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-% $Id: faq-backgrnd.tex,v 1.31 2014/01/28 18:17:36 rf10 Exp rf10 $
-
-\section{The Background}
-
-\Question[Q-startup]{Getting started}
-
-\alltex{} offers a very large number of choices, and the beginner has
-to navigate through that set before even taking his first steps. The
-aim here is to guide the beginner through a set of answers that may
-help the process. We assume the beginner `knows' that \alltex{} is
-for them; if not, the discussion ``\Qref{what is \tex{}}{Q-whatTeX}''
-may help.
-
-To start at the very beginning, then, the beginner may wish to know
-what all those % ! line break
-``\Qref*{things with \tex{} in their name are}{Q-texthings}''.
-
-Armed with that knowledge, the beginner needs to decide what macro
-format she needs (always assuming someone hasn't already told her she
-needs to use ``foo\tex{}''. Learn about the alternatives in answers
-discussing common formats: look at % line break
-\Qref*{writing \plaintex{}}{Q-plaintex},
-\Qref*{\latex{}}{Q-latex} or
-\Qref*{\context{}}{Q-context}.
-
-If no system has been provided, the beginner needs to acquire a \tex{}
-distribution appropriate to their machine. Available options are
-available via the answer % ! line break
-``\Qref*{\alltex{} for various machines}{Q-TeXsystems}''; we assume
-here that the beginner can install things for herself, or has access
-to someone who can.
-
-Finally, the beginner needs to get started in the chosen format. For
-\plaintex{}, see ``\Qref[]{Online introductions: \TeX{}}{Q-man-tex}'';
-for \latex{}, see % ! line break
-``\Qref[]{Online introductions: \LaTeX{}}{Q-man-latex}''; and for
-\context{}, the place to start is the % line break
-\href{http://wiki.contextgarden.net/Main_Page}{ConTeXt garden wiki}
-(which is so good the present \acro{FAQ}s don't even try to compete).
-\LastEdit*{2011-03-04}
-
-
-\Question[Q-whatTeX]{What is \TeX{}?}
-
-\TeX{} is a typesetting system written by
-\href{http://sunburn.stanford.edu/~knuth/}{Donald E. Knuth}, who
-says in the Preface to his book on \TeX{}
-(see \Qref[question]{books about TeX}{Q-tex-books}) that it is
-%% !line wrap avoided by two commands
-``\emph{intended for the creation of beautiful books~---}
-\emph{and especially for books that contain a lot of mathematics}''.
-(If \TeX{} were \emph{only} good for mathematical books, much of its
-use nowadays would not happen: it's actually a pretty good general
-typesetting system.)
-
-Knuth is Emeritus Professor of the Art of Computer Programming at
-Stanford University in California, \acro{USA}. Knuth developed the
-first version of \TeX{} in 1978 to deal with revisions to his series
-``the Art of Computer Programming''. The idea proved popular and
-Knuth produced a second version (in 1982) which is the basis of what
-we use today.
-
-Knuth developed a system of % ! line breaks
-`\Qref*{literate programming}{Q-lit}' to write \TeX{},
-and he provides the literate (\acro{WEB}) source of \TeX{} free of charge,
-together with tools for processing the |web| source into something
-that can be compiled and something that can be printed; there is (in
-principle) never any mystery about what \TeX{} does. Furthermore, the
-\acro{WEB} system provides mechanisms to port \TeX{} to new operating
-systems and computers; and in order that one may have some confidence
-in the ports, Knuth supplied a \Qref*{test}{Q-triptrap} by
-means of which one may judge the fidelity of a \TeX{} system. \TeX{}
-and its documents are therefore highly portable.
-
-For the interested programmer, the distribution of \TeX{} has some
-fascination: it's nothing like the way one would construct such a
-program nowadays, yet it has lasted better than most, and has been
-ported to many different computer architectures and operating
-systems~--- the sorts of attributes that much modern programming
-practice aims for. The processed `readable' source of \TeX{} the
-program may be found in the % ! line break
-\begin{hyperversion}
- \Qref*{\acro{TDS} structured}{Q-tds} version of the distribution.
-\end{hyperversion}
-\begin{dviversion}
- \acro{TDS} structured version of the distribution (see
- \Qref*{\acro{TDS} structure}{Q-tds}).
-\end{dviversion}
-\begin{ctanrefs}
-\item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Knuth's source distribution]\CTANref{knuth-dist}
-\item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Knuth's sources in \acro{TDS} layout]\CTANref{knuth-tds}
-\end{ctanrefs}
-\LastEdit{2013-11-27}
-
-\Question[Q-plaintex]{What's ``writing in \TeX{}''?}
-
-\TeX{} is a macro processor, and offers its users a powerful
-programming capability. To produce a document, you write macros and
-text interleaved with each other. The macros define an environment in
-which the text is to be typeset.
-
-However, the basic \TeX{} engine is pretty
-basic, and is a pretty difficult beast to deal with. Recognising this
-(and not wanting to write the same things at the start of every
-document, himself) Knuth provided a package of macros for use with
-\TeX{}, called \plaintex{}; \plaintex{} is a useful minimum set of
-macros that can be used with \TeX{}, together with some demonstration
-versions of higher-level commands. When people say they're ``writing
-(or programming) in \TeX{}'', they usually mean they're programming in
-\plaintex{}.
-
-\Question[Q-TeXpronounce]{How should I pronounce ``\TeX{}''?}
-
-The `X' is ``really'' the Greek letter % ! line break
-Chi\nothtml{ (\ensuremath{\chi}, in lower case)}, and is pronounced by
-English-speakers either a bit like the `ch' in the Scots word `loch'
-([x] in the IPA) or (at a pinch, if you can't do the Greek sound) like
-`k'. It definitely is not pronounced `ks' (the Greek letter with that
-sound doesn't look remotely like the Latin alphabet `X').
-
-This curious usage derives from Knuth's explanation in the \TeX{}book
-that the name comes from the Greek word for `art' or `craft'
-(`\latexhtml{\ensuremath{\tau\epsilon\chi\nu\eta}}{\emph{techni}}'),
-which is the root of the English word `technology'. Knuth's logo for \TeX{} is
-merely the uppercase version of the first three (Greek) letters of the
-word, jiggled about a bit; we don't use that logo (and logos like it)
-in this \acro{FAQ} (see % ! line break
-\Qref[question]{Typesetting \TeX{}-related logos}{Q-logos}).
-
-\Question[Q-MF]{What is \MF{}?}
-
-\MF{} was written by Knuth as a companion to \TeX{}; whereas \TeX{}
-defines the layout of glyphs on a page, \MF{} defines the shapes of
-the glyphs and the relations between them. \MF{} details the sizes of
-glyphs, for \TeX{}'s benefit, and creates bitmaps that may be used to
-represent the glyphs, for the benefit of programs that will produce
-printed output as post processes after a run of \TeX{}.
-
-\MF{}'s language for defining fonts permits the expression of several
-classes of things: first (of course), the simple geometry of the
-glyphs; second, the properties of the print engine for which the
-output is intended; and third, `meta'-information which can
-distinguish different design sizes of the same font, or the difference
-between two fonts that belong to the same (or related) families.
-
-Knuth (and others) have designed a fair range of fonts using \MF{},
-but font design using \MF{} is much more of a minority skill (even) than is
-\TeX{} macro-writing.
-What is more, it is a dying art: few new \tex{}-related fonts are
-produced using \MF{}, nowadays. Indeed, several of the major font
-families (that originated in \MF{} designs) are now seldom used in any
-other way than their conversion to an outline font format.
-%% The complete \TeX{}-user nevertheless needs to
-%% be aware of \MF{}, and may even be required run \MF{} to generate personal
-%% copies of Meta-fonts that come her way.
-\LastEdit{2011-07-03}
-
-\Question[Q-MP]{What is \MP{}?}
-
-The \MP{} system (by John Hobby) implements a picture-drawing language
-very much like that of \MF{}; the difference is that \MP{} outputs
-vector graphic files instead of run-length-encoded bitmaps; output
-formats available are \PS{} or \acro{SVG}
-\MP{}
-is a powerful language for producing figures for documents to be
-printed on \PS{} printers, either directly or embedded in \AllTeX{}
-documents. \MP{} is able to integrate text and mathematics, marked up
-for use with \TeX{}, within the graphics. (Knuth tells us that he
-uses nothing but \MP{} for diagrams in text that he is writing.)
-
-Although \PDFLaTeX{} cannot ordinarily handle \PS{} graphics, the
-output of \MP{} is sufficiently simple and regular that \PDFLaTeX{}
-can handle it direct, using code borrowed from
-\begin{hyperversion}
- \Qref*{\context{}}{Q-context}~---
-\end{hyperversion}
-\begin{flatversion}
- \context{}~---
-\end{flatversion}
-see \Qref[question]{graphics in \PDFLaTeX{}}{Q-pdftexgraphics}.
-
-Much of \MP{}'s source code was copied from \MF{}'s sources, with
-Knuth's permission.
-
-A mailing list discussing \MP{} is available;
-\begin{flatversion}
- subscribe via the \acro{TUG} \ProgName{mailman} interface at
- \URL{http://lists.tug.org/metapost}
-\end{flatversion}
-\begin{hyperversion}
- subscribe via the % ! line break
- \href{http://lists.tug.org/metapost}{\acro{TUG} \ProgName{mailman} interface}.
-\end{hyperversion}
-The \acro{TUG} website also hosts a % ! line break
-\href{http://tug.org/metapost.html}{\MP{} summary page}, and the
-\Package{tex-overview} document gives you a lot more detail (and some
-explanatory background material).
-\begin{ctanrefs}
-\item[tex-overview.pdf]\CTANref{tex-overview}
-\end{ctanrefs}
-\LastEdit{2013-12-10}
-
-\Question[Q-texthings]{Things with ``\TeX{}'' in the name}
-
-New \TeX{} users are often baffled by the myriad terms with ``\TeX{}''
-in the name. The goal of this answer is to clarify some of the more
-common such terms.
-
-\paragraph{\TeX{} itself}
-\TeX{} proper is a typesetting system based on a set of low-level
-control sequences that instruct \TeX{} how to lay out text on the
-page. For example, \csx{hskip} inserts a given amount of horizontal
-space into the document, and \csx{font} makes a given font available
-in a document. \TeX{} is fully programmable using an integrated macro
-scripting language that supports variables, scoping, conditional
-execution, control flow, and function (really, macro) definitions.
-See % ! line break
-\Qref[question]{what is \TeX{}?}{Q-whatTeX} for some background
-information on \TeX{} and % ! line break
-\Qref[question]{some reference documents}{Q-ref-doc} for pointers to
-descriptions of \TeX{} control sequences, data types, and other key
-parts of \TeX{}.
-
-\paragraph{\TeX{} macro packages (a.k.a.~\TeX{} formats)}
-Some of \TeX{}'s control sequences are tedious to use directly; they are
-intended primarily as building blocks for higher-level~--- and therefore
-more user-friendly~--- abstractions. For example, there is no way in
-base \TeX{} to specify that a piece of text should be typeset in a
-larger font. Instead, one must keep track of the current size and
-typeface, load a new font with the same typeface but a (specified)
-larger size, and tell \TeX{} to use that new font until instructed
-otherwise. Fortunately, because \TeX{} is programmable, it is
-possible to write a macro that hides this complexity behind a simple,
-new control sequence. (For example, it is possible to define
-\cmdinvoke{larger}{my text} to typeset ``my text'' in
-at a font size next larger than the current one.)
-
-While some users write their own, perfectly customized set of
-macros~--- which they then typically reuse across many documents~--- it is
-far more common to rely upon a \emph{macro package}, a collection of
-\TeX{} macros written by experts. For the user's convenience, these
-macro packages are often combined with the base \TeX{} engine into a
-standalone executable. The following are some of that macro packages
-that you are likely to encounter:
-\begin{description}
- \item[Plain \TeX{} (executable: \ProgName{tex})]
- See
- \Qref[questions]{Books on \TeX{} and \plaintex{}}{Q-tex-books},
- \Qref[]{Online introductions: \TeX{}}{Q-man-tex},
- \Qref[]{Should I use Plain \TeX{} or \LaTeX{}?}{Q-plainvltx} and
- \Qref[]{Freely available \AllTeX{} books}{Q-ol-books}.
- Note that the Plain \TeX{} executable is called \ProgName{tex}; the
- base \TeX{} engine is generally provided by a separate executable
- such as \ProgName{initex} or as a \texttt{-ini} flag to
- \ProgName{tex}.
-
- \item[\LaTeX{} (executable: \ProgName{latex})]
- See
- \Qref[questions]{Books on \TeX{} and its relations}{Q-latex-books},
- \Qref[]{\AllTeX{} Tutorials, etc.}{Q-tutorials*},
- \Qref[]{Online introductions: \LaTeX{}}{Q-man-latex} and
- \Qref[]{Specialized \AllTeX{} tutorials}{Q-tutbitslatex}.
- Note that there have been two major versions of \LaTeX{}: \LaTeXe{}
- refers to the current version of \LaTeX{} while \LaTeXo{} is the
- long-since-obsolete (since 1994) version (cf.~%
- \Qref[question]{What is \LaTeXe{}?}{Q-latex2e} for more information).
-
- \item[\CONTeXT{} (executable: \ProgName{texmfstart})]
- See
- \Qref[question]{What is \CONTeXT{}?}{Q-context}.
-
- \item[Texinfo (executables: \ProgName{tex}, \ProgName{makeinfo})]
- See
- \Qref[question]{What is Texinfo?}{Q-texinfo}. \ProgName{makeinfo}
- converts Texinfo documents to \acro{HTML}, DocBook, Emacs info,
- \acro{XML}, and plain text. \ProgName{Tex} (or wrappers such as
- \ProgName{texi2dvi} and \ProgName{texi2pdf}) produce one of \TeX{}'s
- usual output formats such as \acro{DVI} or \acro{PDF}. Because
- \ProgName{tex} loads the Plain \TeX{} macros, not the Texinfo ones,
- a Texinfo document must begin with
- \begin{quote}
- \csx{input}\texttt{ texinfo}
- \end{quote}
- explicitly load the Texinfo macro package.
-
- \item[\Eplain{}~--- Extended Plain \TeX{} (executable: \ProgName{eplain})]
- See
- \Qref[question]{What is \Eplain{}?}{Q-eplain}.
-\end{description}
-
-\paragraph{Modified \ProgName{tex} executables}
-The original \ProgName{tex} executable was produced in the late 1970s
-(cf.~\Qref[question]{What is \TeX{}?}{Q-whatTeX}) and consequently
-lacked some features that users have come to expect from today's
-software. The following programs address these issues by augmenting
-the \TeX{} engine with some additional useful features:
-
-\begin{description}
- \item[\PDFTeX{} (executable: \ProgName{pdftex})]
- \TeX{}, which predates the \acro{PDF} file format by a decade,
- outputs files in a \TeX{}-specific format called \acro{DVI}
- (cf.~\Qref[question]{What is a \acro{DVI} file?}{Q-dvi}). In
- contrast, \PDFTeX{} can output both \acro{DVI} \emph{and} \acro{PDF}
- files. In \acro{PDF} mode, it lets documents exploit various
- \acro{PDF} features such as hyperlinks, bookmarks, and annotations,
- \PDFTeX{} additionally supports two sophisticated micro-typographic
- features: character protrusion and font expansion. See
- \Qref[question]{What is \PDFTeX{}?}{Q-whatpdftex}.
-
- \item[\xetex{} (executable: \ProgName{xetex})]
- \xetex{} reads \acro{UTF}-8 encoded Unicode input, and extends
- \TeX{}'s font support to include `modern' formats such as TrueType
- and OpenType; these extensions to its capabilities make it
- well-suited to multi-lingual texts covering different writing
- systems. See \Qref[question]{What is \xetex{}?}{Q-xetex}.
-
- \item[\LuaTeX{} (executable: \ProgName{luatex})]
- \TeX{} is programmed in its own arcane, integrated, macro-based
- programming language. \LuaTeX{} adds a second programming engine
- using a modern scripting language, Lua, which is `embedded' in a
- \tex{}-alike engine; it too reads \acro{UTF}-8 and uses TrueType
- OpenType fonts. See % ! line break
- \Qref[question]{What is \LuaTeX{}?}{Q-luatex}.
-
- \item[\eTeX{} (executable: \ProgName{etex})]
- \eTeX{} is an extension of \tex{}'s programming interface; as such
- it's only indirectly useful to end users, but it can be valuable to
- package developers; there is an increasing number of macro packages
- that require the use of \eTeX{}. As well as existing in
- \ProgName{etex}, \eTeX{} features are usually available in the
- \ProgName{pdftex} executables provided in the standard
- distributions; \xetex{} and \luatex{} also provide \etex{}'s
- programming facilities. See % ! line break
- \Qref[question]{What is \eTeX{}?}{Q-etex}.
-
- (Note: \eTeX{}, which enhances the \TeX{} engine, is not to be
- confused with \Eplain{}, which enhances the Plain \TeX{} macro
- package.)
-\end{description}
-
-Because each of the above derive from a base \TeX{} engine, it is in
-principle possible to combine any of them with one of the \TeX{} macro
-packages listed earlier to produce `extended' executables. For
-example, the \ProgName{pdflatex}, \ProgName{xelatex} and
-\ProgName{lualatex} executables each combine \LaTeX{} with an enhanced
-\TeX{} engine. Indeed, most (if not all) of the development of
-\context{} is now using \luatex{}.
-
-Some executables combine the features of multiple enhanced \TeX{}
-engines: for example, \ProgName{pdftex} now (in current distributions)
-offers both \PDFTeX{} and \eTeX{} extensions into a single executable
-This executable may be offered with a \LaTeX{} format (as
-\ProgName{latex} or \ProgName{pdflatex}) or with a \plaintex{} format
-(as \ProgName{pdftex}). (\ProgName{Tex} remains with an unadorned
-\TeX{} executable using \plaintex{}, for people such as Knuth himself,
-who want the certainty of the ``original''.)
-
-\paragraph{\TeX{} distributions}
-A \emph{\TeX{} distribution} provides a structured collection of
-\TeX{}-related software. Generally, a \TeX{} distribution includes a
-set of ``core'' \TeX{} executables such as \ProgName{tex} and
-\ProgName{latex}; various fonts optimized for use with \TeX{}; helper
-programs such as the \BibTeX{} bibliographic-database formatter,
-editors, integrated development environments, file-format-conversion
-programs; numerous \LaTeX{} packages; configuration tools; and any
-other goodies the distributor chooses to include.
-
-Commonly encountered \TeX{} distributions include \texlive{},
-\miktex{} and Mac\TeX{}; older ones include oz\TeX{},
-\acro{CM}ac\TeX{} and te\TeX{}. \miktex{} is also available as the
-basis of the Pro\TeX{}t bundle, distributed on the \texlive{}
-\acro{DVD} mailing, as well as being available online.
-
-Some \TeX{} distributions target a specific operating system and/or
-processor architecture; others run on multiple platforms. Many \TeX{}
-distributions are free; a few require payment. See % ! line break
-\Qref[question]{\AllTeX{} for different machines}{Q-TeXsystems} for a
-list of free and shareware \TeX{} distributions and % ! line break
-\Qref[question]{Commercial \TeX{} implementations}{Q-commercial} for a
-list of commercial \TeX{} distributions.
-
-\paragraph{Summary}
-What does it all mean?~--- the simple lists of objects, alone, offer
-no help for the beginner. The \acro{FAQ} team expects this answer
-only to be of use for people who are seeking guidance elsewhere
-(possibly within these \acro{FAQ}s) and coming across an unexpected
-name like ``blah\tex{}''.
-
-The subject matter covered by this answer is also addressed in a page
-on the \acro{TUG} site, % ! line break
-``\href{http://tug.org/levels.html}{the Levels of \tex{}}''.
-\LastEdit{2011-09-26}
-
-\Question[Q-ctan]{What is \acro{CTAN}?}
-
-The acronym stands for ``Comprehensive \tex{} Archive Network'', which
-more-or-less specifies what it's \emph{for}:
-\begin{itemize}
-\item The archives offer a comprehensive collection of \tex{} resources.
-\item The content is made publicly accessible, via the internet.
-\item \acro{CTAN} is a \emph{network} of archives, which strive to
- stay in step with one another.
-\end{itemize}
-The basic framework was developed by a \acro{TUG} working group set up
-to resolve the (then existing) requirement for users to \emph{know} on
-which archive site a particular package might be found.
-
-Actual implementation offers three distinct types of host:
-\begin{description}
-\item[\emph{Core} archives]Which form a small, tightly-coupled set of
- machines, which perform management functions as well as serving
- files;
-\item[\emph{Mirror} archives]Which do no more than take regular copies
- of core archives, and serve them; and
-\item[Archive selector]Which is a meta-service, which routes requests
- to an apparently ``local'' mirror (``local'' is determined by an
- algorithm that uses your net address to determine where you are, and
- then selects a mirror that's close).
-\end{description}
-Note that there is nothing to prevent any archive from supporting
-other functions, so a \acro{CTAN} mirror may also operate as a
-\acro{CPAN} (Perl) mirror and as a SourceForge (general free software)
-mirror, and \dots{}
-
-Functions that distinguish core archives are:
-\begin{itemize}
-\item Uploads: users may submit new (or updated) material via the
- \Qref*{upload redirector}{Q-uploads}. Significant changes to the
- archive are reported via the mailing list \Email{ctan-ann@dante.de}
-\item Weak consistency: changes to the content of the archives are
- rapidly distributed to all core archives. (Consistency is `weak'
- since changes can take several minutes to propagate.)
-\item Providing distribution (\texlive{} and \miktex{}) support.
-\item Catalogue maintenance.
-\item Mirror monitoring.
-\end{itemize}
-
-Users may make direct contact with the
-\begin{flatversion}
- \ctan{} management team, via \mailto{ctan@dante.de}
-\end{flatversion}
-\begin{hyperversion}
- \href{mailto:ctan@dante.de}{\ctan{} management team}.
-\end{hyperversion}
-
-Users should ordinarily download material from \acro{CTAN} via the
-\href*{http://mirror.ctan.org/}{archive selector}: this uses the
-mirror monitor's database, and uses the caller's geographical location to
-offer an efficient choice of ``sufficiently up-to-date'' mirror site for
-you to connect to. This procedure has the advantage of distributing
-the load on \ctan{} mirrors.
-
-Note that all the download links, given in the web representation of
-these \acro{FAQ}s, are set up to use the mirror selector.
-\LastEdit{2013-05-21}
-
-\Question[Q-catalogue]{The (\acro{CTAN}) catalogue}
-
-Finding stuff on networks used always to be difficult, but in recent years,
-search engines have become amazingly good at digging out unconsidered
-trifles from the myriad items of information available on the net.
-However, for the \alltex{} user, confusion is added by the tendency to
-index the same file at several \acro{CTAN} mirror sites.
-
-Further, the \alltex{} user usually needs the most recent version of a
-package; it's a rare search result that describes itself as obsolete!
-
-The \acro{CTAN} catalogue, several years after it was introduced, has
-developed into a powerful tool for dealing with these difficulties.
-It provides an entry for each package to be found on \acro{CTAN};
-users may search the catalogue for an entry, or they may browse its
-contents, using the catalogue's lists of ``categories'' of item.
-
-The basis of the catalogue is a collection of small, stylised,
-articles; each shows basic information about a package on \acro{CTAN},
-and includes pointers to download address (on a \acro{CTAN} mirror),
-documentation and home page if any, and related packages.
-
-The \href{http://www.ctan.org}{\acro{CTAN} central database machine}
-offers a ``Browse \acro{CTAN}'' area, with links to the list of
-packages, to a list of `topics' (with packages that match each topic),
-and to a list of authors (with their packages).
-
-In addition, every \acro{CTAN} mirror holds a copy of the catalogue,
-presented as a series of web pages; one may scan the files in
-alphabetic order, or use a category-based index. Such access is not
-as ``sophisticated'' as that on the central site, but it served for
-years before the central site appeared.
-\begin{ctanrefs}
-\item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}The CTAN catalogue (on CTAN)]\CTANref{Catalogue}
-\end{ctanrefs}
-\LastEdit{2014-03-17}
-
-\Question[Q-triptrap]{How can I be sure it's really \TeX{}?}
-
-\TeX{} (and \MF{} and \MP{}) are written in a
-\begin{flatversion} % really "non-hyper"
- `literate' programming language called \ProgName{Web} (\Qref{}{Q-lit})
-\end{flatversion}
-\begin{hyperversion}
- \Qref{`literate' programming}{Q-lit} language called \ProgName{Web}
-\end{hyperversion}
-which is designed to be portable across a wide range of computer
-systems. How, then, is a new version of \TeX{} checked?
-
-Of course, any sensible software implementor will have his own suite
-of tests to check that his software runs: those who port \TeX{} and
-its friends to other platforms do indeed perform such tests.
-
-Knuth, however, provides a `conformance test' for both \TeX{}
-(\Package{trip}) and \MF{} (\Package{trap}).
-%%% Is there a similar one for \MP{}?
-He characterises these as `torture tests': they are designed not to
-check the obvious things that ordinary typeset documents, or font
-designs, will exercise, but rather to explore small alleyways off the
-main path through the code of \TeX{}. They are, to the casual reader,
-pretty incomprehensible!
-
-Once an implementation of \TeX{} has passed its \Package{trip} test, or
-an implementation of \MF{} has passed its \Package{trap} test, then it
-may in principle be distributed as a working version. (In practice,
-any distributor would test new versions against ``real'' documents or
-fonts, too; while \Package{trip} and \Package{trap} test bits of
-pathways within the program, they don't actually test for any real
-world problem.)
-\LastEdit{2011-05-28}
-
-% \Question[Q-y2k]{Are \TeX{} and friends Y2K compliant?}
-
-% \begin{description}
-% \item[Crashing:] None of \TeX{}, \MF{} or \MP{} can themselves crash
-% due to any change whatever in the date of any sort.
-
-% \item[Timestamps:] In the original sources, a 2-digit year was
-% stored as the creation time for format files and that value is
-% printed in log-files. These items should not be of general concern,
-% since the only use of the date format file is to produce the log
-% output, and the log file is designed for human readers only.
-
-% Knuth announced in 1998 that implementors would be permitted
-% alter this code without fear of being accused of non-compliance.
-% Nearly all implementations that are being actively maintained had
-% been modified to generate 4-digit years in the format file and the
-% log, by the end of 1998. The original sources themselves have now
-% been modified so that 4-digit year numbers are stored.
-
-% \item[The \csx{year} primitive:] Certification of a \TeX{}
-% implementation (see \Qref[question]{trip/trap testing}{Q-triptrap})
-% does not require that \csx{year} return a meaningful value (which
-% means that \TeX{} can, in principle, be implemented on platforms
-% that don't make the value of the clock available to user programs).
-% The \emph{\TeX{}book} (see
-% \Qref[question]{TeX-related books}{Q-tex-books}) defines \csx{year} as
-% ``the current year of our Lord'', which is the only correct meaning
-% for \csx{year} for those implementations which can supply a
-% meaningful value, which is to say nearly all of them.
-
-% In short, \TeX{} implementations should provide a value in \csx{year}
-% giving the 4-digit year Anno Domini, or the value 1776 if the
-% platform does not support a date function.
-
-% Note that if the system itself fails to deliver a correct date to
-% \TeX{}, then \csx{year} will of course return an incorrect value.
-% \TeX{} cannot be considered Y2K compliant, in this sense, on a
-% system that is not itself Y2K compliant.
-
-% \item[Macros:] \TeX{} macros can in principle perform calculations on
-% the basis of the value of \csx{year}.
-% The \Qref*{LaTeX suite}{Q-latex}
-% performs such calculations in a small number of places; the
-% calculations performed in the current (supported) version of \LaTeX{} are
-% known to be Y2K compliant.
-
-% Other macros and macro packages should be individually checked.
-
-% \item[External software:] Software such as \acro{DVI} translators
-% needs to be individually checked.
-% \end{description}
-% \LastEdit{2011-06-01}
-%
-% withdrawn 2013-05-21
-
-\Question[Q-etex]{What is \eTeX{}?}
-
-While Knuth has declared that \TeX{} will never % !line break
-\Qref*{change in any substantial way}{Q-TeXfuture}, there remain
-things that one might wish had been done differently, or indeed
-implemented at all.
-
-The \acro{NTS} project set out to produce an advanced replacement for
-\TeX{}, to provide a basis for developing such modifications: this
-``New Typesetting System'' would share Knuth's aims, but would
-implement the work in a modern way taking account of the lessons
-learned with \TeX{}. While a first demonstrator \acro{NTS} did
-appear, it wasn't practically useful, and the project seems no longer
-active.
-
-In parallel with its work on \acro{NTS} itself, the project developed
-a set of extensions that can be used with a (``true'') \TeX{} system.
-Such a modified system is known as an \eTeX{} system, and the concept
-has proved widely successful. Indeed, current \TeX{} distributions
-are delivered with most formats built with an \eTeX{}-based system (for
-those who don't want them, \eTeX{}'s extensions can be disabled, leaving
-a functionally standard \TeX{} system).
-
-The extensions range from the seemingly simple (increasing the number
-of available registers from 256 to 32768) through to extremely subtle
-programming support.
-
-\Qref*{\CONTeXT{}}{Q-context} has required \eTeX{} for its operation
-for some time, though development is now focused on the use of
-\Qref*{\luatex{}}{Q-luatex}.
-
-Some \LaTeX{} packages already specify the use of \eTeX{}. Some such
-packages may not work at all on a non-\eTeX{} system; others will
-work, but not as well as on an \eTeX{} system. The % ! line break
-\Qref*{\LaTeX{} team}{Q-LaTeX3} has announced that future \LaTeX{}
-packages (specifically those from the team, as opposed to those
-individually contributed) may require \eTeX{} for optimum performance.
-\begin{ctanrefs}
-\item[\eTeX{}]\CTANref{etex}
-\end{ctanrefs}
-\LastEdit{2011-07-13}
-
-\Question[Q-whatpdftex]{What is \PDFTeX{}?}
-
-One can reasonably say that \PDFTeX{} is (today) the main stream of
-\TeX{} distributions: most \LaTeX{} and many \CONTeXT{} users nowadays use
-\PDFTeX{} whether they know it or not (more precisely, they use
-\PDFTeX{} extended by
-\begin{hyperversion}
- \Qref*{\eTeX{}}{Q-etex}).
-\end{hyperversion}
-\begin{flatversion}
- \eTeX{}~--- \Qref{}{Q-etex}).
-\end{flatversion}
-So what is \PDFTeX{}?
-
-\PDFTeX{} is a development of \TeX{} that is capable of generating
-typeset \acro{PDF} output in place of \acro{DVI}. \PDFTeX{} has
-other capabilities, most notably in the area of fine typographic
-detail (for example, its support for % ! line break
-\begin{hyperversion}
- \Qref{optimising line breaks}{Q-overfull}),
-\end{hyperversion}
-\begin{flatversion}
- % ( <- dummy for paren balancing
- optimising line breaks~--- \Qref{}{Q-overfull}),
-\end{flatversion}
-but its greatest impact to date has been in the area of
-\acro{PDF} output.
-
-\PDFTeX{} started as a topic for H\`an \The {} Th\`anh's Master's~thesis,
-and seems first to have been published in \TUGboat{} 18(4), in 1997
-(though it was certainly discussed at the \acro{TUG}'96 conference in
-Russia).
-
-While the world was making good use of ``pre-releases'' of \PDFTeX{},
-Th\`anh used it as a test-bed for the micro-typography which was the
-prime subject of his Ph.D.~research. Since Th\`anh was finally
-awarded his Ph.D., day-to-day maintenance and development of
-\PDFTeX{}~1.0 (and later) has been in the hands of a group of
-\PDFTeX{} maintainers (which includes Th\`anh); the group has managed
-to maintain a stable platform for general use.
-
-Development of \PDFTeX{} has mostly stopped (only bug fixes, and
-occasional small development items are processed): future development
-is focused on \Qref*{\LuaTeX{}}{Q-luatex}.
-\LastEdit{2011-05-28}
-
-\Question[Q-latex]{What is \LaTeX{}?}
-
-\LaTeX{} is a \TeX{} macro package, originally written by Leslie Lamport, that
-provides a document processing system. \LaTeX{} allows markup to
-describe the structure of a document, so that the user
-need not think about presentation. By using document classes and
-add-on packages, the same document can be produced in a variety of
-different layouts.
-
-Lamport says that \LaTeX{}
-``\emph{represents a balance between functionality and ease of use}''.
-This shows itself as a continual conflict that leads to
-the need for such things as \acro{FAQ}s: \LaTeX{} \emph{can}
-meet most user requirements, but finding out \emph{how} is often
-tricky.
-
-\Question[Q-latex2e]{What is \LaTeXe{}?}
-
-Lamport's last version of \LaTeX{} (\LaTeXo{}, last updated in 1992)
-was superseded in 1994 by a new version (\LaTeXe{}) provided by
-\Qref*{the \LaTeX{} team}{Q-LaTeX3}.
-\LaTeXe{} is now the only readily-available version of
-\LaTeX{}, and draws together several threads of \LaTeX{} development
-from the later days of \LaTeXo{}. The ``e'' of the name is (in the
-% next (ghastly) line needed to maintain typesetting
-\wideonly{\Qref{official logo}{Q-logos}}\narrowonly{official logo~--- \Qref{\relax}{Q-logos}})
-% the \relax allows sanitize to cope with the line. just don't ask...
-a single-stroke epsilon
-(\latexhtml{\ensuremath{\varepsilon}}{&epsilon;}, supposedly
-indicative of no more than a small change).
-
-\LaTeXe{} has several enhancements over \LaTeXo{}, but they were all
-rather minor, with a view to continuity and stability rather than the
-``big push'' that some had expected from the team. \LaTeXe{}
-continues to this day to offer a compatibility mode in which most
-files prepared for use with \LaTeXo{} will run (albeit with somewhat
-reduced performance, and subject to voluminous complaints in the log
-file). Differences between \LaTeXe{} and \LaTeXo{} are
-outlined in a series of `guide' files that are available in every
-\LaTeX{} distribution (the same directory also contains ``news'' about
-each new release of \LaTeXe{}).
-
-Note that, now, \latexe{} is ``feature frozen'' (the only allowed
-changes come from bug reports); this, too, is in pursuit of stability,
-and is a driving force for many of the efforts to contribute \latex{}
-packages.
-\begin{ctanrefs}
-\item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\LaTeX{} guides and news]\CTANref{latexdoc}
-\end{ctanrefs}
-\LastEdit{2011-08-19}
-
-\Question[Q-latexpronounce]{How should I pronounce ``\LaTeX{}(\twee{})''?}
-
-Lamport never recommended how one should pronounce \LaTeX{}, but a lot
-of people pronounce it `Lay \TeX{}' or perhaps `Lah \TeX{}' (with
-\TeX{} pronounced as the program itself; see
-\Qref[question]{the rules for TeX}{Q-TeXpronounce}). It is definitely
-\emph{not} to be pronounced in the same way as the rubber-tree gum
-(which would be `lay teks').
-
-The \LaTeXe{} logo is supposed to end with an
-\latexhtml{\ensuremath{\varepsilon}}{&epsilon;}; nevertheless, most
-people pronounce the name as `\LaTeX{}-two-ee'.
-\LastEdit{2009-06-08}
-
-\Question[Q-plainvltx]{Should I use \plaintex{} or \LaTeX{}?}
-
-There's no straightforward answer to this question. Many people swear
-by \plaintex{}, and produce highly respectable documents using it
-(Knuth is an example of this, of course). But equally, many people
-are happy to let someone else take the design decisions for them,
-accepting a small loss of flexibility in exchange for a saving of
-(mental) effort.
-
-The arguments around this topic can provoke huge amounts of noise and
-heat, without offering much by way of light; your best bet may be to
-find out what those around you are using, and to follow them in the
-hope of some support. Later on, you can always switch your
-allegiance; don't bother about it.
-
-If you are preparing a manuscript for a publisher or journal, ask them
-what markup they want before you
-develop your own; many big publishers have developed their own
-\AllTeX{} styles for journals and books, and insist that authors stick
-closely to their markup.
-
-\Question[Q-LaTeXandPlain]{How does \LaTeX{} relate to \plaintex{}?}
-
-\tex{} provides a programming language (of sorts), and any document
-more complex than the trivial ``hello world'' will need some
-programming.
-
-\LaTeX{} and \plaintex{} are both libraries written for use with
-\tex{}; the user commands \ProgName{tex} and \ProgName{latex} invoke
-\tex{}-the-program with a library incorporated. Libraries that may be
-loaded in this way are known as `\emph{formats}'; when a user ``runs''
-\plaintex{} or \latex{}, they are running \tex{} (the program) with an
-appropriate format. The documents are then programmed in \plaintex{}
-or \latex{} \emph{language}.
-
-\plaintex{} and \latex{} exist because writing your documents in `raw'
-\TeX{} could involve much reinventing of wheels for every document.
-Both languages serve as convenient aids to make document writing more
-pleasant: \LaTeX{} provides many more items to support `common'
-requirements of documents.
-
-As such, \LaTeX{} is close to being a superset of \plaintex{}, but
-some \plaintex{} commands don't work as expected when used in a
-\latex{} document. Using \plaintex{} commands in a \latex{} document
-is an occasional source of bugs: the output is \emph{almost} right,
-but some things are misplaced.
-
-So, \plaintex{} and \latex{} are related through a common parent, and
-are designed for use in similar jobs; programming for one will often
-not work correctly in the other.
-\LastEdit{2014-03-18}
-
-\Question[Q-context]{What is \context{}?}
-
-\href{http://www.pragma-ade.com/}{\context{}} is a macro package
-created by Hans Hagen of Pragma-Ade; it started as a production tool
-for Pragma (which is a publishing company). \CONTeXT{} is a
-document-production system based, like \LaTeX{}, on the \TeX{}
-typesetting system. Whereas \LaTeX{} insulates the writer from
-typographical details, \context{} takes a complementary approach by
-providing structured interfaces for handling typography, including
-extensive support for colors, backgrounds, hyperlinks, presentations,
-figure-text integration, and conditional compilation. It gives the
-user extensive control over formatting while making it easy to create
-new layouts and styles without learning the \TeX{} macro
-language. \CONTeXT{}'s unified design avoids the package clashes that
-can happen with \LaTeX{}.
-
-\context{} also integrates MetaFun, a superset of \MP{} and a powerful
-system for vector graphics. MetaFun can be used as a stand-alone
-system to produce figures, but its strength lies in enhancing
-\context{} documents with accurate graphic elements.
-
-\context{} allows users to specify formatting commands in English,
-Dutch, German, French, or Italian, and to use different typesetting
-engines (\PDFTeX{}, Xe\TeX{}, Aleph and \LuaTeX{}) without
-changing the user interface. \context{} continues to develop, often in
-response to requests from the user community.
-
-The development of \Qref*{\luatex{}}{Q-luatex} was originally driven
-by \context{}, almost from the start of its project. Nowadays,
-\context{} it is distributed in two versions~--- mark two (files with
-extension \extension{mkii}) which runs on \pdftex{} but is not under
-active development, and mark four (files with extension
-\extension{mkiv}) (which runs on \luatex{} and is where development
-happens).
-
-\context{} has a large developer community (though possibly not as
-large as that of latex{}), but those developers who are active seem to have
-prodigious energy. Support is available via a % ! line break
-\href{http://wiki.contextgarden.net/Main_Page}{\acro{WIKI} site} and via the
-\href{http://www.ntg.nl/mailman/listinfo/ntg-context}{mailing list}.
-A ``standalone'' distribution (a \TeX{} distribution with no macros
-other than \context{}-based ones) is available from
-\url{http://minimals.contextgarden.net/} --- it provides
-a \context{} system on any of a number of platforms, executing either
-mark~ii or mark~iv \context{}.
-
-Note that \acro{CTAN} does \emph{not} hold the primary distribution of
-\context{}~--- potential users should refer to
-\href{http://contextgarden.net}{\context{} `garden' site} for details
-of the
-current distribution. \acro{CTAN} holds a copy of \CONTeXT{} but
-makes no claim about its ``up-to-date''ness. Likewise, \acro{CTAN}
-holds a few contributed \context{} packages, but many more are to be
-found via the \href{http://contextgarden.net}{\CONTeXT{} garden}.
-\begin{ctanrefs}
-\item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\CONTeXT{} distribution]\CTANref{context}
-\item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\CONTeXT{} packages selection]\CTANref{context-contrib}
-\end{ctanrefs}
-\LastEdit{2014-05-30}
-
-\Question[Q-AMSpkg]{What are the \acro{AMS} packages (\AMSTeX{}, \emph{etc}.)?}
-
-\AMSTeX{} is a \TeX{} macro package, originally written by Michael Spivak for
-the American Mathematical Society (\acro{AMS}) during 1983--1985 and
-is described in the book ``\Qref*{The Joy of \TeX{}}{Q-tex-books}''.
-It is based on \plaintex{}, and provides many
-features for producing more professional-looking maths formulas with
-less burden on authors. It pays attention to the finer details of
-sizing and positioning that mathematical publishers care about. The
-aspects covered include multi-line displayed equations, equation
-numbering, ellipsis dots, matrices, double accents, multi-line
-subscripts, syntax checking (faster processing on initial
-error-checking \TeX{} runs), and other things.
-
-As \LaTeX{} increased in popularity, authors sought to submit papers to
-the \acro{AMS} in \LaTeX{}, so \AMSLaTeX{} was developed. \AMSLaTeX{}
-is a collection of \LaTeX{} packages and classes that offer authors most of
-the functionality of \AMSTeX{}.
-The \acro{AMS} no longer recommends the use of \AMSTeX{}, and urges
-its authors to use \AMSLaTeX{} instead.
-\begin{ctanrefs}
-\item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\AMSTeX{} distribution]\CTANref{amstex}
-\item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\AMSLaTeX{} distribution]\CTANref{amslatex}
-\end{ctanrefs}
-\LastEdit{2011-06-01}
-
-\Question[Q-eplain]{What is \Eplain{}?}
-
-The \href{http://tug.org/eplain}{\Eplain{}}
-macro package expands on and extends the definitions in \plaintex{}.
-\Eplain{} is not intended to provide ``generic typesetting
-capabilities'', as do \CONTeXT{}, \LaTeX{} or
-\Qref*{Texinfo}{Q-texinfo}. Instead, it defines macro tools that
-should be useful whatever commands you choose to use when you prepare
-your manuscript.
-
-For example, \Eplain{} does not have a command \csx{section},
-which would format section headings in an ``appropriate'' way, as
-\LaTeX{}'s \csx{section} does. The philosophy of \Eplain{} is that
-some people will always need or want to go beyond the macro designer's
-idea of ``appropriate''. Canned sets of macros are fine~--- as long as you
-are willing to accept the resulting output. If you don't like the
-results, or if you are trying to match a different format, you may
-find that \Eplain{} is for you.
-
-On the other hand, almost everyone would like capabilities such as
-cross-referencing by labels, so that you don't have to put actual page
-numbers in the manuscript. The authors of \Eplain{} believe it is the
-only generally available macro package that does not force its
-typographic style on an author, and yet provides these capabilities.
-
-Another useful feature of \Eplain{} is the ability to create PDF files
-with hyperlinks. The cross-referencing macros can implicitly generate
-hyperlinks for the cross-references, but you can also create explicit
-hyperlinks, both internal (pointing to a destination within the
-current document) and external (pointing to another local document or
-a URL).
-
-Several \LaTeX{} packages provide capabilities which \plaintex{}
-users are lacking, most notably text colouring and rotation provided by
-the \Package{graphics} bundle (packages \Package{color} and
-\Package{graphics}). Although the \Package{graphics} bundle provides
-a \plaintex{} ``loader'' for some of the packages, it is not a
-trivial job to pass options to those packages under \plaintex{}, and
-much of the functionality of the packages is accessed through package
-options. \Eplain{} extends the loader so that options can be passed
-to the packages just as they are in \LaTeX{}. The following packages are
-known to work with \Eplain{}: \Package{graphics}, \Package{graphicx},
-\Package{color}, \Package{autopict} (\LaTeX{} picture environment),
-\Package{psfrag}, and \Package{url}.
-
-\href{http://tug.org/docs/html/eplain}{\Eplain{} documentation} is
-available online (there's a \acro{PDF} copy in the \acro{CTAN}
-package as well), and there's also a mailing list~--- sign up, or
-browse the list archives, via
-\URL{http://tug.org/mailman/listinfo/tex-eplain}
-\begin{ctanrefs}
-\item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\Eplain{} distribution]\CTANref{eplain}
-\end{ctanrefs}
-\LastEdit{2013-06-25}
-
-\Question[Q-texinfo]{What is Texinfo?}
-
-Texinfo is a documentation system that uses one source file to produce
-both on-line information and printed output. So instead of writing
-two different documents, one for the on-line help and the other for a
-typeset manual, you need write only one document source file. When
-the work is revised, you need only revise one document. By
-convention, Texinfo source file names end with a \extension{texi} or
-\extension{texinfo} extension.
-
-Texinfo is a macro language, somewhat similar to \LaTeX{}, but with
-slightly less expressive power. Its appearance is of course rather
-similar to any \TeX{}-based macro language, except that its macros
-start with \texttt{@} rather than the |\| that's more commonly used in
-\TeX{} systems.
-
-You can write and format Texinfo files into Info files within \acro{GNU}
-\ProgName{emacs}, and read them using the \ProgName{emacs} Info
-reader. You can also format Texinfo files into Info files using
-\ProgName{makeinfo} and read them using \ProgName{info}, so you're not
-dependent on \ProgName{emacs}. The distribution includes a
-\ProgName{Perl} script, \ProgName{texi2html}, that will convert
-Texinfo sources into \acro{HTML}: the language is a far better fit to
-\acro{HTML} than is \LaTeX{}, so that the breast-beating agonies of
-\Qref*{converting \LaTeX{} to \acro{HTML}}{Q-LaTeX2HTML} are largely
-avoided.
-
-Finally, of course, you can also print the files, or convert them to
-\acro{PDF} using \PDFTeX{}.
-\begin{ctanrefs}
-\item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Texinfo distribution]\CTANref{texinfo}
-\end{ctanrefs}
-
-\Question[Q-lollipop]{Lollipop}
-
-A long time ago (in the early 1990s), the Lollipop \tex{} format was
-developed (originally to typeset the excellent book % !line break
-\Qref{\tex{} by topic}{Q-tex-books}). Several people admired the
-format, but no ``critical mass'' of users appeared, that could have
-prompted maintenance of the format.
-
-More than 20 years later, a new maintainer appeared: he hopes to build
-Lollipop into an engine for rapid document style development. (In
-addition, he intends to add support for right-to-left languages such
-as his own~--- Persian.)
-
-We can only hope that, this time, Lollipop will ``catch on''!
-\begin{ctanrefs}
-\item[lollipop]\CTANref{lollipop}
-\end{ctanrefs}
-
-\Question[Q-whyfree]{If \TeX{} is so good, how come it's free?}
-
-It's free because Knuth chose to make it so (he makes money from
-royalties on his \TeX{} books, which still sell well). He is
-nevertheless apparently happy that others should earn money by selling
-\TeX{}-based services and products. While several valuable
-\TeX{}-related tools and packages are offered subject to restrictions
-imposed by the \acro{GNU} General Public Licence (\acro{GPL},
-sometimes referred to as `Copyleft'), which denies the right to
-commercial exploitation. \TeX{} itself is offered under a pretty
-permissive licence of Knuth's own.
-
-There are commercial versions of \TeX{} available; for some users,
-it's reassuring to have paid support. What is more, some of the
-commercial implementations
-have features that are not available in free versions. (The
-reverse is also true: some free implementations have features
-not available commercially.)
-
-This \acro{FAQ} concentrates on `free' distributions of \TeX{}, but we
-do at least list the \Qref*{major vendors}{Q-commercial}.
-\LastEdit{2013-06-25}
-
-\Question[Q-TeXfuture]{What is the future of \TeX{}?}
-
-Knuth has declared that he will do no further development of \TeX{};
-he will continue to fix any bugs that are reported to him (though
-bugs are rare). This decision was made soon after
-\TeX{} version~3.0 was released; at each bug-fix release
-the version number acquires one more digit, so that it tends to the
-limit~\ensuremath{\pi} (at the time of writing, Knuth's latest release
-is version 3.1415926). Knuth wants \TeX{} to be frozen at
-version~\ensuremath{\pi} when he dies; thereafter, no further changes
-may be made to Knuth's source. (A similar rule is applied to \MF{};
-its version number tends to the limit~\emph{e}, and currently
-stands at 2.718281.)
-
-Knuth explains his decision, and exhorts us all to respect it, in a
-paper originally published in % ! line break
-\href{http://tug.org/TUGboat/Articles/tb11-4/tb30knut.pdf}{\TUGboat{} 11(4)},
-and reprinted in the % ! line break
-\href{http://www.ntg.nl/maps/pdf/5_34.pdf}{NTG journal MAPS}.
-
-There are projects (some of them long-term
-projects: see, for example,
-\Qref[question]{the LaTeX3 project}{Q-LaTeX3})
-%\Qref[and]{and the SGML work}{Q-SGML})
-to build substantial new macro packages based on \TeX{}. There are
-also various projects to build a \emph{successor} to \TeX{}. The
-\Qref*{\eTeX{}}{Q-etex} extension to \TeX{} itself arose from such a
-project (\acro{NTS}). Another pair of projects, which have delivered
-all the results they are likely to deliver, is the
-related % ! line break
-\Qref*{Omega and Aleph}{Q-omegaleph}. The % ! line break
-\Qref*{\xetex{} system}{Q-xetex} is in principle still under
-development, but is widely used, and the % ! line break
-\Qref*{\LuaTeX{} project}{Q-luatex} (though not scheduled to produce
-for some time) has already delivered a system that increasingly
-accessible to ``ordinary users''.
-\LastEdit{2013-05-21}
-
-\Question[Q-readtex]{Reading \AllTeX{} files}
-
-So you've been sent an \AllTeX{} file: what are you going to do with
-it?
-
-You can, of course, ``just read it'', since it's a plain text file;
-the problem is that the markup tags in the document may prove
-distracting. Most of the time, even \TeX{} \emph{experts} will
-typeset a \AllTeX{} file before attempting to read it\nobreakspace{}\dots{}
-
-So you shouldn't be too concerned if you can't make head nor tail of
-the file: it is designed to be read by a (sort of) compiler, and
-compilers don't have much in common with human readers.
-
-A possible next step is to try an on-line \latex{} editor. There are
-many of these~--- a compilation of links may be found in % line break
-\href{http://texblog.net/latex-link-archive/online-compiler/}{this blog post}
-
-Of that long list, the present author has only dabbled with
-\href{https://www.writelatex.com/}{Write\latex{}}; it seems well
-suited to simple `one-shot' use in this way.
-
-If no online compiler helps, you need to typeset the document
-``yourself''. The good news is that \TeX{} systems are available,
-free, for most sorts of computer; the bad news is that you need a
-pretty complete \TeX{} system even to read a single file, and complete
-\TeX{} systems are pretty large.
-
-\TeX{} is a typesetting system that arose from a publishing project (see
-\wideonly{``}\Qref[question]{what is \TeX{}}{Q-whatTeX}\wideonly{''}),
-and its basic source is available free from its author. However, at
-its root, it is \emph{just} a typesetting engine: even to view or to
-print the typeset output, you will need ancillary programs. In short,
-you need a \TeX{} \emph{distribution}~--- a collection of
-\TeX{}-related programs tailored to your operating system: for details
-of the sorts of things that are available, see
-% beware line break
-\htmlonly{``}\Qref[question]{\TeX{} distributions}{Q-TeXsystems}\htmlonly{''}
-or
-% beware line break
-\htmlonly{``}\Qref[\htmlonly]{commercial \TeX{} distributions}{Q-commercial}\latexhtml{ (for commercial distributions)}{''}.
-
-But beware~--- \TeX{} makes no attempt to look like the sort of
-\WYSIWYG{} system you're probably used to (see
-% beware line wrap
-\wideonly{``}\Qref[question]{why is \TeX{} not \WYSIWYG{}}{Q-notWYSIWYG}\wideonly{''}):
-while many modern versions of \TeX{} have a compile--view cycle that
-rivals the best commercial word processors in its responsiveness, what
-you type is usually \emph{markup}, which typically defines a logical
-(rather than a visual) view of what you want typeset.
-
-So there's a balance between the simplicity of the original
-(marked-up) document, which can more-or-less be read in \emph{any}
-editor, and the really rather large investment needed to install a
-system to read a document ``as intended''.
-
-Are you ``put off'' by all this?~--- remember that \tex{} is good at
-producing \acro{PDF}: why not ask the person who sent the \tex{} file
-to send an \acro{PDF} copy?
-\LastEdit{2014-05-21}
-
-\Question[Q-notWYSIWYG]{Why is \TeX{} not a \WYSIWYG{} system?}
-
-\WYSIWYG{} is a marketing term (``What you see is what you get'') for
-a particular style of text processor. \WYSIWYG{} systems are
-characterised by two principal claims: that you type what you want to
-print, and that what you see on the screen as you type is a close
-approximation to how your text will finally be printed.
-
-The simple answer to the question is, of course, that \TeX{} was
-conceived long before the marketing term, at a time when the marketing
-imperative wasn't perceived as significant. (In fact, it appears that
-the first experimental \WYSIWYG{} systems were running in commercial
-labs, near where Knuth was working on \tex{}. At the time, of course,
-\tex{} was only available on a mainframe, and getting it to run on the
-small experimental machines would have distracted Knuth from his
-mission to create a typesetting system that he could use when
-preparing his books for publication.)
-
-However, all that was a long time ago: why has nothing been done with
-the ``wonder text processor'' to make it fit with modern perceptions?
-
-There are two answers to this. First, the simple ``things \emph{have}
-been done'' (but they've not taken over the \TeX{} world); and second,
-``there are philosophical reasons why the way \TeX{} has developed is
-ill-suited to the \WYSIWYG{} style''.
-
-Indeed, there is a fundamental problem with applying \WYSIWYG{}
-techniques to \TeX{}: the complexity of \TeX{} makes it hard to get
-the equivalent of \TeX{}'s output without actually running \TeX{} over
-the whole of the document being prepared.
-
-A celebrated early system offering ``\WYSIWYG{} using \TeX{}'' came
-from the Vor\TeX{} project: a pair of Sun workstations worked in
-tandem, one handling the user interface while the other beavered away
-in the background typesetting the result. Vor\TeX{} was quite
-impressive for its time, but the two workstations combined had hugely
-less power than the average sub-thousand-dollar Personal Computer
-nowadays, and its code has not proved portable (it never even made the
-last `great' \TeX{} version change, at the turn of the 1990s, to
-\TeX{} version 3).
-
-Lightning Textures (an extension of Blue Sky's original \TeX{} system
-for the Macintosh), is sadly no longer available.
-
-Thus``\Qref*{Scientific Word}{Q-commercial}'' (which can also interact
-with a computer algebra system), is the only remaining \tex{} system
-that even approximates to \WYSIWYG{} operation.
-
-The issue has of recent years started to attract attention
-from \TeX{} developers, and several interesting projects that address
-the ``\Qref*{\TeX{} document preparation environment}{Q-WYGexpts}''
-are in progress.
-
-All the same, it's clear that the \TeX{} world has taken a long time
-to latch onto the idea of \WYSIWYG{}.
-Apart from simple arrogance (``we're better, and have no need to
-consider the petty doings of the commercial word processor market''),
-there is a real conceptual difference between the word processor model
-of the world and the model \LaTeX{} and \CONTeXT{} employ~--- the idea of
-``markup''. ``Pure'' markup expresses a logical model of a document,
-where every object within the document is labelled according to what
-it is rather than how it should appear: appearance is deduced from the
-properties of the type of object. Properly applied, markup can
-provide valuable assistance when it comes to re-use of documents.
-
-Established \WYSIWYG{} systems find the expression of this sort of
-structured markup difficult; however, markup \emph{is} starting to
-appear in the lists of the commercial world's requirements, for two
-reasons. First, an element of markup helps impose style on a
-document, and commercial users are increasingly obsessed with
-uniformity of style; and second, the increasingly pervasive use of
-\acro{XML}-derived document archival formats demands it. The same
-challenges must needs be addressed by \TeX{}-based document
-preparation support schemes, so we are
-observing a degree of confluence of the needs of the two communities:
-interesting times may be ahead of us.
-\LastEdit{2013-06-03}
-
-\Question[Q-TUG*]{\TeX{} User Groups}
-
-There has been a \TeX{} User Group since very near the time \TeX{}
-first appeared. That first group, \acro{TUG}, is still active and its
-journal \textsl{TUGboat} continues in regular publication
-with articles about \TeX{}, \MF{} and related technologies, and about
-document design, processing and production. \acro{TUG} holds a yearly
-conference, whose proceedings are published in \textsl{TUGboat}.
-
-\acro{TUG}'s \href{http://www.tug.org}{web site} is a valuable
-resource for all sorts of
-\TeX{}-related matters, such as details of \TeX{} software, and lists
-of \TeX{} vendors and \TeX{} consultants. Back articles from
-\textsl{TUGboat} are also available.
-
-Some time ago, \acro{TUG} established a ``technical council'', whose
-task was to oversee the development of \TeX{}nical projects. Most
-such projects nowadays go on their way without any support from
-\acro{TUG}, but \acro{TUG}'s web site lists its
-
-\begin{hyperversion}
-\href{http://www.tug.org/twg.html}{Technical Working Groups (\acro{TWG}s)}.
-\end{hyperversion}
-\begin{flatversion}
-Technical Working Groups (\acro{TWG}s: see
-\URL{http://www.tug.org/twg.html}).
-\end{flatversion}
-
-\acro{TUG} has a reasonable claim to be considered a world-wide
-organisation, but there are many national and regional user groups,
-too; \acro{TUG}'s web site maintains a list of
-\begin{hyperversion}
-href{http://www.tug.org/lugs.html}{``Local User Groups'' (\acro{LUG}s)}.
-\end{hyperversion}
-\begin{flatversion}
-``local user groups'' (\acro{LUG}s: see
-\URL{http://www.tug.org/lugs.html}).
-\end{flatversion}
-
-Contact \acro{TUG} itself via \URL{http://tug.org/contact}
-LastEdit{2013-06-25}