[XeTeX] (ConTeXt) trouble debugging a "Missing number" error

Lars Huttar lars_huttar at sil.org
Tue Dec 4 20:32:24 CET 2012


Hi all,

I'm working with some code that was developed by someone else.
The document I'm typesetting is now giving the following error:

! Missing number, treated as zero.
<to be read again>
                   \otr:1:27
\OTRSETdoifcellelse ...er #1:\number #2\endcsname
                                                  \@EA
\secondoftwoarguments...

\@@ar@@1 ...ellelse {\mofcolumns }\columnlastcell
                                                  {\global \advance
\columnl...

\redoloop ->\expandrecursecontent
                                  \endofloop
<to be read again>
                   {
<inserted text>
                28
...
l.12 \startabblist
                  {
?

I haven't been able to figure out what's wrong or how to fix it.

I had just made changes to refactor the definitions of fonts. (I
confirmed that these changes really are a necessary cause of the error:
when I back out just these changes, the error goes away.)

>From the above error message I understand the error was detected during
the expansion of \startabblist. Here's the definition of abblist:

% Abbreviations
\definestartstop
  [abblist]
  [before={\setupbackgrounds[text][background=verticalline]
\starttextbackground[text]
\setuptab[headstyle={\switchtobodyfont[SansB,\SansBsize]},width=20mm,location=left]
\startcolumnset[abbcolumn] \startalignment[flushleft,nothyphenated]},
   after={\stopalignment \stopcolumnset \stoptextbackground
\setupbackgrounds[text][background=off]}]

>From that, one might guess that the font SansB or the font dimension
\SansBsize were the problem. But those definitions haven't changed
(though I would like to confirm that empirically with a run-time trace
message).

Here are the font settings changes that did occur:

E16fonts.tex:
changed this block:
  \definefont[SerifXLI][name:GentiumBookBasic-Italic at 10pt]
  \definefont[SerifXXL][name:GentiumBookBasic at 12pt]
  \definefont[SerifXXLB][name:GentiumBookBasic-Bold at 12pt]

to use size dimensions defined elsewhere:
\definefont[SerifXLI][name:GentiumBookBasic-Italic at \XLfontsize]
\definefont[SerifXXL][name:GentiumBookBasic at \XXLfontsize]
\definefont[SerifXXLB][name:GentiumBookBasic-Bold at \XXLfontsize]

E16settings.tex: I added these definitions:
\define\XLfontsize{14pt}
\define\XXLfontsize{16pt}

There are modes involved, so things are a bit more complicated, but I
believe that is the only effective difference.

I also created a log file, which I'll attach.
There is also a version with \tracingmacros=1, but it's 600K, so I'll
put it at
http://www.huttar.net/tmp/country-report-country_id-15-tracing.log

Thanks for taking a look. Please let me know what further information I
need to provide.
I can provide the .tex files themselves upon request.

I would especially like to know better techniques for debugging -- how I
can induce TeX to tell me more about what's going on. I realize that as
a macro language, this is inherently difficult with TeX.

Lars

-------------- next part --------------
This is XeTeX, Version 3.1415926-2.4-0.9998 (TeX Live 2012) (format=cont-en 2012.11.14)  4 DEC 2012 14:17
entering extended mode
 restricted \write18 enabled.
 %&-line parsing enabled.
**country-report-country_id-15.tex
(./country-report-country_id-15.tex

ConTeXt  ver: 2012.05.30 11:26 MKII  fmt: 2012.11.14  int: english/english

system          : cont-new.mkii loaded
(/usr/local/texlive/2012/texmf-dist/tex/context/base/cont-new.mkii
systems         : beware: some patches loaded from cont-new.mkii
)
system          : cont-sys.rme loaded
(/usr/local/texlive/2012/texmf-dist/tex/context/user/cont-sys.rme
(/usr/local/texlive/2012/texmf-dist/tex/context/base/type-siz.mkii)
(/usr/local/texlive/2012/texmf-dist/tex/context/base/type-otf.mkii)
(/usr/local/texlive/2012/texmf-dist/tex/context/base/type-xtx.mkii))
system          : country-report-country_id-15.top loaded
(./country-report-country_id-15.top)
bodyfont        : 12pt rm is loaded
language        : patterns nl->default:default->1->2:2 us->default:default->2->
2:3 de->default:default->3->3:3 da->default:default->4->2:2 sv->default:default
->5->2:2 af->default:default->6->2:2 gb->default:default->7->2:2 fr->default:de
fault->8->2:2 es->default:default->9->2:2 ca->default:default->10->2:2 it->defa
ult:default->11->2:2 la->default:default->12->2:2 pt->default:default->13->2:2 
ro->default:default->14->2:2 pl->default:default->15->2:2 cs->default:default->
16->2:2 sk->default:default->17->2:2 hr->default:default->18->2:2 sl->default:d
efault->19->2:2 tr->default:default->20->2:2 tk->default:default->21->1:2 lt->d
efault:default->22->2:2 agr->default:default->24->2:2 fi->default:default->25->
2:2 hu->default:default->26->2:2 ru->default:default->28->2:2 uk->default:defau
lt->29->3:3  loaded
specials        : dvips loaded
\openout3 = `country-report-country_id-15.tui'.

\openout0 = `country-report-country_id-15-mpgraph.mp'.

language        : language en is active
specials        : loading definition file dpx
(/usr/local/texlive/2012/texmf-dist/tex/context/base/spec-dpx.mkii
specials        : loading definition file fdf
(/usr/local/texlive/2012/texmf-dist/tex/context/base/spec-fdf.mkii))
specials        : loading definition file xet
(/usr/local/texlive/2012/texmf-dist/tex/context/base/spec-xet.mkii)
system          : module ethnologue loaded
(./p-ethnologue.tex
loading         : Context User Module / Typesetting Ethnologue 16
(./macros/E16safeinput.tex) (./macros/E16settings.tex
color           : mpcmyk color space is supported
color           : mpspot color space is supported
color           : system rgb is global activated
) (./macros/E16fonts.tex) (./macros/E16cropmark.tex) (./macros/E16style.tex)
(./macros/E16pagesize.tex) (./macros/E16hyphen.tex)
(./macros/E16hyphenationlist.tex) (./macros/E16textheaders.tex
system          : mark countryheader defined [subject]
system          : mark countryheadernumber defined [subjectnumber]
) (./macros/E16column.tex (./config/abbreviations.tex)
(./config/introduction.tex) (./config/statsum.tex) (./config/africa.tex)
(./config/americas.tex) (./config/asia.tex) (./config/europe.tex)
(./config/pacific.tex) (./config/bibliography.tex) (./config/nameindex.tex)
(./config/codeindex.tex) (./config/countryindex.tex)) (./macros/E16table.tex
system          : module database (mkii) loaded
(/usr/local/texlive/2012/texmf-dist/tex/context/base/m-database.mkii))
(./macros/E16maps.tex) (./macros/E16part0.tex) (./macros/E16index.tex)
(./macros/E16graphics.tex) (./macros/E16verticalline.tex))
(./country-report-country_id-15.tuo) (./country-report-country_id-15.tuo)
(./country-report-country_id-15.tuo) (./country-report-country_id-15.tuo)
(./country-report-country_id-15.tuo) (./country-report-country_id-15.tuo)
(./country-report-country_id-15.tuo) (./country-report-country_id-15.tuo)
(./country-report-country_id-15.tuo) (./country-report-country_id-15.tuo)
(./country-report-country_id-15.tuo)
publications    : file country-report-country_id-15.bbl not found, waiting for 
bibtex
(./country-report-country_id-15.tuo)
systems         : begin file country-report-country_id-15 at line 2
(./macros/E16pagenohead.tex) (./data/front-matter-report-world-all.tex
figures         : dimensions of SILlogo.pdf loaded from figurefile itself
fonts           : resetting map file list
(/usr/local/texlive/2012/texmf-dist/tex/context/base/sort-def.mkii)
(/usr/local/texlive/2012/texmf-dist/tex/context/base/sort-lan.mkii
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 102 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 102 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 103 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 103 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 104 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 104 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 105 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 105 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 106 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 106 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 107 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 107 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 108 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 108 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 109 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 109 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 110 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 110 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 115 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 115 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 116 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 116 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 117 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 117 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 150 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 150 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 152 replaced by U+FFFD.
Invalid UTF-8 byte or sequence at line 152 replaced by U+FFFD.
) [1.1])
(./data/table-of-contents-world-all.tex [2.2]
chapter         : -  
references      : unknown reference [][Abbreviations]
references      : unknown reference [][Overview]
references      : unknown reference [][Languages]
references      : unknown reference [][Bibliography]
references      : unknown reference [][Maps]
references      : unknown reference [][CodeIndex]
references      : unknown reference [][NameIndex]
) [3.3]
chapter         : - 
! Missing number, treated as zero.
<to be read again> 
                   \otr:1:27 
\OTRSETdoifcellelse ...er #1:\number #2\endcsname 
                                                  \@EA \secondoftwoarguments...

\@@ar@@1 ...ellelse {\mofcolumns }\columnlastcell 
                                                  {\global \advance \columnl...

\redoloop ->\expandrecursecontent 
                                  \endofloop 
<to be read again> 
                   {
<inserted text> 
                28
...
l.14 \startabblist
                  {
? x
 
Here is how much of TeX's memory you used:
 9488 strings out of 459417
 178776 string characters out of 2578995
 4688454 words of memory out of 7189059
 47676 multiletter control sequences out of 15000+200000
 12561 words of font info for 51 fonts, out of 3000000 for 9000
 307 hyphenation exceptions out of 8191
 66i,18n,92p,358b,1070s stack positions out of 5000i,500n,10000p,200000b,50000s
Output written on country-report-country_id-15.pdf (3 pages).


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