texinfo: Menu Parts

Menus

Less Cluttered Menu Entry

Writing a Menu

Back to Software Index

7.3 The Parts of a Menu
=======================

A menu entry has three parts, only the second of which is required:

  1. The menu entry name (optional).

  2. The name of the node (required).

  3. A description of the item (optional).

  The template for a generic menu entry looks like this (but see the
next section for one more possibility):

     * MENU-ENTRY-NAME: NODE-NAME.   DESCRIPTION

  Follow the menu entry name with a single colon and follow the node
name with tab, comma, newline, or the two characters period and space
('. ').

  In Info, a user selects a node with the 'm' ('Info-menu') command.
The menu entry name is what the user types after the 'm' command.

  The third part of a menu entry is a descriptive phrase or sentence.
Menu entry names and node names are often short; the description
explains to the reader what the node is about.  A useful description
complements the node name rather than repeats it.  The description,
which is optional, can spread over multiple lines; if it does, some
authors prefer to indent the second line while others prefer to align it
with the first (and all others).  It's up to you.  An empty line, or the
next menu entry, ends a description.