Re: multitable widths problem

[Werner LEMBERG]

>> Assuming a LilyPond snippet
>>
>>   @lilypond
>>   c4
>>   @end lilypond
>>
>> you mean something like
>>
>>   @multitable {@lilypond-width
>>                c4
>>                @end lilypond-width} {foo} ...
>>   ...
>>
>> ?
>
> No, I mean something like:
>
> @multitable {@lilypond-width} {foo} ...
> @item
> @lilypond
> c4
> @endlilypond
> @tab
> foo
> @end multitable
>
> The lilypond-book tool would replace {@lilypond-width} with
> something that has the correct width, sensitive to context.  That
> is, if prototype entries are used, generate a string that has the
> required width, if @columnfractions is used, calculate the proper
> fraction, etc.

Well, ...

> This does require the lilypond-book tool to buffer the table
> contents until the width of the "stretchable Lilypond column" is
> known, then output the corrected @multitable line and the table
> contents.

... this is far beyond the current capabilities of `lilypond-book`.
It knows nothing about @multitable syntax.  It even doesn't know
anything about texinfo syntax except converting the `@lilypond`
environment to some working texinfo code.

Note that `lilypond-book` is a tool that not only supports texinfo; it
also works with LaTeX, HTML, and DocBook.  Of those formats, only
texinfo would need such a feature, which makes it even more unlikely
that it gets ever implemented.

> Since @lilypond-width is a marker for a preprocessor substitution
> instead of an actual Texinfo command, a variant with an argument
> could be used to explicitly select which row should determine the
> column width, or to reference a previous table, or a previous
> definition, [...]

Ditto.  While both your suggestions are sound, they would require
extensive code modifications of `lilypond-book`, and this is not going
to happen.

I still think that a new texinfo command that allows both fractional
values and sample strings as column width specifications would be most
beneficial.


    Werner