Behaviour of \latinfamily

[Ulrik Vieth]

Rowland writes:

> This model of behaviour makes sense, but fontinst contains this code:

> \def\open_out#1{\immediate\openout\out_file=#1 \def\out_filename{#1}}
> \def\out_line#1{\immediate\write\out_file{#1}}
> \def\out_lline#1{\out_line{\space\space\space#1}}
> \def\out_llline#1{\out_lline{\space\space\space#1}}
> \def\close_out#1{\immediate\write16{#1~written~on~\out_filename.}
>    \immediate\closeout\out_file}

> Now, I'm no TeX expert, but my reading of the TeXbook makes me think that
> \immediate\write means write the file *now*.  Or is the delay mechanism
> somewhere else?

It's somewhere else: All the \out_line stuff appears in macros which
are appended to token lists.  They are evaluated at the very end by
\endinstallfonts, at which time the \immedaite stuff takes place.

Cheers, Ulrik.