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+% $Id: faq-getit.tex,v 1.1 2009/06/13 20:56:37 rf10 Exp rf10 $
+
+\section{Acquiring the Software}
+
+\Question[Q-archives]{Repositories of \TeX{} material}
+
+To aid the archiving and retrieval of of \TeX{}-related files, a
+\acro{TUG} working group developed the Comprehensive \TeX{} Archive
+Network (\acro{CTAN}). Each \acro{CTAN} site has identical material,
+and maintains authoritative versions of its material. These
+collections are extensive; in particular, almost everything mentioned
+in this \acro{FAQ}
+is archived at the \acro{CTAN} sites (see the lists of software at the
+end of each answer).
+
+\begin{narrowversion} % non-hyper
+ The \acro{CTAN} sites are in Germany, the UK and the USA; the
+ directory layout is the same on each of the sites, starting from a
+ tree root of \path{tex-archive/} The sites are
+ \texttt{dante.ctan.org} (Dante, Germany), \texttt{cam.ctan.org}
+ (Cambridge, UK) and \texttt{tug.ctan.org} (TUG, USA).
+\end{narrowversion}
+\begin{wideversion} % hyper
+ The \acro{CTAN} sites are
+ \href{ftp://dante.ctan.org/tex-archive}{Dante (Germany)},
+ \href{ftp://cam.ctan.org/tex-archive}{Cambridge (UK)} and
+ \href{ftp://tug.ctan.org/tex-archive}{TUG (USA)}; the links are to
+ the root of the \acro{CTAN} tree, above which the layout is
+ identical at each site.
+\end{wideversion}
+
+The \TeX{} files at each \acro{CTAN} node may also be accessed via
+the Web at \acro{URL}s \URL{http://www.dante.de/tex-archive},
+\URL{http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive} and
+\URL{http://www.ctan.org/tex-archive} respectively, but not all
+\acro{CTAN} mirrors are Web-accessible.
+
+As a matter of course, to reduce network load,
+please use the \acro{CTAN} site
+or mirror closest to you. A complete and current list of \acro{CTAN} sites
+and known mirrors is available as file \CTANref{CTAN-sites} on the
+archives themselves.
+
+Better still, the script behind \URL{http://mirror.ctan.org/} will
+cunningly choose a ``nearby'' mirror for you, using information from
+the database `behind' \CTANref{CTAN-sites}; at present it uses
+\texttt{ftp} protocol for transfers, but the intention is to convert
+it to using \texttt{http} (web) protocol in the near future.
+
+To access a particular thing through the \texttt{mirror.ctan.org}
+mechanism, simply place the \acro{CTAN} path after the base
+\acro{URL}; so
+\URL{http://mirror.ctan.org/macros/latex/contrib/footmisc/} will
+connect you to the \Package{footmisc} directory at some \acro{CTAN}
+site~--- note that the \File{tex-archive} part of the \acro{CTAN} path
+isn't needed.
+
+For details of how to find files at \acro{CTAN} sites, see
+``\Qref*{finding \AllTeX{} files}{Q-findfiles}''.
+
+The \TeX{} user who has no access to any sort of
+network may buy a copy of the archive as part of the
+\Qref*{\texlive{} distribution}{Q-CD}.
+
+\Question[Q-tds-zip]{Ready-built installation files on the archive}
+
+The \Qref*{\acro{TDS}}{Q-tds} is a simple structure, and almost all
+files can be installed simply by putting them in the ``right'' place,
+and updating a single index. (Note, this simple idea typically
+doesn't work for fonts, unless they're distributed as \MF{} source.)
+
+The CTAN network is therefore acquiring ``\acro{TDS}-\acro{ZIP}'' files,
+which have a built-in directory structure that matches the \acro{TDS}.
+These files have to be built, and the \acro{CTAN} team has asked that
+package authors supply them (the team will advise, of course, if the
+author has trouble). The \acro{CTAN} team hopes that the extra work
+involved will contribute to happier lives for package users, which in
+turn must surely help keep the TeX community lively and active.
+
+At the time of writing, there are rather few \extension{tds.zip}
+files (by comparison with the huge number of packages that are
+available). As packages are updated, the number of files is
+steadily increasing, but it will be a long time before the whole set
+is covered.
+
+Use of the files is discussed in % ! line break
+``\Qref*{installing using ready-built \acro{ZIP} files}{Q-inst-tds-zip}''.
+
+\Question[Q-nonfree]{What is the \acro{CTAN} \texttt{nonfree} tree?}
+
+When \acro{CTAN} was founded, in the 1990s, it was unusual to publish
+the terms under which a \TeX{}-related package was distributed (or, at
+any rate, to publish those terms formally).
+
+With the advent of the \TeX{} \emph{distributions}, however, people
+started to realise the need for such information, to protect those who
+create, distribute or sell the discs that hold the packages, etc.
+With the licence information available, the distributors can decide
+which packages may be distributed.
+
+The \acro{CTAN} team decided that it would be useful for users (and
+distributors, not to say package authors) to separate packages that
+were candidates for distribution, and those that were in some sense
+``not free''. Thus was the \texttt{nonfree} tree born.
+
+From the start, the \texttt{nonfree} tree was controversial: the terms
+under which a package would be placed on the tree were hotly
+contested, and the \acro{CTAN} team were only able slowly to populate
+the tree. It is now obvious to the team that the project would never
+have been completed.
+
+The \acro{CTAN} catalogue now records the nature of the licences of a
+good proportion of the packages it describes (though there remain
+several for which the licence is unknown, which is as good, for the
+distributors, as a licence forbidding distribution). Since the
+catalogue's coverage of \acro{CTAN} is good (and slowly improving),
+the general rule for distributors has become
+\begin{quote}
+``if the package is listed in the catalogue, check there to see
+whether you should distribute; if the package is not listed in the
+catalogue, don't think of distributing it''.
+\end{quote}
+(The catalogue only has a modest % ! line break
+\CTANhref{cat-licences}{list of licences}, but it covers the set used
+by packages on \acro{CTAN}, with a wild-card ``\texttt{other-free}''
+which covers packages that the \acro{CTAN} administrators believe to
+be free even though the authors haven't used a standard licence.)
+
+There is a corollary to the `general rule': if you notice something
+that ought to be in the distributions, for which there is no catalogue
+entry, please let the \acro{CTAN} team (\mailto{ctan@dante.de}) know.
+It may well be that the package has simply been missed, but some aren't
+catalogued because there's no documentation and the team just doesn't
+understand the package.
+
+In the light of the above, the \texttt{nonfree} tree is being
+dismantled, and its contents moved (or moved \emph{back}) to the main
+\acro{CTAN} tree. So the answer to the question is, now, ``the
+nonfree tree is a part of \acro{CTAN}, and is now being merged with
+the main tree''.
+
+\Question[Q-uploads]{Contributing a file to the archives}
+
+You have something to submit to the archive~--- great! Before we even
+start, here's a check-list of things to sort out:
+\begin{enumerate}
+\item Licence: in the spirit of \TeX{}, we hope for free software; in
+ the spirit of today's lawyer-enthralled society, \acro{CTAN}
+ provides a % ! line break
+ \href{http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/help/Catalogue/licenses.html}{list of ``standard'' licence statements}.
+\item Documentation: it's good for users to be able to browse
+ documentation before downloading a package. You need at least a
+ plain text \File{README} file (exactly that name); in addition a
+ \acro{PDF} file of the package documentation, prepared for screen
+ reading, is highly desirable.
+\item Name: endless confusion is caused by name clashes. If your
+ package has the same name as one already on \acro{CTAN}, or if your
+ package installation generates files of the same name as something
+ in a ``normal'' distribution, the \acro{CTAN} team will delay
+ installation while they check that you're doing the right thing:
+ they may nag you to change the name, or to negotiate a take-over
+ with the author of the original package. % beware line break
+ \Qref*{Browse the archive}{Q-findfiles} to ensure uniqueness.
+
+ The name you choose should also (as far as possible) be somewhat
+ descriptive of what your submission actually \emph{does}; while
+ ``descriptiveness'' is to some extent in the eye of the beholder,
+ it's clear that names such as \File{mypackage} or \File{jiffy}
+ aren't suitable.
+\end{enumerate}
+
+If you are able to use anonymous \ProgName{ftp}, you can upload that
+way. The file \File{README.uploads} on \acro{CTAN} tells you
+where to upload, what to upload, and how to notify the \acro{CTAN}
+management about what you want doing with your upload.
+
+You may also upload via the Web: each of the principal \acro{CTAN}
+sites offers an upload page~--- choose from
+\URL{http://www.ctan.org/upload.html},
+\URL{http://www.dante.de/CTAN/upload.html} or
+\URL{http://www.tex.ac.uk/upload.html}; the pages lead you through the
+process, showing you the information you need to supply. This method
+enforces one file per upload: if you had intended to upload lots of
+files, you need to bundle them into an `archive' file of some sort;
+acceptable formats are \extension{zip} and \extension{tar.gz} (or
+\extension{tar.bz2}).
+
+If you can use neither of these methods, or if you find something
+confusing, ask advice of the
+\begin{narrowversion} % really non-hyper version
+ \acro{CTAN} management (\mailto{ctan@dante.de}):
+\end{narrowversion}
+\begin{wideversion}
+ \href{mailto:ctan@dante.de}{\acro{CTAN} management}:
+\end{wideversion}
+if the worst comes to the worst, it may be possible to mail a
+contribution. This really is a last-resort route: none of the
+\acro{CTAN} sites is anyone's regular workstation, so if you mail to
+one of the maintainers, that maintainer then has to upload to
+\acro{CTAN}.
+
+If it's appropriate (if your package is large, or regularly updated),
+the \acro{CTAN} management can arrange to \ProgName{mirror} your
+contribution direct into the archive. At present this may only be
+done if your contribution is available via \ProgName{ftp}, and of
+course the directory structure on your repository must `fit'.
+\begin{ctanrefs}
+\item[README.uploads]\CTANref{CTAN-uploads}
+\end{ctanrefs}
+
+\Question[Q-findfiles]{Finding \AllTeX{} files}
+
+Modern \TeX{} distributions contain a huge array of support files of
+various sorts, but sooner or later most people need to find something
+that's not in their present system (if nothing else, because they've
+heard that something has been updated).
+
+But how to find the files?
+
+Some sources, such as these \acro{FAQ} answers, provide links to
+files: so if you've learnt about a package here, you should be able to
+retrieve it without too much fuss.
+
+Otherwise, the \acro{CTAN} sites provide searching facilities, via the web.
+The simplest search, locating files by name, is to be found on the
+Dante \acro{CTAN}
+at \URL{http://www.dante.de/cgi-bin/ctan-index}; the script scans a
+list of files (\File{FILES.byname}~--- see below) and returns a list
+of matches, arranged very neatly as a series of links to directories
+and to individual files.
+
+The \href{http://www.tex.ac.uk/search}{\acro{UK}} and
+\href{http://www.ctan.org/search.html}{\acro{USA}} \acro{CTAN}s offer a
+search page that provides
+\begin{itemize}
+\item a file-name search similar to the Dante machine's (above);
+\item a keyword search of the archive catalogue (see below): this is a
+ pretty powerful tool: the results include links to the catalogue
+ ``short descriptions'', so you can assure yourself that the package
+ you've found is the one you want; and
+\item a search form that allows you to use \ProgName{Google} to search
+ \acro{CTAN}.
+\end{itemize}
+
+An alternative way to scan the catalogue is to use the catalogue's
+% ! line break
+\href{http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/help/Catalogue/bytopic.html}{``by topic'' index};
+this lists a series of topics, and \AllTeX{} projects that are worth
+considering if you're working on matters related to the topic.
+
+In fact, \ProgName{Google}, and other search engines, can be useful
+tools. Enter your search keywords, and you may pick up a package that
+the author hasn't bothered to submit to \acro{CTAN}. If you're using
+\ProgName{Google}, you can restrict your search to \acro{CTAN} by
+entering
+\begin{quote}
+ \texttt{site:ctan.org tex-archive \meta{search term(s)}}
+\end{quote}
+in \ProgName{Google}'s ``search box''. You can also enforce the
+restriction using \ProgName{Google}'s ``advanced search'' mechanism;
+other search engines (presumably) have similar facilities.
+
+Many people avoid the need to go over the network at all, for their
+searches, by downloading the file list that the archives' web
+file searches use. This file, \File{FILES.byname},
+presents a unified listing of the archive (omitting directory names and
+cross-links). Its companion \File{FILES.last07days} is also useful, to
+keep an eye on the changes on the archive. Since these files are
+updated only once a day, a nightly automatic download (perhaps using
+\ProgName{rsync}) makes good sense.
+\begin{ctanrefs}
+\item[FILES.byname]\CTANref{f-byname}
+\item[FILES.last07days]\CTANref{f-last7}
+\end{ctanrefs}
+
+\Question[Q-findfont]{Finding new fonts}
+
+A comprehensive list of \MF{} fonts used to be posted to
+\Newsgroup{comp.fonts} and to \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex}, roughly
+every six weeks, by Lee Quin.
+Nowadays, authors of new material in \MF{} are few and far between
+(and mostly designing highly specialised things with limited appeal to
+ordinary users); as a result, no-one has taken over maintenance of the
+list of fonts. If you need a font for some esoteric purpose, it may
+be worth \Qref*{searching \acro{CTAN}}{Q-findfiles} using your purpose
+as a search keyword.
+
+Most new fonts that appear are prepared in some scalable outline form
+or other, and a large proportion is distributed under commercial
+terms. However, once you have acquired such a font, converting it to
+a form usable by your \AllTeX{} distribution is not (in principle) a
+serious problem.
+
+The answer ``\Qref*{choice of scalable fonts}{Q-psfchoice}'' discusses
+fonts that are configured for general (both textual and mathematical)
+use with \AllTeX{}. The list of such fonts is sufficiently short that
+they \emph{can} all be discussed in one answer here.
+\begin{ctanrefs}
+\item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\MF{} font list]\CTANref{mf-list}
+\end{ctanrefs}
+
+\Question[Q-CD]{The \TeX{} collection}
+
+If you don't have access to the Internet, there are obvious
+attractions to \TeX{} collections on a disc. Even those with net
+access will find large quantities of \TeX{}-related files to hand a
+great convenience.
+
+The \TeX{} collection provides this, together with
+ready-to-run \TeX{} systems for various architectures. Contents of
+the collection are:
+\begin{itemize}
+\item The \texlive{} installation disc (a \acro{CD}) provides \TeX{}
+ systems for use on \acro{GNU}-Linux, MacOS/X and Win-32
+ architectures;
+\item The \texlive{} `Live' disc (a \acro{DVD}) providing \TeX{} for
+ a wider range of architectures;
+\item Mac\TeX{}: an easy to install \TeX{} system for MacOS/X, based
+ on \texlive{}, and including the % ! line break
+ \href{http://www.uoregon.edu/~koch/texshop/}{texshop front-end}
+ and other tools;
+\item Pro\TeX{}t: an easy to install \TeX{} system for Windows, based
+ on \miktex{}, and including an `active' document to guide
+ installation; and
+\item A snapshot of \acro{CTAN}.
+\end{itemize}
+A fair number of national \TeX{} User Groups, as well as \acro{TUG},
+distribute copies to their members at no extra charge. Some user
+groups are also able to sell additional copies:
+contact your local user group or \Qref*{\acro{TUG}}{Q-TUG*}.
+
+You may also download disc images from \acro{CTAN}; the installation
+disc, Pro\TeX{}t and Mac\TeX{} are all separately available. Beware:
+they are all pretty large downloads.
+
+More details of the collection are available from its own
+\begin{wideversion} % this really ought to be "hyperversion" or summat
+ \href{http://www.tug.org/texcollection/}{web page}
+ on the \acro{TUG} site.
+\end{wideversion}
+\begin{narrowversion} % and non-hyperversion?
+ web page on the
+ \acro{TUG} site \URL{http://www.tug.org/texcollection/}
+\end{narrowversion}
+\begin{ctanrefs}
+\item[Mac\TeX{}]\CTANref{mactex}
+\item[Pro\TeX{}t]\CTANref{protext}
+\item[\TeX{}live install image]\CTANref{texlive}
+\end{ctanrefs}
+