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diff --git a/Master/texmf-dist/doc/generic/FAQ-en/html/FAQ-usepictex.html b/Master/texmf-dist/doc/generic/FAQ-en/html/FAQ-usepictex.html new file mode 100644 index 00000000000..9f5bf31140e --- /dev/null +++ b/Master/texmf-dist/doc/generic/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><p> +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-etex.html">e-TeX</a> and <a href="FAQ-omegaleph.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If you’re in some situation where you can’t use e-TeX, you need to change +PicTeX; unfortunately PicTeX’s author is no longer active in the +TeX world, so one must resort to patching.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 us all, 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 available either as +a <i>Basic</i> program for DOS, or as a <i>Perl</i> +program for other systems (including Windows, nowadays). +<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/mathspic.zip">graphics/mathspic</a> (<a href="ftp://cam.ctan.org/tex-archive/graphics/mathspic.tar.gz">gzipped tar</a>, <a href="http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/graphics/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> |