Tafel Musik: Formatting algorithm of tables
This paper provides a description on the formatting algorithm of tables that the authors have developed. This algorithm is an important component of the so called TafeMusik (Tafel Musik) environment. TafeMusik provides the user with an environment to deal with various aspects of tables, from logical to typographical, in a consistent way. The algorithm is characterized by its fulfillment of two requirements, automatic formatting process and high quality of resulted layout. The algorithm automatically determines the dimensions of columns and rows, and breaks entry texts into one or more lines according to the widths of columns. At the same time, it generates best layout of tables by particular standards such as the compactness of layout. Moreover, the above features may work under user-specified constraints which are given in the form of linear inequalities or linear equalities of parameters. Finally, this paper also provides a description on some techniques to accelerate the TafeMusik formatting algorithm.
tables tabular layout tabular formatting linear programming first-fit algorithm optimization