man(1) Manual page archive


     PROSE(1)                                                 PROSE(1)

     NAME
          prose - describe style characteristics of text

     SYNOPSIS
          prose [ -flags ][ -ver ] [ -tm | -c | -t | -x standards-file
          ][ -mm | -ms ] [ -li | +li ][ -s ][ -f style-file | file
          ...]

     DESCRIPTION
          Prose describes the writing style of a document as deter-
          mined by style(1), but the output is in prose form.  The
          output describes readability, word and sentence lengths,
          sentence structure and variation.

          The program checks that a document's scores on certain style
          variables fall within the average range for documents of a
          specified type.  Whenever the score for a variable is out-
          side the average range, a warning message is printed with
          information about the variable, and commands that can be run
          to get further information.

          Prose creates a file called styl.tmp that contains the table
          produced by style.

          Prose compares a document with standards for one of several
          document types, according to the following flags:

               -tm  Compare input text to good Bell Laboratories TM's.
                    (This is the default.)

               -c   Evaluate input text for craft suitability.

               -t   Compare input text with good training documents.

               -x standards-file
                    Compare input text with standards contained in
                    user-specified standards-file. See mkstand(1) to
                    set up the standards-file.

          Because prose runs deroff(1) before looking at the text,
          formatting header files should be included as part of the
          input.

          Options affecting deroff(1) are:

               -mm  eliminate mm(1) macros, and associated text that
                    is not part of sentences (e.g. headings), from the
                    analysis.  This is the default.

               -ms  eliminate ms(1) macros, and associated text that

     PROSE(1)                                                 PROSE(1)

                    is not part of sentences, from the analysis.  The
                    -ms flag overrides the default, -mm.

               -li  eliminate list items, as defined by mm macros,
                    from the analysis.  This is the default.

               +li  Include list items in the input text, in the anal-
                    ysis.  This flag should be used if the text con-
                    tains lists of sentences, but not if the text con-
                    tains many lists of non-sentences.

          Other options are:

               -s   Produce a short (10 line) summary version of
                    prose.

               -f style-file
                    If a file containing the style table exists as
                    output from the style program, or from a previous
                    prose run, it may be specified so that prose need
                    not run style again.  Styl.tmp can be used as the
                    style-file. The input text file should not be used
                    with the -f flag.

          Two options give information about the program:

               -flags print the command synopsis line (see above)
                      showing command flags and options, then exit.

               -ver   print the Writer's Workbench version number of
                      the command, then exit.

          Prose is one of the programs run under the wwb(1) command.

     EXAMPLES
          The command:

               prose -t +li filename

          will describe how the style characteristics of filename com-
          pare with standards for training documents.  Lists will be
          included in the analysis.  The style(1) table will be left
          in the file styl.tmp.
          Then the command:

               prose -x standards-file -f styl.tmp

          will use the style statistics already gathered for filename,
          and describe how they compare with the user-defined stan-
          dards contained in standards-file.

     FILES

     PROSE(1)                                                 PROSE(1)

          styl.tmp             contains style table

          wwb/lib/prosedoc     contains all standards used for compar-
                               ison, and stored prose output text
                               files

     SEE ALSO
          style(1), wwb(1), deroff(1), match(1), wwbstand(1),
          mkstand(1), worduse(1).

     SUPPORT
          COMPONENT NAME:  Writer's Workbench
          APPROVAL AUTHORITY:  Div 452
          STATUS:  Standard
          SUPPLIER:  Dept 45271
          USER INTERFACE:  Stacey Keenan, Dept 45271, PY x3733 .}f
          SUPPORT LEVEL: Class B - unqualified support other than Div
          452 .}f