Controlling page breaks

Sometimes it is necessary, for a final version of a document, to `help' LaTeX\ break the pages in the best way. LaTeX~2.09 had a variety of commands for this situation: 187, 188 etc. LaTeX2e\ provides, in addition, commands which can produce longer pages as well as shorter ones.

189 {<<#355#>size<#355#>>}
190 {<<#356#>size<#356#>>}

These commands increase the height of a page (from its normal value of 191) by the specified amount <<#358#>size<#358#>>, a rigid length. This change affects <#359#>only<#359#> the current page. This can be used, for example, to allow an extra line to be fitted onto the page or, with a negative length, to produce a page shorter than normal. The star form also shrinks any vertical white space on the page as much as possible, so as to fit the maximum amount of text on the page. These commands do not change the position of the footer text; thus, if a page is lengthened too far, the main text may overprint the footer.