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file: NOSUPPORT (for ltx2x)
When I wrote ltx2x it was in a different century and for a different
employer.
At that time I was involved in a project for storing a large series
of SGML tagged documents in a database. The intention was that queries
could be made against the database, couched in terms of the
SGML DTD, to retrieve (portions of) the documents. Some retrievals would
be for just reading, others would be by the series authors to paste text
into new documents in the series. There were no restrictions on how the
documents could be produced, except that they had to be in plain ASCII;
some authors used LaTeX, others used proprietry word processing systems,
and others a plain text editor. Camera ready copies of the documents
were also required for publication.
I wrote ltx2x to provide an automated means of converting LaTeX tagged
documents to SGML tagged documents. Someone else wrote a converter from
SGML to LaTeX as it was determined that LaTeX was the best means of
generating high quality camera ready copies. This all actually worked!
At the time I wrote ltx2x I think that there was no other similar
tool available that could provide a configurable conversion process ---
I at least configured ltx2x to operate like the detex program, to convert
to HTML, and to SGML (this was in the days before XML). The major problem
with the architecture of ltx2x was that it did its own parsing of the
LaTeX source, and the only robust LaTeX parser is TeX. A new kind of LaTeX
macro in a document required extending the ltx2x source code and recompiling.
I am now with another employer and as far as I know the SGML database
idea has lapsed. Therefore I have no work-related imperitive to maintain
ltx2x. Also, except for conversion of simple LaTeX into HTML, I no longer
use it myself.
Eitan Gurari's TeX4ht system is also a configurable converter and
uses TeX as the parser, so eliminating any need to keep recompiling
the basis system. I have effectively retired my use of ltx2x in favour
of TeX4ht. The homepage for TeX4ht is at:
http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/~gurari/TeX4ht
The bottom line is that I will no longer provide even the minimal support
for ltx2x that I have done for the past three years or so. I regret having
to say this but feel it is probably best for any current or future users
to know what the situation is.
If anyone wishes to take over support or development of ltx2x I will
be very pleased. The majority of the code is in the public domain and the
remainder is available under the LaTeX Project Public License, so anyone can
make any changes they like. Just let me know if you want to do anything so
I have a record of what might happen.
Peter Wilson (peter.r.wilson@boeing.com)
2001/07/01
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