On Thu, Jan 15, 2009 at 1:04 AM, Michael Green
<merely.ridiculous@gmail.com>wrote:

> I am having some trouble with horizontal spacing. I'm trying to set one
> width for \inframed and \hskip but the two are coming out different.
>
> Here is an example. It is a syllabus for a college course. I would like the
> entries for topics (e.g. "Glaucon's challenge"), descriptions (e.g. "Glaucon
> poses …"), and readings (e.g. "{\it Republic} …") to start at the same
> horizontal point on the page so that their left edges will be aligned.
>
> I use the longest date on which class will be held to define a horizontal
> length (longestdate). I use that length to set the width of a frame for text
> that precedes ClassTopic and an hskip that precedes both ClassDesc and
> Reading. I expected the horizontal space to be equal. But ClassTopic is a
> couple points to the right of the other two.
>
> Thanks!
>
> %% Start example file
>
> %% Horizontal length of longest date -- taken from
> http://archive.contextgarden.net/message/20070314.120612.adab0a8b.en.html
>
> \def\setwidthof#1\to#2%
> {\bgroup
> \setbox\scratchbox\hbox{#1}%
> \expanded{\egroup\def\noexpand#2{\the\wd\scratchbox}}}
>
> \setwidthof{{\it Wednesday, January 28.\hskip 1em}}\to\longestdate
>
> %% Definitions
>
> \def\ClassDate#1{\item
> \inframed[width=\longestdate,frame=off,align=right]{\it #1. }}%
> \def\ClassTopic#1{{\WORD #1}}%
> \def\ClassDesc#1{\hskip \longestdate #1}%
> \def\Reading{\hskip \longestdate {\sc reading} }%
>
>
> \starttext
> \title{Syllabus test}
>
> \startitemize[n]
>
>
> \ClassDate{Monday, January 26} \ClassTopic{glaucon's challenge}
>
>        \ClassDesc{Glaucon poses a challenge for justice. We'll talk about
> the nature of his test. What must Socrates prove about justice in order to
> satisfy the challenge? Do we really have to meet such a demanding test?}
>
>        \Reading{{\it Republic}, Bk. II, 357a–369b, pp. 38–44.}
>
> \ClassDate{Wednesday, January 28} \ClassTopic{origins of the state}
>
>        \ClassDesc{What problem does the state solve? That is, why would
> people who didn't have a state want one? What did Plato believe was the
> primary cause of conflict in human affairs?}
>
>        \Reading{{\it Republic}, Bk. II, 368e–376e, pp. 43–52.}
>
>
> \stopitemize
>
>
> \stoptext
>

There is a space in between \ClassDate{..} and \ClassTopic{..}:
\ClassDate{Monday, January 26} \ClassTopic{glaucon's challenge}

Is my pdf right ?

-- 
luigi