3.3 Command-line options

Since these programs do not have counterparts on historical Unix systems, they need not conform to an existing interface. We chose to have all the programs use the GNU function getopt_long_only to parse command lines.

As a result, you can give the options in any order, interspersed as you wish with non-option arguments; you can use `-' or `--' to start an option; you can use any unambiguous abbreviation for an option name; you can separate option names and values with either `=' or one or more spaces; and you can use filenames that would otherwise look like options by putting them after an option `--'.

By convention, all the programs accept only one non-option argument, which is taken to be the name of the main input file.

If a particular option with a value is given more than once, it is the last value which is used.

For example, the following command line specifies the options `foo', `bar', and `verbose'; gives the value `abc' to the `baz' option, and the value `xyz' to the `quux' option; and specifies the filename `-myfile-'.

-foo --bar -verb -abc=baz -quux karl -quux xyz -- -myfile-

3.3.1 The main input file		Each program operates on a "main" font.
3.3.2 Common options		Some options are accepted by all programs.
3.3.3 Specifying character codes		Ways of specifying single characters.
3.3.4 Common option values		Some options need more information.