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author | Karl Berry <karl@freefriends.org> | 2005-12-29 00:31:48 +0000 |
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committer | Karl Berry <karl@freefriends.org> | 2005-12-29 00:31:48 +0000 |
commit | a9d59a2d83b345581f2eb0c6b7f08c091f5622f0 (patch) | |
tree | 00fba7fbf3f00c16be8699398c6e4c2a256c68ac /Master/texmf-doc/doc/english/FAQ-en/html/FAQ-usepictex.html | |
parent | 89caab08d62b22519b44acf582a5fc3d302cbd60 (diff) |
doc/english/F-ca
git-svn-id: svn://tug.org/texlive/trunk@19 c570f23f-e606-0410-a88d-b1316a301751
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diff --git a/Master/texmf-doc/doc/english/FAQ-en/html/FAQ-usepictex.html b/Master/texmf-doc/doc/english/FAQ-en/html/FAQ-usepictex.html new file mode 100644 index 00000000000..5016fbd29c0 --- /dev/null +++ b/Master/texmf-doc/doc/english/FAQ-en/html/FAQ-usepictex.html @@ -0,0 +1,58 @@ +<head> +<title>UK TeX FAQ -- question label usepictex</title> +</head><body> +<h3>Why can't I load PiCTeX?</h3> +<p>PiCTeX is a resource hog; fortunately, most modern TeX +implementations offer generous amounts of space, and most modern +computers are pretty fast, so users aren't too badly affected by its +performance. +<p>However, PiCTeX has the further unfortunate tendency to fill up +TeX's fixed-size arrays - notably the array of 256 'dimension' +registers. This is a particular problem when you're using +<i>pictex.sty</i> with LaTeX and some other packages that also need +dimension registers. When this happens, you will see the TeX error +message: +<blockquote> +<pre> +! No room for a new \dimen. +</pre> +</blockquote> +There is nothing that can directly be done about this error: you +can't extend the number of available <code>\</code><code>dimen</code> registers without +extending TeX itself. + <a href="FAQ-NTS.html">e-TeX</a> and <a href="FAQ-omega.html">Omega</a> both do this, as + does <a href="FAQ-commercial.html">MicroPress Inc's VTeX</a>. + +<p>It's actually quite practical (with most modern distributions) to use +e-TeX's extended register set: use package <i>etex</i> (which +comes with e-TeX distributions) and the allocation mechanism is +altered to cope with the larger register set: PiCTeX will now load. +<p>If you're in some situation where you can't use e-TeX, you need to change +PiCTeX; unfortunately PiCTeX's author is no longer active in the +TeX world, so one must resort to patching. There are two solutions +available. +<p>The ConTeXt module <i>m-pictex.tex</i> (for Plain TeX and +variants) or the corresponding LaTeX <i>m-pictex</i> package provide +an ingenious solution to the problem based on hacking the code of +<code>\</code><code>newdimen</code> itself. +<p>Alternatively, Andreas Schell's <i>pictexwd</i> and related +packages replace PiCTeX with a version that uses 33 fewer +<code>\</code><code>dimen</code> registers; so use <i>pictexwd</i> in place of +<i>pictex</i> (either as a LaTeX package, or as a file to read +into Plain TeX). +<p>And how does one use PiCTeX anyway, given that the +manual is so <a href="FAQ-docpictex.html">hard to come by</a>? +Fortunately for MSDOS and Windows users, the <i>MathsPic</i> +system may be used to translate a somewhat different language into +PiCTeX commands; and the <i>MathsPic</i> manual is free (and +part of the distribution). <i>MathsPic</i> is written in +<i>Basic</i>; a version written in <i>Perl</i> is under +development, and should be available soon. +<dl> +<dt><tt><i>m-pictex.sty</i></tt><dd>Distributed as part of <a href="ftp://cam.ctan.org/tex-archive/macros/context/current/cont-tmf.zip">macros/context/current/cont-tmf.zip</a> +<dt><tt><i>m-pictex.tex</i></tt><dd>Distributed as part of <a href="ftp://cam.ctan.org/tex-archive/macros/context/current/cont-tmf.zip">macros/context/current/cont-tmf.zip</a> +<dt><tt><i>MathsPic</i></tt><dd><a href="ftp://cam.ctan.org/tex-archive/graphics/pictex/mathspic.zip">graphics/pictex/mathspic</a> (<a href="ftp://cam.ctan.org/tex-archive/graphics/pictex/mathspic.tar.gz">gzipped tar</a>, <a href="http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/graphics/pictex/mathspic/">browse</a>) +<dt><tt><i>pictexwd.sty</i></tt><dd>Distributed as part of <a href="ftp://cam.ctan.org/tex-archive/graphics/pictex/addon.zip">graphics/pictex/addon</a> (<a href="ftp://cam.ctan.org/tex-archive/graphics/pictex/addon.tar.gz">gzipped tar</a>, <a href="http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/graphics/pictex/addon/">browse</a>) +</dl> +<p><p><p><p>This question on the Web: <a href="http://www.tex.ac.uk/cgi-bin/texfaq2html?label=usepictex">http://www.tex.ac.uk/cgi-bin/texfaq2html?label=usepictex</a> +</body> |