user defined macro as @table argument

[Patrice Dumas]

Hello,

Vincent Belaïche reported that the following construct fails when
processed by texi2any:

 @c To be used within the glossary section.
 @macro keyword{kw}
 @anchor{\kw\}
 @b{\kw\}
 @end macro

 @table @keyword
 @item BNF
 In semantic 1.4...
 @end table


What happens is that @keyword is expanded as soon as it is sen by the
Parser, and since it has an empty argument, the final Texinfo code to be
processed is 

 @table @anchor{}
 @b{}
 @item BNF
 In semantic 1.4...
 @end table


The intent of the code is to have @keyword be considered as a @table
command formatter, such that the expansion leads to something along

 @table @keyword
 @anchor{BNF}
 @b{BNF}
 In semantic 1.4...
 @end table

In my tests TeX chokes on that snippet, but maybe this kind of
construct works in general in TeX?


I would be very reluctant to change the current behaviour, since it
breaks the 'independence' between user macros expansion and regular
Texinfo semantics.  Also this would be very cumbersome because this does
not fit very well into the tree representation.  That being said, it is
can certainly be implemented, as it could be possible to expand the 
@-macro in every @item and set @asis as the table argument.

-- 
Pat