4.3.5.2 Headings

Use headings to create a hierarchical structure for your document. The ms macros print headings in bold, using the same font family and point size as the body text.

The following describes the heading macros:

Macro: .NH curr-level

Macro: .NH S level0 …

Numbered heading. The argument is either a numeric argument to indicate the level of the heading, or the letter S followed by numeric arguments to set the heading level explicitly.

If you specify heading levels out of sequence, such as invoking ‘.NH 3’ after ‘.NH 1’, groff prints a warning on standard error.

String: \*[SN]

String: \*[SN-DOT]

String: \*[SN-NO-DOT]

After invocation of NH, the assigned section number is made available in the strings SN-DOT (as it appears in a printed section heading with default formatting, followed by a terminating period), and SN-NO-DOT (with the terminating period omitted). The string SN is also defined, as an alias for SN-DOT; if preferred, you may redefine it as an alias for SN-NO-DOT, by including the initialization

.als SN SN-NO-DOT

at any time before you would like the change to take effect.

String: \*[SN-STYLE]

You may control the style used to print section numbers, within numbered section headings, by defining an appropriate alias for the string SN-STYLE. The default style, in which the printed section number is followed by a terminating period, is obtained by defining the alias

.als SN-STYLE SN-DOT

If you prefer to omit the terminating period, from section numbers appearing in numbered section headings, you may define the alias

.als SN-STYLE SN-NO-DOT

Any such change in section numbering style becomes effective from the next use of .NH, following redefinition of the alias for SN-STYLE.

Macro: .SH [match-level]

Unnumbered subheading.

The optional match-level argument is a GNU extension. It is a number indicating the level of the heading, in a manner analogous to the curr-level argument to .NH. Its purpose is to match the point size, at which the heading is printed, to the size of a numbered heading at the same level, when the GROWPS and PSINCR heading size adjustment mechanism is in effect. See ms Document Control Registers.

The HORPHANS register (see ms Document Control Registers) operates in conjunction with the NH and SH macros, to inhibit the printing of orphaned section headings at the bottom of any page.