How to add new attributes to Math

[perrce]

I'm a math teacher using OpenOffice as my primary word processor, and one of my primary uses is in writing tests and assignments. So I use OpenOffice Math a lot. One thing that I really need is an "arc" and "widearc" attribute for text. (Sort of an upside down breve.) I often have to specify things like "arc AB" or "arc XYZ" in my geometry class, and I've been resorting to constructions like "widehat AB" or "widehat XYZ" to approximate the correct symbol, but this gets confusing for high school students.

Does this attribute already exist, by chance, and I've just missed it?

If it doesn't exist, how/where can I officially suggest this feature to developers?

I know that you can add new symbols to OpenOffice Math using the Catalog. Is it possible to add new attributes in the same way?

Thanks for the help.

[acknak]

I don't see any way to do it.

Math doesn't give you any ways to really extend it or compose notations by combining elements. E.g. there is the "overbrace" notation, but that is limited to a curly brace and there's no way to substitute a round brace to make the arc.

Neither do I see a request for it, so you may wish to file one: Open Office Quality Assurance - Report Bugs

You could do it as a graphic: just make yourself a scalable arc over some letters. But that would be a nuisance and very difficult (if possible at all) to incorporate into actual formulas.

From what (little) I've seen, it seems quite often to be written out, as "arc ABC" rather than using the attribute symbol.

[ltsleepmachine]

I would love to be able to program custom attributes. For instance, being able to gracefully use the bra ket notation from quantum would be quite nice.

[RGB]

being able to gracefully use the bra ket notation from quantum would be quite nice

Right click on the edit area -> Brackets -> left langle x mline y right rangle, then, replace the place holders to something more "quantistic"
Or simply write:

Code: Select all

left langle p mline %psi right rangle

PD: I think this is a different question from the original