Text Formatting ⇒ Acronym package log entry

[cbkschroeder]

Using the acronym package, every instance of my invocation of \ac{} results in a log entry:

Package acronym Info: Label `acro:ABC' newly defined as it shall be overridden although it is yet undefined on input line 5.

I really am not sure of the meaning of this and am wondering if someone might be able to give me some insight. This doesn't seem like an error... but is it? Should I be worried about making this go away? I should note that, in the example above, \acrodef{ABC}{A Bit Crazy} was issued before the invocation of \ac{ABC}.

I will provide a MWE if needed, though I have a feeling the answer to my question is so blatantly obvious that such won't be needed.

Thanks for your time.

[cgnieder]

A minimal working example actually would be helpful (as almost always).

Regards

[cbkschroeder]

Hi,

Thanks for your response.

MWE:

Code: Select all

\documentclass{article}

\usepackage{acronym}

\acrodef{ABC}{A Bit Crazy}

\begin{document}

First time: \ac{ABC}. 

Second time: \ac{ABC}.

Third time: \ac{ABC}.

\end{document}

That's not quite minimal in that I invoke \ac{ABC} three times, whereas only the first invocation generates the log entry about which I'm inquiring; knowing that's useful, however. I should, therefore, go on record as correcting what I've written in my initiating post to switch "every instance" to "the first instance".

Line 58 of the log file reads:

Package acronym Info: Label `acro:ABC' newly defined as it shall be overridden
although it is yet undefined on input line 9.

I have uploaded the log file. Thanks.

[cgnieder]

First of all the message is just an information so it doesn't mean that anything's wrong. I am not completely sure I understand what happens.

Every time an acronym is used the acronym package uses \AC@placelabel. The first thing this macro does is checking if some internal macro belonging to the acronym used is equal to \AC@used. If it isn't it lets the very internal to be equal to \AC@used. It then also calls a macro \@verridelabel which is used to determine the page the acronym has been used. This macro usually overwrites a label.

The internal \@verridelabel command lets us Second ‘redefine’ an acronym label such that the page reference in the acronym list points where it should be pointing and not just to the very first occurrence of the acronym, where it may not even be expanded.

When the acronym is used for the first time said label isn't defined, yet. So the label gets defined and the message you've got is written to the log.

You get this message with either definition method.

What I didn't understand is why the user is informed about this. It seems to be quite irrelevant.

Regards

[cbkschroeder]

Well, you're considerably more learned about this than I am. I therefore feel relief when I find myself in agreement with you in regard to the irrelevancy of the message. It's as though there should be a log entry every time something happens the way it's supposed to! THAT'S keeping life positive!!

It would seem to me that it might not be a bad idea to have a "verbose" package option to enable or suppress this message and certain other messages. Alas, I am sure the author has very good reasons for why this is not the case; I will not second-guess. I suppose that the take-home message is that there isn't anything wrong.

Thanks for your time.