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Message-ID:  <14F52B78-1CA0-4C95-BCD6-E67F4647458B@mac.com>
Date:         Fri, 20 Mar 2009 05:07:29 -0600
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              <LATEX-L@LISTSERV.UNI-HEIDELBERG.DE>
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From: "Axel E. Retif" <axel.retif@MAC.COM>
Subject: fixltx2e and fnsymbol
To: LATEX-L@LISTSERV.UNI-HEIDELBERG.DE
Precedence: list
Status: R

Dear developers,

I think there is an aesthetic problem with the redefinition of  
fnsymbol in fixltx2e, as exemplified with the use the manyfoot  
package: say, with

\newcounter{footnoteS}
\newcommand{\footnoteS}{%
...
\renewcommand{\thefootnoteS}{\fnsymbol{footnoteS}}

you get, with fixltx2e active, \textsuperscript{\textasteriskcentered}  
for the first footnote mark, which looks unpleasant; but with fixltx2e  
commented out, you get \textsuperscript{$\ast$}, because then, as I  
see it, latex.ltx definition is taken:

\def\@fnsymbol#1{\ensuremath{\ifcase#1\or * ...

instead of the one in fixltx2e:

\def\@fnsymbol#1{%
    \ifcase#1\or \TextOrMath\textasteriskcentered * ...

Of course there is a quick and *very* dirty "solution" ---after  
calling fixltx2e:

\makeatletter
\def\@fnsymbol#1{%
%% \ifcase#1\or \TextOrMath\textasteriskcentered *\or% original line
    \ifcase#1\or $*$\or ...

With the other symbols there is no problem, of course, as  
\textsuperscript{\textdagger} and \textsuperscript{$\dagger$} produce  
the same result.

Thanks for your kind attention.

Axel