[Docutils-develop] [docutils:feature-requests] #101 New "doctree" element for hard line breaks.

[Günter M. <mi...@us...>]

- **status**: open --> pending-moreinfo
- **Comment**:

Instead of relying on a "magic" class value, we may also allow the "xml:space" attribute for `<inline>` elements and represent a hard line break in the Document Tree as space-preserving inline element containing a newline character.
Markup parsers (like MyST and pycmark) could translate an end-of-line backslash to
~~~ xml
    <inline xml:space=preserve>\n</inline>
~~~
Writers would need to check inline elements for xml:space and translate it accordingly (e.g. HTML may use `<span style="white-space:pre-wrap;">...<\span>` in the general case and `<br>` if the content is just one newline character.)

The advantage it that there is a precedence: the "xml:space" attribute is defined by the XML standard "to signal an intention that in that element, white space should be preserved by applications." https://www.w3.org/TR/REC-xml/#sec-white-space

The Doctree uses the "xml:space" attribute already for the `<address>, <comment>, <doctest_block>, <literal_block>, <math_block>`, and `<raw>` elements.
https://docutils.sourceforge.io/docs/ref/doctree.html#xml-space



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**[feature-requests:#101] New "doctree" element for hard line breaks.**

**Status:** pending-moreinfo
**Group:** Default
**Created:** Tue Dec 12, 2023 08:16 PM UTC by Günter Milde
**Last Updated:** Tue Dec 12, 2023 08:16 PM UTC
**Owner:** nobody


Not providing for "hard line break elements" in the Docutils document model and reStructuredText syntax was a deliberate decision at the time these two were devised.

However, times have changed and there are new arguments and use-cases for hard line breaks.
(cf.  the  [comments in #85](https://sourceforge.net/p/docutils/feature-requests/85/#d02b)).
Something like a `<br>` inline node or special handling of `<inline class=line-break>` inline nodes may be considered. The latter would not change the document model and could be implemented at the writer level or via stylesheet rules.

Whether to add a reStructuredText syntax for hard line breaks can be decided independently.
The current rules require a non-white character in a role defined with `.. role:: line-break`.
    



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