
with a line that looks like this:

     \input texinfo   @c -*-texinfo-*-

This line serves two functions:

  1. When the file is processed by TeX, the '\input texinfo' command
     tells TeX to load the macros needed for processing a Texinfo file.
     These are in a file called 'texinfo.tex', which should have been
     installed on your system along with either the TeX or Texinfo
     software.  TeX uses the backslash, '\', to mark the beginning of a
     command, exactly as Texinfo uses '@'.  The 'texinfo.tex' file
     causes the switch from '\' to '@'; before the switch occurs, TeX
     requires '\', which is why it appears at the beginning of the file.

  2. When the file is edited in GNU Emacs, the '-*-texinfo-*-' mode
     specification tells Emacs to use Texinfo mode.