\def\faqfileversion{3.14a} \def\faqfiledate{2005/07/07} % % The above line defines the file version, and must remain the first % line with any `assignment' in the file, or things will blow up % nastily % % get lists of CTAN labels % % configuration for the lists, if we're going to need to generate urls % for the files \ifpdf \InputIfFileExists{archive.cfg}{}{} \fi % % ... directories \input{dirctan} % % ... files \input{filectan} \section{Introduction} This \acro{FAQ} was originated by the Committee of the \acro{UK} \TeX{} Users' Group (\acro{UK}~\acro{TUG}) as a development of a regular posting to the \emph{Usenet} newsgroup \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex} that was maintained for some time by Bobby Bodenheimer. The first \acro{UK} version was much re-arranged and corrected from the original, and little of Bodenheimer's work now remains. \htmlignore An \acro{HTML} translation of the \acro{FAQ} is available on the World-Wide Web, via \acro{URL} \URL{http://www.tex.ac.uk/faq}; an alternative \acro{HTML} version is also to \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} An alternative \acro{HTML} version of the \acro{FAQ} may \end{htmlversion} be found in \Qref*{\TeX{}~Live}{Q-CD}. \begin{htmlversion} A copy of the complete \acro{FAQ}, in \acro{PDF} with hyperlinks to assist browsing, may be found on \CTANref{faq-a4} (formatted for A4 paper) or \CTANref{faq-letter} (formatted for North American ``letter'' paper). \end{htmlversion} Most members of the committee of \acro{UK}~\acro{TUG}, over the years since 1994, have contributed to this \acro{FAQ} to some extent. The following people, who have never been members of the committee, have also contributed help or advice: Donald Arseneau, Barbara Beeton, % one of first reviewers outside cttee Karl Berry, Giuseppe Bilotta, Charles Cameron, Damian Cugley, Michael Dewey, Michael Downes, % (RIP) on (ams)maths stuff Thomas Esser, Ulrike Fischer, % spotted boondoggle in q-tabcellalign Anthony Goreham, Norman Gray, Eitan Gurari, % comparative html translators William Hammond, % lots of work on xml-related answers Hartmut Henkel, John Hobby, Morten H\textoslash gholm, % eagle eyes in search for problems Berthold Horn, % lots of stuff on fonts Ian Hutchinson, % comparative html translators Werner Icking, % (RIP) answer on tex-music Regnor Jernsletten, David Kastrup, Isaac Khabaza, % kindersley book Ulrich Klauer, % pointed out twaddle in TeXpronounce Markus Kohm, % help with functionality of Koma-script Simon Law, Daniel Luecking, Sanjoy Mahajan, Andreas Matthias, Brooks Moses, % editorial suggestion %Dick Nickalls, % now a member of the committee Ted Nieland, Hans Nordhaug, Pat Rau, Heiko Oberdiek, Piet van Oostrum, Scott Pakin, Oren Patashnik, Philip Ratcliffe, % help with a bibtex oddity Jos\'e Carlos Santos, % very assiduous reader of new versions Walter Schmidt, Hans-Peter Schr\"ocker, Joachim Schrod, Maarten Sneep, % summary of c.t.t thread for outszwrng, inter alia James Szinger, % who responded on c.t.t to request for answer Ulrik Vieth, Mike Vulis, Chris Walker, % revtex alert Peter Wilson, % several, incl functionality of memoir Rick Zaccone and Reinhard Zierke. \begin{htmlversion} % pseudo-subsection here, because of limitations of latex->html translator \textbf{Caveat: Acquiring files} Most answers in this \acro{FAQ} provide links for downloading software; a large proportion of these links direct you to entire directories on the \acro{CTAN} archives. Unfortunately, some browsers issue a sequence of commands that causes \acro{CTAN} servers to deny the existence of compressed archive files of the directory, that the server would be happy to create ``on the fly''. The \acro{FAQ} therefore offers three possible links for downloading directories (that aren't already designated ``browse only''): the links give you \texttt{.zip} and \texttt{.tar.gz} archives, and a link for browsing the directory. Fortunately, \acro{CTAN} is switching to statically-generated directory archive files; many directories mentioned in this \acro{FAQ} will also exist as \texttt{.zip} files on the archives, and won't fall foul of the browser problem. Of course, if the \texttt{.zip} file does not exist, and the browser is playing up, you will need to use the ``browse'' link. \end{htmlversion} \htmlignore \subsection*{Finding the Files} Unless otherwise specified, all files mentioned in this \acro{FAQ} are available from a \acro{CTAN} archive, or from one of their mirrors. \Qref[Question]{}{Q-archives} % this one doesn't need anchor text gives details of the \acro{CTAN} archives, and how to retrieve files from them. If you don't have access to the Internet, the \Qref*{\TeX{}~Live distribution}{Q-CD} offers off-line snapshots of the arhives. The reader should also note that the first directory name of the path name of every file on \acro{CTAN} has been elided from what follows, for the simple reason that it's always the same (\path{tex-archive/}). To avoid confusion, we've also elided the full stop% \begin{footnoteenv} `Full stop' (British English)==`period' (American English) \end{footnoteenv} from the end of any sentence whose last item is a path name (such sentences are rare, and only occur at the end of paragraphs). Though the path names are set in a different font from running text, it's not easy to distinguish the font of a single dot! \endhtmlignore %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{The Background} \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-books}) that it is %% beware line wrap ``\emph{intended for the creation of beautiful books~--- and especially for books that contain a lot of mathematics}''. 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 % beware line breaks `\nothtml{literate programming' (}% beware line break \Qref{literate programming}{Q-lit}\latexhtml{)}{'} 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's 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. \TeX{} is a macro processor, and offers its users a powerful programming capability. For this reason, \TeX{} on its own is a pretty difficult beast to deal with, so Knuth provided a package of macros for use with \TeX{} called Plain \TeX{}; Plain \TeX{} is effectively the minimum set of macros one can usefully employ with \TeX{}, together with some demonstration versions of higher-level commands (the latter are better regarded as models than used as-is). When people say they're ``programming in \TeX{}'', they usually mean they're programming in Plain \TeX{}. \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 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'; the logo \TeX{} is merely the uppercase version of the first three (Greek) letters of the word. \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 details the rasters 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 than is \TeX{} macro-writing. The complete \TeX{}-user nevertheless needs to be aware of \MF{}, and to be able to run \MF{} to generate personal copies of new fonts. \Question[Q-MP]{What is \MP{}?} The \MP{} system (by John Hobby) implements a picture-drawing language very much like that of \MF{} except that it outputs Encapsulated \PS{} files instead of run-length-encoded bitmaps. \MP{} is a powerful language for producing figures for documents to be printed on \PS{} printers, either directly or embedded in \AllTeX{} documents. It includes facilities for directly integrating \TeX{} text and mathematics with 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 \CONTeXT{}~--- 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{narrowversion} % really non-hyper subscribe via the \acro{TUG} \ProgName{mailman} interface at \URL{http://lists.tug.org/metapost} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} % really hyper subscribe via the % ! line break \href{http://lists.tug.org/metapost}{\acro{TUG} \ProgName{mailman} interface}. \end{wideversion} The \acro{TUG} website also hosts a % ! line break \href{http://tug.org/metapost.html}{\MP{} summary page}. \Question[Q-triptrap]{How can I be sure it's really \TeX{}?} \TeX{} (and \MF{} and \MP{}) are written in a \begin{narrowversion} % really "non-hyper" `literate' programming language called Web (\Qref{}{Q-lit}) \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \Qref{`literate' programming}{Q-lit} language called Web \end{wideversion} 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{} (\texttt{trip}) and \MF{} (\texttt{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 \texttt{trip} test, or an implementation of \MF{} has passed its \texttt{trap} test, then it may reasonably be distributed as a working version. \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 logfiles. 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 implementators could 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-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}. \begin{htmlversion} The \Qref{LaTeX}{Q-latex} suite \end{htmlversion} \htmlignore The \LaTeX{} suite (\Qref{}{Q-latex}) \endhtmlignore 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} \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 \nothtml{the \LaTeX{} team (}\Qref{the \LaTeX{} team}{Q-LaTeX3}\nothtml{)}. \LaTeXe{} is now the only readily-available version of \LaTeX{}, and draws together several threads of \LaTeX{} development from the later days of \LaTeXo{}. \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 bitter 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{}). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\LaTeX{} guides and news]\CTANref{latexdoc} \end{ctanrefs} \nothtml{\begingroup\ifboldmathavail\boldmath\fi} \Question[Q-latexpronounce]{How should I pronounce ``\LaTeX{}(\twee{})''?} \nothtml{\afterquestion} 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. The `epsilon' in `\LaTeXe{}' is supposed to be suggestive of a small improvement over the old \LaTeXo{}. Nevertheless, most people pronounce the name as `\LaTeX{}-two-ee'. \Question[Q-plainvltx]{Should I use Plain \TeX{} or \LaTeX{}?} There's no straightforward answer to this question. Many people swear by Plain \TeX{}, 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 brain power. The arguments around this topic can provoke huge amounts of noise and heat, without offering much by way of light; your best bet is to find out what those around you are using, and to go with the crowd. 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 Plain \TeX{}?} \LaTeX{} is a program written in the programming language \TeX{}. (In the same sense, any \LaTeX{} document is also a program, which is designed to run `alongside', or `inside' \LaTeX{}, whichever metaphor you prefer.) Plain \TeX{} is also a program written in the programming language \TeX{}. Both exist because writing your documents in `raw' \TeX{} would involve much reinventing of wheels for every document. They both serve as convenient aids to make document writing more pleasant: \LaTeX{} is a far more extensive aid. \LaTeX{} is close to being a superset of Plain \TeX{}. Many documents designed for Plain \TeX{} will work with \LaTeX{} with no more than minor modifications (though some will require substantial work). Interpretation of any \AllTeX{} program involves some data-driven elements, and \LaTeX{} has a wider range of such elements than does Plain \TeX{}. As a result, the mapping from \LaTeX{} to Plain \TeX{} is far less clear than that in the other direction. \Question[Q-context]{What is \CONTeXT{}?} \href{http://www.pragma-ade.com/}{\CONTeXT{}} is a macro package developed by Hans Hagen, originally to serve the needs of his (Dutch) firm Pragma. It was designed with the same general-purpose aims as \LaTeX{}, but (being younger) reflects much more recent thinking about the structure of markup, etc. In particular, \CONTeXT{} can customise its markup to an author's language (customising modules for Dutch, English and German are provided, at present). \CONTeXT{} is well integrated, in all of its structure, with the needs of hypertext markup, and in particular with the facilities offered by \Qref*{\PDFTeX{}}{Q-pdftex}. The default installation employs a version of \PDFTeX{} built with the \Qref*{\eTeX{} extensions}{Q-NTS}, which allows further flexibility. \CONTeXT{} doesn't yet have quite such a large developer community as does \LaTeX{}, but those developers who are active seem to have prodigious energy. Some support is available via a % ! line break \href{http://contextgarden.net/}{\acro{WIKI} site}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\CONTeXT{} distribution]\CTANref{context} \end{ctanrefs} \nothtml{\begingroup\ifboldmathavail\boldmath\fi} \Question[Q-AMSpkg]{What are the \acro{AMS} packages (\AMSTeX{}, \emph{etc}.)?} \nothtml{\afterquestion} \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 \nothtml{``The Joy of \TeX{}'' (}% \htmlonly{``}\Qref{The Joy of \TeX{}}{Q-books}\latexhtml{)}{''}. It is based on Plain \TeX{}, 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 asked to submit papers to the \acro{AMS} in \LaTeX{}, and so the \acro{AMS} developed \AMSLaTeX{}, which 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 users to use \AMSLaTeX{} instead. \checked{RAB}{1994/11/12} % edited by RF; input from Michael Downes, too \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\AMSTeX{} distribution]\CTANref{amstex} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\AMSLaTeX{} distribution]\CTANref{amslatex} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-eplain]{What is \Eplain{}?} The \href{http://www.ccs.neu.edu/~dorai/eplain/index.html}{\Eplain{}} macro package expands on and extends the definitions in Plain \TeX{}. \Eplain{} is not intended to provide ``generic typesetting capabilities'', as do \LaTeX{} or % beware line break \nothtml{Texinfo (}\Qref{Texinfo}{Q-texinfo}\nothtml{)}. 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''. Such canned 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 are out of luck. 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. Karl Berry, the author of \Eplain{}, says he is not aware of any generally available macro packages that do not force their typographic style on an author, and yet provide such capabilities. \Eplain{} documentation is % ! line break \href{http://tug.org/docs/html/eplain}{available online}, 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} \Question[Q-lollipop]{What is Lollipop?} Lollipop is a macro package written by Victor Eijkhout; it was used in the production of his book ``\emph{\TeX{} by Topic}'' (see \Qref[question]{\AllTeX{} Tutorials}{Q-tutorials}). The manual says of it: \begin{quote} Lollipop is `\TeX{} made easy'. Lollipop is a macro package that functions as a toolbox for writing \TeX{} macros. It was my intention to make macro writing so easy that implementing a fully new layout in \TeX{} would become a matter of less than an hour for an average document, and that it would be a task that could be accomplished by someone with only a very basic training in \TeX{} programming. Lollipop is an attempt to make structured text formatting available for environments where previously only \WYSIWYG{} packages could be used because adapting the layout is so much more easy with them than with traditional \TeX{} macro packages. \end{quote} The manual goes on to talk of ambitions to ``capture some of the \LaTeX{} market share''; it's a very witty package, but little sign of \htmlignore it taking over from \LaTeX{} is detectable\dots\@ \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} it taking over from \LaTeX{} is detectable\dots{} \end{htmlversion} An article about Lollipop appeared in \TUGboat{} 13(3). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Lollipop distribution]\CTANref{lollipop} \end{ctanrefs} \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. You can read the on-line information, known as an ``Info file'', with an Info documentation-reading program. By convention, Texinfo source file names end with a |.texi| or |.texinfo| extension. 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}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Texinfo distribution]\CTANref{texinfo} \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 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 (`Copyleft'), \TeX{} itself is not subject to Copyleft. 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}. \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 3.141592). 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~\ensuremath{e}, and currently stands at 2.718.) Knuth explains his decision, and exhorts us all to respect it, in a paper originally published in \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{}. For the even longer term, there are various projects to build a \emph{successor} to \TeX{}; see \Qref[questions]{the Omega project}{Q-omega} and \Qref[]{NTS}{Q-NTS}. \Question[Q-readtex]{Reading \AllTeX{} files} So you've been sent a \TeX{} file: what are you going to do with it? Well, 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 \htmlonly{``}\Qref[question]{what is \TeX{}}{Q-whatTeX}\htmlonly{''}), 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 anciliary 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 \htmlonly{``}\Qref[question]{why is \TeX{} not \WYSIWYG{}}{Q-notWYSIWYG}\htmlonly{''}): 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. However, in this context markup proves to be a blessing in disguise: a good proportion of most \TeX{} documents is immediately readable in an ordinary text editor. So, while you need to install a considerable system to attain the full benefits of the \TeX{} document that you were sent, the chances are you can understand quite a bit of it with nothing more than the ordinary tools you already have on your computer. \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. However, 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{}. A celebrated early system offering ``\WYSIWYG{} using \TeX{}'' came from the Vor\TeX{} project: a pair of (early) 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). Modern systems that are similar in their approach are Lightning Textures (an extension of Blue Sky's original \TeX{} system for the Macintosh), and Scientific Word (which can also cooperate with a computer algebra system); both these systems are \nothtml{commercially available (}% \Qref{commercially available}{Q-commercial}\nothtml{)}. The issue has of recent years started to attract attention from \TeX{} developers, and several interesting projects addressing the \nothtml{``\TeX{} document preparation environment'' (}% beware line breaks \htmlonly{``}\Qref{\TeX{} document preparation environment}{Q-WYGexpts}\latexhtml{)}{''} are in progress. Nevertheless, 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. \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 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 slowly (subject to copyright issues, etc.\@) making their way to the site, too. 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 \htmlignore \ifpdf \href{http://www.tug.org/twg.html}{Technical Working Groups (\acro{TWG}s)}. \else Technical Working Groups (\acro{TWG}s: see \URL{http://www.tug.org/twg.html}). \fi \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \href{http://www.tug.org/twg.html}{Technical Working Groups (\acro{TWG}s)}. \end{htmlversion} \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 \htmlignore \ifpdf \href{http://www.tug.org/lugs.html}{``Local User Groups'' (\acro{LUG}s)}. \else ``local user groups'' (\acro{LUG}s: see \URL{http://www.tug.org/lugs.html}). \fi \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \href{http://www.tug.org/lugs.html}{``local user groups'' (\acro{LUG}s)}. \end{htmlversion} Contact \acro{TUG} itself via: \begin{quote} \TeX{} Users Group\\ 1466 NW Front Avenue, Suite 3141\\ Portland, OR 97209\\ \acro{USA}\\[.25\baselineskip] Tel: +1 503-223-9994\\ Fax: +1 503-223-3960\\ Email: \mailto{tug@mail.tug.org}\\ Web: \URL{http://www.tug.org/} \end{quote} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Documentation and Help} \Question[Q-books]{Books on \TeX{} and its relations} While Knuth's book is the definitive reference for \TeX{}, there are other books covering \TeX{}: \begin{booklist} \item[The \TeX{}book]by Donald Knuth (Addison-Wesley, 1984, \ISBN{0-201-13447-0}, paperback \ISBN{0-201-13448-9}) \item[A Beginner's Book of \TeX{}]by Raymond Seroul and Silvio Levy, (Springer Verlag, 1992, \ISBN{0-387-97562-4}) \item[\TeX{} by Example: A Beginner's Guide]by Arvind Borde (Academic Press, 1992, \ISBN{0-12-117650-9}~--- now out of print) \item[Introduction to \TeX{}]by Norbert Schwarz (Addison-Wesley, 1989, \ISBN{0-201-51141-X}~--- now out of print) \item[A Plain \TeX{} Primer]by Malcolm Clark (Oxford University Press, 1993, ISBNs~0-198-53724-7 (hardback) and~0-198-53784-0 (paperback)) \item[A \TeX{} Primer for Scientists]by Stanley Sawyer and Steven Krantz (CRC Press, 1994, \ISBN{0-849-37159-7}) \item[\TeX{} by Topic]by Victor Eijkhout (Addison-Wesley, 1992, \ISBN{0-201-56882-9}~--- now out of print, but see \Qref[question]{\AllTeX{} tutorials}{Q-tutorials}) \item[\TeX{} for the Beginner]by Wynter Snow (Addison-Wesley, 1992, \ISBN{0-201-54799-6}) \item[\TeX{} for the Impatient]by Paul W.~Abrahams, Karl Berry and Kathryn A.~Hargreaves (Addison-Wesley, 1990, \ISBN{0-201-51375-7}~--- now out of print, but see \Qref[question]{\AllTeX{} tutorials}{Q-tutorials}) \item[\TeX{} in Practice]by Stephan von Bechtolsheim (Springer Verlag, 1993, 4 volumes, \ISBN{3-540-97296-X} for the set, or % nos in brackets are for German distribution (Springer Verlag, Berlin) Vol.~1: \ISBN{0-387-97595-0}, % (3-540-97595-0) Vol.~2: \ISBN{0-387-97596-9}, % (3-540-97596-9) Vol.~3: \ISBN{0-387-97597-7}, and % (3-540-97597-7) Vol.~4: \ISBN{0-387-97598-5})% (3-540-97598-5) \htmlignore \item[\TeX{}: Starting from \sqfbox{1}\,\footnotemark]% \footnotetext{That's `Starting from Square One'}% \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \item[\TeX{}: Starting from Square One] \end{htmlversion} by Michael Doob (Springer Verlag, 1993, \ISBN{3-540-56441-1}~--- now out of print) \item[The Joy of \TeX{}]by Michael D.~Spivak (second edition, \acro{AMS}, 1990, \ISBN{0-821-82997-1}) \item[The Advanced \TeX{}book]by David Salomon (Springer Verlag, 1995, \ISBN{0-387-94556-3}) \end{booklist} A collection of Knuth's publications about typography is also available: \begin{booklist} \item[Digital Typography]by Donald Knuth (CSLI and Cambridge University Press, 1999, \ISBN{1-57586-011-2}, paperback \ISBN{1-57586-010-4}). \end{booklist} \nothtml{\noindent}and in late 2000, a ``Millennium Boxed Set'' of all 5 volumes of Knuth's ``Computers and Typesetting'' series (about \TeX{} and \MF{}) was published by Addison Wesley: \begin{booklist} \item[Computers \& Typesetting, Volumes A--E Boxed Set]by Donald Knuth (Addison-Wesley, 2001, \ISBN{0-201-73416-8}). \end{booklist} \checked{rf}{2000/02/12 -- http://cseng.aw.com/book/0,3828,0201734168,00.html} For \LaTeX{}, see: \begin{booklist} \item[\LaTeX{}, a Document Preparation System]by Leslie Lamport (second edition, Addison Wesley, 1994, \ISBN{0-201-52983-1}) \item[Guide to \LaTeX{}]Helmut Kopka and Patrick W.~Daly (fourth edition, Addison-Wesley, 2004, \ISBN{0-321-17385-6}) \item[The \LaTeX{} Companion]by Frank Mittelbach, Michel Goossens, Johannes Braams, David Carlisle and Chris Rowley (second edition, Addison-Wesley, 2004, \ISBN{0-201-36299-6}) \item[The \LaTeX{} Graphics Companion:]% \emph{Illustrating documents with \TeX{} and \PS{}} by Michel Goossens, Sebastian Rahtz and Frank Mittelbach (Addison-Wesley, 1997, \ISBN{0-201-85469-4}) \item[The \LaTeX{} Web Companion:]% \emph{Integrating \TeX{}, \acro{HTML} and \acro{XML}} by Michel Goossens and Sebastian Rahtz (Addison-Wesley, 1999, \ISBN{0-201-43311-7}) \item[\TeX{} Unbound:]% \emph{\LaTeX{} and \TeX{} strategies for fonts, graphics, and more} by Alan Hoenig (Oxford University Press, 1998, \ISBN{0-19-509685-1} hardback, \ISBN{0-19-509686-X} paperback) \item[Math into \LaTeX{}:]\emph{An Introduction to \LaTeX{} and \AMSLaTeX{}} by George Gr\"atzer (third edition Birkh\"auser and Springer Verlag, 2000, \ISBN{0-8176-4431-9}, \ISBN{3-7643-4131-9}) \checked{RF}{2001/01/16} %% gr\"atzer's home page %% http://www.maths.umanitoba.ca/homepages/gratzer.html/LaTeXBooks.html A list of errata for the first printing is available from: \URL{http://www.springer-ny.com/catalog/np/jan99np/0-387-98708-8.html} \item[First Steps in \LaTeX{}]by George Gr\"atzer (Birkh\"auser, 1999, \ISBN{0-8176-4132-7}) \item[\LaTeX{}: Line by Line:]% \emph{Tips and Techniques for Document Processing} by Antoni Diller (second edition, John Wiley \& Sons, 1999, \ISBN{0-471-97918-X}) \item[\LaTeX{} for Linux:]\emph{A Vade Mecum} by Bernice Sacks Lipkin (Springer-Verlag, 1999, \ISBN{0-387-98708-8}, second printing) \end{booklist} A sample of George Gr\"atzer's ``Math into \LaTeX{}'', in Adobe Acrobat format, and example files %for von Bechtolsheim's ``\TeX{} in Practice'', for the three \LaTeX{} Companions, and for Gr\"atzer's ``First Steps in \LaTeX{}'', are all available on \acro{CTAN}. There's a nicely-presented list of of ``recommended books'' to be had on the web: \URL{http://www.macrotex.net/texbooks/} The list of \MF{} books is rather short: \begin{booklist} \item[The \MF{}book]by Donald Knuth (Addison Wesley, 1986, \ISBN{0-201-13445-4}, \ISBN{0-201-52983-1} paperback) \end{booklist} Alan Hoenig's `\textsl{\TeX{} Unbound}' includes some discussion and examples of using \MF{}. A book covering a wide range of topics (including installation and maintenance) is: \begin{booklist} \item[Making \TeX{} Work]by Norman Walsh (O'Reilly and Associates, Inc, 1994, \ISBN{1-56592-051-1}) \end{booklist} The book is decidedly dated, and is now out of print, but a copy is available via |sourceforge| and on \acro{CTAN}, and we list it under ``\Qref*{tutorials}{Q-tutorials}''. This list only covers books in English: notices of new books, or warnings that books are now out of print are always welcome. However, this \acro{FAQ} does \emph{not} carry reviews of current published material. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Examples for \nothtml{\upshape}First Steps in \LaTeX{}]\CTANref{gfs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Examples for \nothtml{\upshape}\LaTeX{} Companion]\CTANref{tlc2} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Examples for \nothtml{\upshape}\LaTeX{} Graphics Companion]\CTANref{lgc} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Examples for \nothtml{\upshape}\LaTeX{} Web Companion]\CTANref{lwc} %\item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Examples for \nothtml{\upshape}\TeX{} in Practice]\CTANref{tip} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Sample of \nothtml{\upshape}Math into \LaTeX{}]\CTANref{mil} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-typebooks]{Books on Type} The following is a partial listing of books on typography in general. Of these, Bringhurst seems to be the one most often recommended. \begin{booklist} \item[The Elements of Typographic Style]by Robert Bringhurst (Hartley \& Marks, 1992, \ISBN{0-88179-033-8}) \item[Finer Points in the Spacing \& Arrangement of Type]by Geoffrey Dowding (Hartley \& Marks, 1996, \ISBN{0-88179-119-9}) \item[The Thames \& Hudson Manual of Typography]by Ruari McLean (Thames \& Hudson, 1980, \ISBN{0-500-68022-1}) \item[The Form of the Book]by Jan Tschichold (Lund Humphries, 1991, \ISBN{0-85331-623-6}) \item[Type \& Layout]by Colin Wheildon (Strathmore Press, 1995, \ISBN{0-9624891-5-8}) \item[The Design of Books]by Adrian Wilson (Chronicle Books, 1993, \ISBN{0-8118-0304-X}) \item[Optical Letter Spacing]by David Kindersley and Lida Cardozo Kindersley % ! line break (\href{http://www.kindersleyworkshop.co.uk/}{The Cardozo Kindersley Workshop} 2001, \ISBN{1-874426-139}) \end{booklist} There are many catalogues of type specimens but the following books provide a more interesting overall view of types in general and some of their history. \begin{booklist} \item[Alphabets Old \& New]by Lewis F.~Day (Senate, 1995, \ISBN{1-85958-160-9}) \item[An Introduction to the History of Printing Types]by Geoffrey Dowding (British Library, 1998, UK \ISBN{0-7123-4563-9}; USA \ISBN{1-884718-44-2}) \item[The Alphabet Abecedarium]by Richar A.~Firmage (David R.~Godine, 1993, \ISBN{0-87923-998-0}) \item[The Alphabet and Elements of Lettering]by Frederick Goudy (Dover, 1963, \ISBN{0-486-20792-7}) \item[Anatomy of a Typeface]by Alexander Lawson (David R.~Godine, 1990, \ISBN{0-87923-338-8}) \item[A Tally of Types]by Stanley Morison (David R.~Godine, 1999, \ISBN{1-56792-004-7}) \item[Counterpunch]by Fred Smeijers (Hyphen, 1996, \ISBN{0-907259-06-5}) \item[Treasury of Alphabets and Lettering]by Jan Tschichold (W.~W.~Norton, 1992, \ISBN{0-393-70197-2}) \item[A Short History of the Printed Word]by Warren Chappell and Robert Bringhurst (Hartley \& Marks, 1999, \ISBN{0-88179-154-7}) \end{booklist} The above lists are limited to books published in English. Typographic styles are somewhat language-dependent, and similarly the `interesting' fonts depend on the particular writing system involved. \Question[Q-whereFAQ]{Where to find \acro{FAQ}s} Bobby Bodenheimer's article, from which this \acro{FAQ} was developed, used to be posted (nominally monthly) to newsgroup \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex}. The (long obsolete) last posted copy of that article is kept on \acro{CTAN} for auld lang syne. \htmlignore \begin{pdfversion} A version of the \href{http://www.tex.ac.uk/faq}{present \acro{FAQ}} may be browsed via the World-Wide Web, and its sources \end{pdfversion} \begin{dviversion} A version of the present \acro{FAQ} may be browsed via the World-Wide Web, at \acro{URL} \URL{http://www.tex.ac.uk/faq}, and its sources \end{dviversion} \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} The sources of the present \acro{FAQ} \end{htmlversion} are available from \acro{CTAN}. Another excellent information source, available in English, is the \href{http://tex.loria.fr}{\AllTeX{} navigator}. Both the Francophone \TeX{} usergroup Gutenberg and the Czech/Slovak usergroup CS-TUG have published translations of this \acro{FAQ}, with extensions appropriate to their languages. Herbert Vo\ss{}'s excellent % beware line break \href{http://texnik.de/}{\LaTeX{} tips and tricks} provides excellent advice on most topics one might imagine (though it's not strictly a \acro{FAQ})~--- highly recommended for most ordinary mortals' use. The Open Directory Project (\acro{ODP}) maintains a list of sources of \AllTeX{} help, including \acro{FAQ}s. View the \TeX{} area at \URL{http://dmoz.org/Computers/Software/Typesetting/TeX/} Other non-English \acro{FAQ}s are available: \begin{booklist} \item[German]Posted regularly to \Newsgroup{de.comp.tex}, and archived on \acro{CTAN}; the \acro{FAQ} also appears at \URL{http://www.dante.de/faq/de-tex-faq/} \item[French]Posted regularly to \Newsgroup{fr.comp.text.tex}, and archived on \acro{CTAN}. \item[Spanish]See \URL{http://apolo.us.es/CervanTeX/FAQ/} \item[Czech]See \URL{http://www.fi.muni.cz/cstug/csfaq/} \end{booklist} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Dante \acro{FAQ}]\CTANref{dante-faq} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}French \acro{FAQ}]\CTANref{french-faq} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Sources of this \acro{FAQ}]\CTANref{faq} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Obsolete \texttt{comp.text.tex} \acro{FAQ}]% \CTANref{TeX-FAQ} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-maillists]{Where to get help} First~\dots{} read any \acro{FAQ} you can find. (Which is what you're doing now, isn't it?) An ambitious \acro{FAQ}-like project to collect all \TeX{}-related information into one place is under way at \URL{http://algaba.sdf-eu.org/TeEncontreX/TeEncontreX.html}; as with any \acro{FAQ}, this project needs the support and help of all users~--- as yet, it carries an incomplete set of answers to potential questions. The sources of the package (including a complete set of \texttt{html} files) are available on \acro{CTAN} The tutorials and other on-line documentation (see \Qref[question]{\AllTeX{} Tutorials}{Q-tutorials}) can get you started but for more in-depth understanding you should get and read at least one of the many good books on the subject (see \Qref[question]{\TeX{}-related books}{Q-books}). The definitive source for \AllTeX{} is the source code itself, but that is not something to be approached lightly (if at all). If you are seeking a particular package or program, look on your own system first: you might already have it~--- the better \TeX{} distributions contain a wide range of supporting material. If you have access to the internet, and in particular newsgroups, then \AllTeX{} discussions, including \MF{} and \MP{}, are on \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex}. It is best to spend a little time familiarising yourself with the current threads before asking a question. The group is normally very responsive but asking a question that has just been answered is likely to dampen people's enthusiasm to help you. \URL{http://groups.google.com/} archives Usenet news discussions, and \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex} may be found there. Google's archive now goes impressively far back in time (before \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex} even existed), and it is a powerful resource for tracking down that recommendation that no-one can now remember. Google also allows you to post your own questions or followups. The few people who can't use the World Wide Web, can't access Usenet news, but can use electronic mail can seek help through mailing lists. The \TeX{}hax digest is nowadays operated as a ``\ProgName{MailMan}'' mailing list: its members now have the option of receiving messages in `real time', and answers are more quickly forthcoming than ever they were in the past. Subscribe via \URL{http://www.tug.org/mailman/listinfo/texhax}; archives back to April 2000 are available via the same link, and earlier digests are available on \acro{CTAN}. Many mailing lists exist that cover some small part of the \TeX{} arena. A good source of pointers is \URL{http://www.tug.org/} Announcements of \TeX{}-related installations on the \acro{CTAN} archives are sent to the mailing list \texttt{ctan-ann}. Subscribe to the list via its \ProgName{MailMan} web-site \URL{https://sun.dante.de/mailman/listinfo/ctan-ann}; list archives are available at the same address. The list archives may also be browsed via \URL{http://www.mail-archive.com/ctan-ann@dante.de/}, and an \acro{RSS} feed is also available: \URL{http://www.mail-archive.com/ctan-ann@dante.de/maillist.xml} Issues related to \MF{} (and, increasingly, \MP{}) are discussed on the \texttt{metafont} mailing list; subscribe by sending a message `\texttt{subscribe metafont <\emph{your name}>}' to \mailto{listserv@ens.fr} A few other \TeX{}-related lists may be accessed via \mailto{listserv@urz.uni-heidelberg.de}. Send a message containing the line `\texttt{help}' to this address, or browse \URL{http://listserv.uni-heidelberg.de/cgi-bin/wa} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}TeEncontreX sources, etc.]\CTANref{teencontrex} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\TeX{}hax digests]Browse \CTANref{texhax} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-askquestion]{How to ask a question} You want help from the community at large; you've decided where you're going to \Qref*{ask your question}{Q-maillists}, but how do you phrase it? Excellent ``general'' advice (how to ask questions of anyone) is contained in %beware line break \href{http://catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html}{Eric Raymond's article on the topic}. Eric's an extremely self-confident person, and this comes through in his advice; but his guidelines are very good, even for us in the un-self-confident majority. It's important to remember that you don't have a right to advice from the world, but that if you express yourself well, you will usually find someone who will be pleased to help. So how do you express yourself in the \AllTeX{} world? There aren't any comprehensive rules, but a few guidelines may help in the application of your own common sense. \begin{itemize} \item Make sure you're asking the right people. Don't ask in a \TeX{} forum about printer device drivers for the \ProgName{Foobar} operating system. Yes, \TeX{} users need printers, but no, \TeX{} users will typically \emph{not} be \ProgName{Foobar} systems managers. Similarly, avoid posing a question in a language that the majority of the group don't use: post in Ruritanian to \Newsgroup{de.comp.text.tex} and you may have a long wait before a German- and Ruritanian-speaking \TeX{} expert notices your question. \item If your question is (or may be) \TeX{}-system-specific, report what system you're using, or intend to use: ``I can't install \TeX{}'' is as good as useless, whereas ``I'm trying to install the \ProgName{mumbleTeX} distribution on the \ProgName{Grobble} operating system'' gives all the context a potential respondent might need. Another common situation where this information is important is when you're having trouble installing something new in your system: ``I want to add the \Package{glugtheory} package to my \ProgName{mumbleTeX v12.0} distribution on the \ProgName{Grobble 2024} operating system''. \item If you need to know how to do something, make clear what your environment is: ``I want to do \emph{x} in Plain \TeX{}'', or ``I want to do \emph{y} in \LaTeX{} running the \Class{boggle} class''. If you thought you knew how, but your attempts are failing, tell us what you've tried: ``I've already tried installing the \Package{elephant} in the \Package{minicar} directory, and it didn't work, even after refreshing the filename database''. \item If something's going wrong within \AllTeX{}, pretend you're \Qref*{submitting a \LaTeX{} bug report}{Q-latexbug}, and try to generate a \Qref*{minimum failing example}{Q-minxampl}. If your example needs your local \Class{xyzthesis} class, or some other resource not generally available, be sure to include a pointer to how the resource can be obtained. \item Be as succinct as possible. Your helpers don't usually need to know \emph{why} you're doing something, just \emph{what} you're doing and where the problem is. \end{itemize} \Question[Q-minxampl]{How to make a ``minimum example''} \Qref[Question]{Our advice on asking questions}{Q-askquestion} suggests that you prepare a ``minimum example'' of failing behaviour, as a sample to post with your question. If you have a problem in a two hundred page document, it may be unclear how to proceed from this problem to a succinct demonstration of your problem. There are two valid approaches to this task: building up, and hacking down. The ``building up'' process starts with a basic document structure (for \LaTeX{}, this would have \csx{documentclass}, \cmdinvoke{begin}{document}, \cmdinvoke{end}{document}) and adds things. First to add is a paragraph or so around the actual point where the problem occurrs. (It may prove difficult to find the actual line that's provoking the problem. If the original problem is an error, reviewing % ! line break \Qref[question]{the structure of \TeX{} errors}{Q-errstruct} may help.) Note that there are things that can go wrong in one part of the document as a result of something in another part: the commonest is problems in the table of contents (from something in a section title, or whatever), or the list of \meta{something} (from something in a \csx{caption}). In such a case, include the section title or caption (the caption probably needs the \environment{figure} or \environment{table} environment around it, but it \emph{doesn't} need the figure or table itself). If this file you've built up collapses already, then you're done. Otherwise, try adding packages; the optimum is a file with only one package in it, but you may find that the guilty package only works at all with another package loaded (or only fails in the context of another package). The ``hacking down'' route starts with your entire document, and removes bits until the file no longer fails (and then of course restores the last thing removed). Don't forget to hack out any unneccessary packages, but mostly, the difficulty is choosing what to hack out of the body of the document; this is the mirror of the problem above, in the ``building up'' route. If you've added a package (or more than one), run your minimum file with \csx{listfiles} enabled, so as to report which versions of packages you're using. What if your document simply doesn't fail in any of these cut-down scenarios? Whatever you do, don't post the whole of the document: if you can, it may be useful to make a copy available on the web somewhere: people will probably understand if it's impossible~\dots{}\ or inadvisable, in the case of something confidential. If the whole document is necessary, it could be that it's an overflow of some sort; the best you can do is to post the code ``around'' the error, and (of course) the full text of the error. It may seem that all this work is rather excessive for preparing a simple post. There are two responses to that, both based on the relative inefficiency of asking a question on the internet. First, preparing a minimum document very often leads \emph{you} to the answer, without all the fuss of posting and looking for responses. Second, your prime aim is to get an answer as quickly as possible; a well-prepared example stands a good chance of attracting an answer ``in a single pass'': if the person replying to your post finds she needs more information, you have to find that request, post again, and wait for your benefactor to produce a second response. All things considered, a good example file can save you a day, for perhaps half an hour's effort invested. The above advice, differently phrased, may also be read on the web at \URL{http://www.latex-einfuehrung.de/mini-en.html}; source of the article may be found at \URL{http://www.latex-einfuehrung.de/}, in both German and English. \Question[Q-tutorials]{\AllTeX{} Tutorials, etc.} Some very fine tutorials have been written, over the years. Michael Doob's splendid `Gentle Introduction' to Plain \TeX{} (available on \acro{CTAN}) has been stable for a very long time. Another contender in the same game is from one D. R.~Wilkins, available on the web at \URL{http://www.ntg.nl/doc/wilkins/pllong.pdf} Tobias Oetiker's `(Not so) Short Introduction to \LaTeXe{}', is regularly updated, as people suggest better ways of explaining things, etc. The introduction is available on \acro{CTAN}, together with versions in the some of the many languages it has been translated into. Harvey Greenberg's `Simplified Introduction to \LaTeX{}' was written for a lecture course, and is also available on \acro{CTAN} (in \PS{} only, unfortunately). Edith Hodgen's % beware line break \href{http://www.mcs.vuw.ac.nz/~david/latex/notes.pdf}{\LaTeX{}, a Braindump} starts you from the ground up~--- giving a basic tutorial in the use of \ProgName{Linux} to get you going (rather a large file\dots{}). Its parent site, David Friggens' % ! line break \href{http://www.mcs.vuw.ac.nz/~david/latex/}{documentation page} is a useful collection of links in itself. Peter Flynn's ``Beginner's \LaTeX{}'' (which also started as course material) is a pleasing read. A complete copy may be found on \acro{CTAN}, but it may also be browsed over the web (\URL{http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/info/beginlatex/html/}). T\acro{UG} India is developing a series of online \LaTeX{} tutorials which can be strongly recommended: select single chapters at a time from \URL{http://www.tug.org.in/tutorials.html}\nobreakspace--- the set comprises two parts, ``Text'' and ``Graphics'', so far. \href{http://www.comp.leeds.ac.uk/andyr/misc/latex/index.html}{Andy Roberts' introductory material} is a pleasing short introduction to the use of \AllTeX{}; some of the slides for \emph{actual} tutorials are to be found on the page, as well. Another item, not quite \acro{FAQ}, not quite tutorial, is Herbert Vo\ss{}'s excellent % beware line break \href{http://texnik.de/}{\LaTeX{} tips and tricks}. An interesting (and practical) tutorial about what \emph{not} to do is \Package{l2tabu}, or ``A list of sins of \LaTeXe{} users'' by Mark Trettin, translated into English by J\"urgen Fenn. The tutorial is available from \acro{CTAN} as a \acro{PDF} file (though the source is also available). The \acro{AMS} publishes a ``Short Math Guide for \LaTeX{}'', which is available (in several formats) via \URL{http://www.ams.org/tex/short-math-guide.html} Herbert Vo\ss{} is developing a parallel document, that is also very useful; it's part of his ``tips and tricks'' mentioned above and is also available on \acro{CTAN}. %\URL{http://www.perce.de/LaTeX/math/Mathmode-TeX.pdf} Keith Reckdahl's ``Using Imported Graphics in \LaTeXe{}'' is an excellent introduction to graphics use, though it's slightly dated in not discussing anything other than the \ProgName{dvips} route. Available on \acro{CTAN}, but again without sources. An invaluable step-by-step setup guide for establishing a ``work flow'' through your \AllTeX{} system, so that output appears at the correct size and position on standard-sized paper, and that the print quality is satisfactory, is Mike Shell's \Package{testflow}. The tutorial consists of a large plain text document, and there is a supporting \LaTeX{} file together with correct output, both in \PS{} and \acro{PDF}, for each of \acro{A}4 and ``letter'' paper sizes. The complete kit is available on \acro{CTAN} (distributed with the author's macros for papers submitted for \acro{IEEE} publications). %% Reference material is somewhat more difficult to come by. A sterling %% example is set by David Bausum's %% \href{http://www.tug.org/utilities/plain/cseq.html}{list of \TeX{} primitives}. For Plain~\TeX{} commands a rather nice % ! line break \href{http://www.nmt.edu/tcc/help/pubs/texcrib.pdf}{quick reference booklet}, by John W.~Shipman, is available. Special-purpose tutorials are always useful, and an example is set by Haruhiko Okumura's page on % beware line break \href{http://oku.edu.mie-u.ac.jp/~okumura/texfaq/japanese/}{typesetting Japanese with Omega} (the parent page is in Japanese, so out of the scope of this \acro{FAQ}). Some university departments make their local documentation available on the web. Most straightforwardly, there's the simple translation of existing documentation into \acro{HTML}, for example the \acro{INFO} documentation of the \AllTeX{} installation, of which a sample is the \LaTeX{} documentation available at \URL{http://www.tac.dk/cgi-bin/info2www?(latex)} More ambitiously, some university departments have enthusiastic documenters who make public record of their \AllTeX{} support. For example, Tim Love (of Cambridge University Engineering Department) maintains his deparment's pages at \URL{http://www-h.eng.cam.ac.uk/help/tpl/textprocessing/}, and Mimi Burbank (of the School of Computer Science \& Information Technology at the University of Florida) manages her department's at \URL{http://www.csit.fsu.edu/~mimi/tex/}\nobreakspace--- both sets are fine examples of good practice. %% Another summary by command (somewhat akin to David Basum's work for %% Plain \TeX{}) is to be found at %% \URL{http://www.giss.nasa.gov/latex/ltx-2.html}; sadly this stuff is %% woefully out of date, and only covers \LaTeXo{}. People have long argued for \AllTeX{} books to be made available on the web, and Victor Eijkhout's excellent ``\TeX{} by Topic'' (previously published by Addison-Wesley, but long out of print) was offered in this way at Christmas 2001. The book is currently available at \URL{http://www.eijkhout.net/tbt/}; it's not a beginner's tutorial but it's a fine reference (contributions are invited, and the book is well worth the suggested contribution). Addison-Wesley have also released the copyright of ``\TeX{} for the Impatient'' by Paul W.~Abrahams, Karl Berry and Kathryn A.~Hargreaves, another book whose unavailability many have lamented. The authors have re-released the book under the \acro{GNU} general documentation licence, and it is available from \acro{CTAN}. Norm Walsh's ``Making \TeX{} Work'' is also available (free) on the Web, at \URL{http://makingtexwork.sourceforge.net/mtw/}; the sources of the Web page are on \acro{CTAN}. The book was an excellent resource in its day, but is now somewhat dated; nevertheless, it still has its uses, and is a welcome addition to the list of on-line resources. A project to update it is believed to be under way. Jim Hefferon maintains a web page % ! line break %\stopheretrue ``\href{http://www.ctan.org/installationadvice/}{Managing a one-person TeX system}'' which provides a useful introduction to those who find they need to manage a \TeX{} system on a personal machine. It covers much of the matters discussed in answers such as % ! line break \htmlonly{``}\Qref[number]{Where to put new files}{Q-wherefiles}\latexhtml{, below}{''}, and thereby covers the gap left by the (possibly temporary) lack of ``\emph{Making \TeX{} work}''. There's also (at least one) typographic style tutorial available on the Web, the excellent % ! line break ``\href*{http://www.nbcs.rutgers.edu/~hedrick/typography/typography.janson-syntax.107514.pdf}{Guidelines for Typography in NBCS}''. In fact, its % !! \href*{http://www.nbcs.rutgers.edu/~hedrick/typography/index.html}{parent page} is also worth a read: among other things, it provides copies of the ``guidelines'' document in a wide variety of primary fonts, for comparison purposes. The author is careful to explain that he has no ambition to supplant such excellent books as \Qref*{Bringhurst's}{Q-typebooks}, but the document (though it does contain its Rutgers-local matter) is a fine introduction to the issues of producing readable documents. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Beginner's \LaTeX{}]\CTANref{beginlatex-pdf} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Gentle Introduction]\CTANref{gentle} \item[l2tabu]\CTANref{l2tabuen}; source also available: \CTANref{l2tabuen.src} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Graphics in \LaTeXe{}]\CTANref{epslatex}; the document is also available in \PS{} format as \CTANref{epslatex_ps} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Making \TeX{} Work]\CTANref{mtw} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Not so Short Introduction]\CTANref{lshort} (in English, or browse for sources and other language versions at \CTANref{lshort-parent}) \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Simplified \LaTeX{}]\CTANref{simpl-latex} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\TeX{} for the Impatient]\CTANref{TftI} \item[testflow]\CTANref{testflow} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Herbert Vo\ss{}' Maths tutorial]\CTANref{voss-mathmode} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-pkgdoc]{Documentation of packages} These \acro{FAQ}s regularly suggest packages that will ``solve'' particular problems. In some cases, the answer provides a recipe for the job. In other cases, or when the solution needs elaborating, how is the poor user to find out what to do? If you're lucky, the package you need is already in your installation. If you're particularly lucky, you're using a distribution that gives access to package documentation and the documentation is available in a form that can easily be shown. For example, on a te\TeX{}-based system, the \ProgName{texdoc} command is usually useful, as in: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} texdoc footmisc \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which opens an \ProgName{xdvi} window showing documentation of the \Package{footmisc} package. According to the type of file \ProgName{texdoc} finds, it will launch \ProgName{xdvi}, a \ProgName{ghostscript}-based \PS{} viewer or a \acro{PDF} reader. If it can't find any documentation, it may launch a Web browser to look at its copy of the \acro{CTAN} catalogue. The catalogue has an entry for package documentation, and since \acro{CTAN} now encourages authors to submit documentation of their packages, that entry may provide a useful lead. If your luck (as defined above) doesn't hold out, you've got to find documentation by other means. This is where you need to exercise your intelligence: you have to find the documentation for yourself. What follows offers a range of possible techniques. The commonest form of documentation of \LaTeX{} add-ons is within the \texttt{.dtx} file in which the code is distributed (see \Qref[answer]{documented \LaTeX{} sources}{Q-dtx}). Such files are supposedly processable by \LaTeX{} itself, but there are occasional hiccups on the way to readable documentation. Common problems are that the package itself is needed to process its own documentation (so must be unpacked before processing), and that the \texttt{.dtx} file will \emph{not} in fact process with \LaTeX{}. In the latter case, the \texttt{.ins} file will usually produce a \texttt{.drv} (or similarly-named) file, which you process with \LaTeX{} instead. (Sometimes the package author even thinks to mention this wrinkle in a package \texttt{README} file.) Another common form is the separate documentation file; particularly if a package is ``conceptually large'' (and therefore needs a lot of documentation), the documentation would prove a cumbersome extension to the \texttt{.dtx} file. Examples of such cases are the \Class{memoir} class (whose documentation, \File{memman}, is widely praised as an introduction to typesetting concepts), the \Class{KOMA-script} bundle (whose developers take the trouble to produce detailed documentation in both German and English), and the \Package{fancyhdr} package (whose documentation derives from a definitive tutorial in a mathematical journal). Even if the documentation is not separately identified in a \texttt{README} file, it should not be too difficult to recognise its existence. Documentation within the package itself is the third common form. Such documentation ordinarily appears in comments at the head of the file, though at least one eminent author regularly places it after the \csx{endinput} command in the package. (This is desirable, since \csx{endinput} is a `logical' end-of-file, and \AllTeX{} doesn't read beyond it: thus such documentation does not `cost' any package loading time.) The above suggestions cover most possible ways of finding documentation. If, despite your best efforts, you can't find it in any of the above places, there's the awful possibility that the author didn't bother to document his package (on the ``if it was hard to write, it should be hard to use'' philosophy). Most ordinary mortals will seek support from some more experienced user at this stage, though it \emph{is} possible to proceed in the way that the original author apparently expected\dots{}by reading his code. \Question[Q-writecls]{Learning to write \LaTeX{} classes and packages} There's nothing particularly magic about the commands you use when writing a package, so you can simply bundle up a set of \LaTeX{} \csx{(re)newcommand} and \csx{(re)newenvironment} commands, put them in a file \File{package.sty} and you have a package. However, any but the most trivial package will require rather more sophistication. Some details of \LaTeX{} commands for the job are to be found in `\LaTeXe{} for class and package writers' (\File{clsguide}, part of the \LaTeX{} documentation distribution). Beyond this, a good knowledge of \TeX{} itself is valuable: thus books such as the \Qref*{\TeX{}book}{Q-books} or % ! line break \Qref*{\TeX{} by topic}{Q-tutorials} are relevant. With good \TeX{} knowledge it is possible to use the documented source of \LaTeX{} as reference material (dedicated authors will acquaint themselves with the source as a matter of course). A complete set of the documented source of \LaTeX{} may be prepared by processing the file \File{source2e.tex} in the \LaTeX{} distribution, but individual files in the distribution may be processed separately with \LaTeX{}, like any well-constructed \Qref*{\texttt{.dtx} file}{Q-dtx}. Writing good classes is not easy; it's a good idea to read some established ones (\File{classes.dtx}, for example, is the documented source of the standard classes other than \Class{Letter}, and may itself be formatted with \LaTeX{}). Classes that are not part of the distribution are commonly based on ones that are, and start by loading the standard class with \csx{LoadClass}~--- an example of this technique may be seen in \Package{ltxguide.cls} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[classes.dtx]\CTANref{latex-classes} \item[ltxguide.cls]\CTANref{ltxguide} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\LaTeX{} documentation]\CTANref{latexdoc} \item[source2e.tex]\CTANref{latex-source} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-mfptutorials]{\MF{} and \MP{} Tutorials} Apart from Knuth's book, there seems to be only one publicly-available \href{http://metafont.tutorial.free.fr/}{tutorial for \MF{}}, by Christophe Grandsire (a copy in \acro{PDF} form may be downloaded). Geoffrey Tobin's \textit{\MF{} for Beginners} % !! line break (see \Qref[question]{using \MF{}}{Q-useMF}) describes how the \MF{} system works and how to avoid some of the potential pitfalls. There is also an article on how to run both \MF{} and \MP{} (the programs). Peter Wilson's % !! line break \textit{Some Experiences in Running \MF{} and \MP{}} offers the benefit of Peter's experience (he has designed a number of `historical' fonts using \MF{}). For \MF{} the article is geared towards testing and installing new \MF{} fonts, while its \MP{} section describes how to use \MP{} illustrations in \LaTeX{} and \PDFLaTeX{} documents, with an emphasis on how to use appropriate fonts for any text or mathematics. Hans Hagen (of \CONTeXT{} fame) offers a \MP{} tutorial called MetaFun (which admittedly concentrates on the use of \MP{} within \CONTeXT{}). It may be found on his company's \href{http://www.pragma-ade.com/metapost.htm}{\MP{} page}. Other \MP{} tutorials that have appeared are one in English by % ! line breaks \href{http://remote.science.uva.nl/~heck/Courses/mptut.pdf}{Andr\'e Heck}, and one in French (listed here because it's clearly enough written that this author understands it), by \href{http://pauillac.inria.fr/~cheno/metapost/metapost.pdf}{Laurent Ch\'eno}; both have been recommended for inclusion in the \acro{FAQ} Vincent Zoonekynd's massive set of example \MP{} files is available on \acro{CTAN}; the set includes a \ProgName{Perl} script to convert the set to html, and the set may be % beware line break \href{http://zoonek.free.fr/LaTeX/Metapost/metapost.html}{viewed on the web}. While these examples don't exactly constitute a ``tutorial'', they're most certainly valuable learning material. Urs Oswald presents a \href{http://www.ursoswald.ch/metapost/tutorial.pdf}{similar document}, written more as a document, and presented in \acro{PDF}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Beginners' guide]\CTANref{mf-beginners} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Peter Wilson's ``experiences'']\CTANref{metafp-ps} (\PS{}) or \CTANref{metafp-pdf} (\acro{PDF} format) \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Vincent Zoonekynd's examples]\CTANref{zoon-mp-eg} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-BibTeXing]{\BibTeX{} Documentation} \BibTeX{}, a program originally designed to produce bibliographies in conjunction with \LaTeX{}, is explained in Section~4.3 and Appendix~B of Leslie Lamport's \LaTeX{} manual (see \Qref[question]{TeX-related books}{Q-books}). The document ``\BibTeX{}ing'', contained in the file \File{btxdoc.tex}, expands on the chapter in Lamport's book. \emph{The \LaTeX{} Companion} (see \Qref[question]{TeX-related books}{Q-books}) also has information on \BibTeX{} and writing \BibTeX{} style files. The document ``Designing \BibTeX{} Styles'', contained in the file |btxhak.tex|, explains the postfix stack-based language used to write \BibTeX{} styles (|.bst| files). The file |btxbst.doc| is the template for the four standard styles (|plain|, |abbrv|, |alpha|, |unsrt|). It also contains their documentation. The complete \BibTeX{} documentation set (including the files above) is available on \acro{CTAN}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\BibTeX{} documentation]\CTANref{bibtex-doc} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\BibTeX{} documentation, in \acro{PDF}]% \CTANref{bibtex-doc-pdf} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-symbols]{Where can I find the symbol for\,\dots{}} \keywords{assignment circular integral degrees diagonal dots Fourier transform} \keywords{Laplace greater less complex integer natural real} \keywords{cent euro} There is a wide range of symbols available for use with \TeX{}, most of which are not shown (or even mentioned) in \AllTeX{} books. \emph{The Comprehensive \LaTeX{} Symbol List} (by Scott Pakin % beware line wrap \emph{et al.}\@) illustrates over 2000 symbols, and details the commands and packages needed to produce them. Other questions in this \acro{FAQ} offer specific help on kinds of symbols: \begin{itemize} \item \nothtml{Script fonts for mathematics (}% \Qref[question]{Script fonts for mathematics}{Q-scriptfonts}% \nothtml{)} \item \nothtml{Fonts for the number sets (}% \Qref[question]{Fonts for the number sets}{Q-numbersets}% \nothtml{)} \item \nothtml{Typesetting the principal value integral (}% \Qref[question]{Typesetting the principal value integral}{Q-prinvalint}% \nothtml{)} \end{itemize} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[Symbol List]Browse \CTANref{symbols}; there are processed versions in both \PS{} and \acro{PDF} forms for both A4 and letter paper. \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-docpictex]{The \PiCTeX{} manual} \PiCTeX{} is a set of macros by Michael Wichura for drawing diagrams and pictures. The macros are freely available; however, the \PiCTeX{} manual itself is not free. Unfortunately, \acro{TUG} is no longer able to supply copies of the manual (as it once did), and it is now available only through Personal \TeX{} Inc, the vendors of PC\TeX{} (\URL{http://www.pctex.com/}). The manual is \emph{not} available electronically. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[pictex]\CTANref{pictex} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Bits and pieces of \TeX{}} \Question[Q-dvi]{What is a \acro{DVI} file?} A \acro{DVI} file (that is, a file with the type or extension |.dvi|) is \TeX{}'s main output file, using \TeX{} in its broadest sense to include \LaTeX{}, etc. `\acro{DVI}' is supposed to be an acronym for \acro{D}e\acro{V}ice-\acro{I}ndependent, meaning that the file can be printed on almost any kind of typographic output device. The \acro{DVI} file is designed to be read by a driver (\Qref{DVI drivers}{Q-driver}) to produce further output designed specifically for a particular printer (e.g., a LaserJet) or to be used as input to a previewer for display on a computer screen. \acro{DVI} files use \TeX{}'s internal coding; a \TeX{} input file should produce the same \acro{DVI} file regardless of which implementation of \TeX{} is used to produce it. A \acro{DVI} file contains all the information that is needed for printing or previewing except for the actual bitmaps or outlines of fonts, and possibly material to be introduced by means of \Qref*{\csx{special} commands}{Q-specials}. The canonical reference for the structure of a \acro{DVI} file is the source of \ProgName{dvitype}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[dvitype]\CTANref{dvitype} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-driver]{What is a driver?} A driver is a program that takes as input a \acro{DVI} file (\Qref{\acro{DVI} files}{Q-dvi}) and (usually) produces a file that can be sent to a typographic output device, called a printer for short. A driver will usually be specific to a particular printer, although any \PS{} printer ought to be able to print the output from a \PS{} driver. % (these are also called \PS{} conversion programs). As well as the \acro{DVI} file, the driver needs font information. Font information may be held as bitmaps or as outlines, or simply as a set of pointers into the fonts that the printer itself `has'. Each driver will expect the font information in a particular form. For more information on the forms of fonts, see \Qref[questions]{|pk| files}{Q-pk}, % beware of fill-paragraph here!!!! \Qref[]{|tfm| files}{Q-tfm}, \Qref[]{virtual fonts}{Q-virtualfonts} and \Qref[]{Using \PS{} fonts with \TeX{}}{Q-usepsfont}. \Question[Q-pk]{What are \acro{PK} files?} \acro{PK} files (packed raster) contain font bitmaps. The output from \htmlignore \MF{} (\Qref{}{Q-useMF}) \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \Qref{\MF{}}{Q-useMF} \end{htmlversion} includes a generic font (\acro{GF}) file and the utility \ProgName{gftopk} produces the \acro{PK} file from that. There are a lot of \acro{PK} files, as one is needed for each font, that is each magnification (size) of each design (point) size for each weight for each family. Further, since the \acro{PK} files for one printer do not necessarily work well for another, the whole set needs to be duplicated for each printer type at a site. As a result, they are often held in an elaborate directory structure, or in `font library files', to regularise access. \Question[Q-tfm]{What are \acro{TFM} files?} \acro{TFM} stands for \TeX{} Font Metrics; \acro{TFM} files hold information about the sizes of the characters of the font in question, and about ligatures and kerns within that font. One \acro{TFM} file is needed for each font used by \TeX{}, that is for each design (point) size for each weight for each family; one \acro{TFM} file serves for all magnifications, so that there are (typically) fewer \acro{TFM} files than there are \acro{PK} files. The important point is that \acro{TFM} files are used by \TeX{} (\LaTeX{}, etc.), but are not, generally, needed by the printer driver. \Question[Q-virtualfonts]{Virtual fonts} Virtual fonts for \TeX{} were first implemented by David Fuchs in the early days of \TeX{}, but for most people they date from when Knuth redefined the format, and wrote some support software, in 1989 (he published an article in \textsl{TUGboat} at the time, and a copy is available on \acro{CTAN}). Virtual fonts provide a way of telling \TeX{} about something more complicated than just a one-to-one character mapping. The entities you define in a virtual font look like characters to \TeX{} (they appear with their sizes in a font metric file), but the \acro{DVI} processor may expand them to something quite different. You can use this facility just to remap characters, to make a composite font with glyphs drawn from several sources, or to build up an effect in arbitrarily complicated ways~--- a virtual font may contain anything which is legal in a \acro{DVI} file. A ``how to'', describing how to generate virtual fonts from scratch, is available. In practice, however, the most common use of virtual fonts is to remap \PS{} fonts (see \Qref[question]{font metrics}{Q-metrics}). Other interesting uses have been to build `fake' maths fonts (by bundling glyphs from several fonts together), and (utilising the facility to use bits of \acro{DVI}) to build useful subsets of the \acro{T}1 fonts using nothing but the \PS{} Type~1 versions of Knuth's Computer Modern fonts. It is important to realise that \TeX{} itself does \emph{not} see virtual fonts; for every virtual font read by the \acro{DVI} driver there is a corresponding \acro{TFM} file read by \TeX{}. Virtual fonts are normally created in a single \acro{ASCII} \texttt{vpl} (Virtual Property List) file, which includes both sets of information. The \ProgName{vptovf} program is then used to the create the binary \acro{TFM} and \acro{VF} files. The commonest way (nowadays) of generating \texttt{vpl} files is to use the \ProgName{fontinst} package, which is described in detail \htmlonly{together with the discussion of}% \Qref[in answer]{\PS{} font metrics}{Q-metrics}. \Package{qdtexvpl} is another utility for creating ad-hoc virtual fonts. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fontinst]\CTANref{fontinst} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Knuth on virtual fonts]\CTANref{vf-knuth} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Virtual fonts ``how to'']\CTANref{vf-howto} \item[qdtexvpl]\CTANref{qdtexvpl} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-specials]{\csx{special} commands} \TeX{} provides the means to express things that device drivers can do, but about which \TeX{} itself knows nothing. For example, \TeX{} itself knows nothing about how to include \PS{} figures into documents, or how to set the colour of printed text; but some device drivers do. Such things are introduced to your document by means of \csx{special} commands; all that \TeX{} does with these commands is to expand their arguments and then pass the command to the \acro{DVI} file. In most cases, there are macro packages provided (often with the driver) that provide a comprehensible interface to the \csx{special}; for example, there's little point including a figure if you leave no gap for it in your text, and changing colour proves to be a particularly fraught operation that requires real wizardry. \LaTeXe{} has standard graphics and colour packages that make figure inclusion, rotation and scaling, and colour typesetting via \csx{special}s all easy. The allowable arguments of \csx{special} depend on the device driver you're using. Apart from the examples above, there are \csx{special} commands in the em\TeX{} drivers (e.g., \ProgName{dvihplj}, \ProgName{dviscr}, \emph{etc}.)~that will draw lines at arbitrary orientations, and commands in \ProgName{dvitoln03} that permit the page to be set in landscape orientation. \Question[Q-dtx]{Documented \LaTeX{} sources (\texttt{.dtx} files)} \LaTeXe{}, and many support macro packages, are now written in a \nothtml{literate programming style (}% beware line break \Qref{literate programming}{Q-lit}\latexhtml{)}{ style}, with source and documentation in the same file. This format, known as `doc', in fact originated before the days of the \LaTeX{} project as one of the ``Mainz'' series of packages. The documented sources conventionally have the suffix \texttt{.dtx}, and should normally be stripped of documentation before use with \LaTeX{}. Alternatively you can run \LaTeX{} on a \texttt{.dtx} file to produce a nicely formatted version of the documented code. An installation script (with suffix \texttt{.ins}) is usually provided, which needs the standard \LaTeXe{} \ProgName{docstrip} package (among other things, the installation process strips all the comments that make up the documentation for speed when loading the file into a running \LaTeX{} system). Several packages can be included in one \texttt{.dtx} file, with conditional sections, and there facilities for indices of macros etc. Anyone can write \texttt{.dtx} files; the format is explained in \Qref*{The \LaTeX{} Companion}{Q-books}, and a tutorial is available from \acro{CTAN} (which comes with skeleton \texttt{.dtx} and \texttt{.ins} files). Composition of \texttt{.dtx} files is supported in \ProgName{emacs} by Matt Swift's \ProgName{swiftex} system: it provides a \environment{doc-tex} mode which treats \texttt{.dtx} files rather better than \Qref*{\acro{AUC}-\TeX{}}{Q-editors} manages. Another useful way of generating \texttt{.dtx} files is to write the documentation and the code separately, and then to combine them using the \ProgName{makedtx} system. This technique has particular value in that the documentation file can be used separately to generate \acro{HTML} output; it is often quite difficult to make % ! line break \Qref*{\LaTeX{} to \acro{HTML} conversion}{Q-LaTeX2HTML} tools deal with \texttt{.dtx} files, since they use an unusual class file. \texttt{.dtx} files are not used by \LaTeX{} after they have been processed to produce \texttt{.sty} or \texttt{.cls} (or whatever) files. They need not be kept with the working system; however, for many packages the \texttt{.dtx} file is the primary source of documentation, so you may want to keep \texttt{.dtx} files elsewhere. An interesting sideline to the story of \texttt{.dtx} files is the \Package{docmfp} package, which extends the model of the \Package{doc} package to \latexhtml{\MF{}}{\Qref{\MF{}}{Q-MF}} and % beware line break \latexhtml{\MP{} (\Qref[see questions]{}{Q-MF} and\Qref[]{}{Q-MP})}{\Qref{\MP{}}{Q-MP}}, thus permitting documented distribution of bundles containing code for \MF{} and \MP{} together with related \LaTeX{} code. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[clsguide.pdf]\CTANref{clsguide} \item[docmfp.sty]\CTANref{docmfp} \item[docstrip.tex]Part of the \LaTeX{} distribution \item[DTX tutorial]\CTANref{dtxtut} \item[makedtx]\CTANref{makedtx} \item[swiftex.el]\CTANref{swiftex} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-whatenc]{What are encodings?} Let's start by defining two concepts, the \emph{character} and the \emph{glyph}. The character is the abstract idea of the `atom' of a language or other dialogue: so it might be a letter in an alphabetic language, a syllable in a syllabic language, or an ideogram in an ideographic language. The glyph is the mark created on screen or paper which represents a character. Of course, if reading is to be possible, there must be some agreed relationship between the glyph and the character, so while the precise shape of the glyph can be affected by many other factors, such as the capabilities of the writing medium and the designer's style, the essence of the underlying character must be retained. Whenever a computer has to represent characters, someone has to define the relationship between a set of numbers and the characters they represent. This is the essence of an encoding: it is a mapping between a set of numbers and a set of things to be represented. \TeX{} of course deals in encoded characters all the time: the characters presented to it in its input are encoded, and it emits encoded characters in its \acro{DVI} (or \acro{PDF}) output. These encodings have rather different properties. The \TeX{} input stream was pretty unruly back in the days when Knuth first implemented the language. Knuth himself prepared documents on terminals that produced all sorts of odd characters, and as a result \TeX{} contains some provision for translating the input encoding to something regular. Nowadays, the operating system translates keystrokes into a code appropriate for the user's language: the encoding used is often a national or international standard, though many operating systems use ``code pages'' defined by MicroSoft. These standards and code pages often contain characters that can't appear in the \TeX{} system's input stream. Somehow, these characters have to be dealt with~--- so an input character like ``\'e'' needs to be interpreted by \TeX{} in a way that that at least mimics the way it interprets ``\csx{'}\texttt{e}''. The \TeX{} output stream is in a somewhat different situation: characters in it are to be used to select glyphs from the fonts to be used. Thus the encoding of the output stream is notionally a font encoding (though the font in question may be a % beware line break (twice) \nothtml{virtual one~--- see }% \Qref[question]{virtual font}{Q-virtualfonts}). In principle, a fair bit of what appears in the output stream could be direct transcription of what arrived in the input, but the output stream also contains the product of commands in the input, and translations of the input such as ligatures like % \texttt{fi}\nothtml{\ensuremath\Rightarrow``fi''}. Font encodings became a hot topic when the \Qref*{Cork encoding}{Q-ECfonts} appeared, because of the possibility of suppressing \csx{accent} commands in the output stream (and hence improving the quality of the hyphenation of text in inflected languages, which is interrupted by the \csx{accent} commands~--- see % beware line break \Qref[question]{``how does hyphenation work''}{Q-hyphen}). To take advantage of the diacriticised characters represented in the fonts, it is necessary to arrange that whenever the command sequence ``|\'||e|'' has been input (explicitly, or implicitly via the sort of mapping of input mentioned above), the character that codes the position of the ``\'e'' glyph is used. Thus we could have the odd arrangement that the diacriticised character in the \TeX{} input stream is translated into \TeX{} commands that would generate something looking like the input character; this sequence of \TeX{} commands is then translated back again into a single diacriticised glyph as the output is created. This is in fact precisely what the \LaTeX{} packages \Package{inputenc} and \Package{fontenc} do, if operated in tandem on (most) characters in the \acro{ISO}~Latin-1 input encoding and the \acro{T}1 font encoding. At first sight, it seems eccentric to have the first package do a thing, and the second precisely undo it, but it doesn't always happen that way: most font encodings can't match the corresponding input encoding nearly so well, and the two packages provide the sort of symmetry the \LaTeX{} system needs. \Question[Q-hyphen]{How does hyphenation work in \TeX{}?} Everyone knows what hyphenation is: we see it in most books we read, and (if we're alert) often spot ridiculous mis-hyphenation from time to time (at one time, British newspapers were a fertile source). Hyphenation styles are culturally-determined, and the same language may be hyphenated differently in different countries~--- for example, British and American styles of hyphenation of English are very different. As a result, a typesetting system that is not restricted to a single language at a single locale needs to be able to change its hyphenation rules from time to time. \TeX{} uses a pretty good system for hyphenation (originally designed by Frank Liang), and while it's capable of missing ``sensible'' hyphenation points, it seldom selects grossly wrong ones. The algorithm matches candidates for hyphenation against a set of ``hyphenation patterns''. The candidates for hyphenation must be sequences of letters (or other single characters that \TeX{} may be persuaded to think of as letters)~--- things such as \TeX{}'s \csx{accent} primitive interrupt hyphenation. Sets of hyphenation patterns are usually derived from analysis of a list of valid hyphenations (the process of derivation, using a tool called \Package{patgen}, is not ordinarily a participatory sport). The patterns for the languages a \TeX{} system is going to deal with may only be loaded when the system is installed. To change the set of languages, a \Qref*{partial reinstallation}{Q-newlang} is necessary. \TeX{} provides two ``user-level'' commands for control of hyphenation: \csx{language} (which selects a hyphenation style), and \csx{hyphenation} (which gives explicit instructions to the hyphenation engine, overriding the effect of the patterns). The ordinary \LaTeX{} user need not worry about \csx{language}, since it is very thoroughly managed by the \Package{babel} package; use of \csx{hyphenation} is discussed in % beware line wrap \Qref[question]{hyphenation failure}{Q-nohyph}. \Question[Q-ECfonts]{What are the \acro{EC} fonts?} A font consists of a number of \emph{glyphs}. In order that the glyphs may be printed, they are \nothtml{\emph{encoded} (see} \Qref[question]{\emph{encoded}}{Q-whatenc}\nothtml{)}, and the encoding is used as an index into tables within the font. For various reasons, Knuth chose deeply eccentric encodings for his Computer Modern family of fonts; in particular, he chose different encodings for different fonts, so that the application using the fonts has to remember which font of the family it's using before selecting a particular glyph. When \TeX{} version 3 arrived, most of the excuses for the eccentricity of Knuth's encodings went away, and at \acro{TUG}'s Cork meeting, an encoding for a set of 256 glyphs, for use in \TeX{} text, was defined. The intention was that these glyphs should cover `most' European languages that use Latin alphabets, in the sense of including all accented letters needed. (Knuth's \acro{CMR} fonts missed things necessary for Icelandic and Polish, for example, but the Cork fonts have them. Even Cork's coverage isn't complete: it misses letters from Romanian, Eastern and Northern Sami, and Welsh, at least. The Cork encoding does contain ``\acro{NG}'' glyphs that allows it to support Southern Sami.) \LaTeX{} refers to the Cork encoding as \acro{T}1, and provides the means to use fonts thus encoded to avoid problems with the interaction of accents and hyphenation % beware!!! fill-paragraph!!! (see \Qref[question]{hyphenation of accented words}{Q-hyphenaccents}). % beware!!! fill-paragraph!!! The only \MF{}-fonts that conform to the Cork encoding are the \acro{EC} fonts. They look \acro{CM}-like, though their metrics differ from \acro{CM}-font metrics in several areas. The fonts are now regarded as `stable' (in the same sense that the \acro{CM} fonts are stable: their metrics are unlikely ever to change). Their serious disadvantages for the casual user are their size (each \acro{EC} font is roughly twice the size of the corresponding \acro{CM} font), and there are far more of them than there are \acro{CM} fonts. The simple number of fonts has acted as a disincentive to the production of Adobe Type~1 versions of the fonts,, but several commercial suppliers offer \acro{EC} or \acro{EC}-equivalent fonts in type~1 or TrueType form~--- see % beware line fill \Qref[question]{commercial suppliers}{Q-commercial}, and free \htmlonly{\Qref{auto-traced versions}{Q-textrace}} are available\nothtml{ (\Qref{ }{Q-textrace})}. What's more, until corresponding fonts for mathematics are produced, the \acro{CM} fonts must be retained because some mathematical symbols are drawn from text fonts in the \acro{CM} encodings. The \acro{EC} fonts are distributed with a set of `Text Companion' (\acro{TC}) fonts that provide glyphs for symbols commonly used in text. The \acro{TC} fonts are encoded according to the \LaTeX{} \acro{TS}1 encoding, and are not viewed as `stable' in the same way as are the \acro{EC} fonts are. The Cork encoding is also implemented by virtual fonts provided in the \htmlignore \acro{PSNFSS} system (\Qref{}{Q-usepsfont}), \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \Qref{\acro{PSNFSS} system}{Q-usepsfont}, \end{htmlversion} for \PS{} fonts, and also by the \Package{txfonts} and \Package{pxfonts} font packages % beware line wrap (see \Qref[question]{``choice of scalable fonts''}{Q-psfchoice}). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[EC and TC fonts]\CTANref{ec} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-tds]{What is the \acro{TDS}?} \acro{TDS} stands for the \TeX{} Directory Structure, which is a standard way of organising all the \TeX{}-related files on a computer system. Most modern distributions conform to the \acro{TDS}, which provides for both a `standard' and a (set of) `local' hierarchies of directories containing \TeX{}-related files. The \acro{TDS} reserves the name |texmf| as the name of the root directory (folder) of the hierarchies. Files supplied as part of the distribution are put into the standard hierarchy. The location of the standard hierarchy is system dependent, but on a Unix system it might be at \path{/usr/local/texmf}, or \path{/usr/local/share/texmf}, or \path{/opt/texmf}, or a similar location, but in each case the \TeX{} files will be under the \path{/texmf} subdirectory. There may be more than on `local' hierarchy in which additional files can be stored. In the extreme an installation can have a local hierarchy and each user can also have an individual local hierarchy. The location of any local hierarchy is not only system dependent but also user dependent. Again, though, all files should be put under a local \path{/texmf} directory. The \acro{TDS} is published as the output of a \acro{TUG} % beware line wrap \nothtml{Technical Working Group (}% \Qref{Technical Working Group}{Q-TUG*}\nothtml{)}. You may browse an \href{http://tug.org/tds/}{on-line version} of the standard, and copies in several other formats (including source) are available on \acro{CTAN}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\acro{TDS} specification]\CTANref{tds} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-eps]{What is ``Encapsulated \PS{}''} \PS{} has over the years become a \emph{lingua franca} of powerful printers; since \PS{} is also a powerful graphical programming language, it is commonly used as an output medium for drawing (and other) packages. However, since \PS{} \emph{is} such a powerful language, some rules need to be imposed, so that the output drawing may be included in a document as a figure without ``leaking'' (and thereby destroying the surrounding document, or failing to draw at all). Appendix \acro{H} of the \PS{} Language Reference Manual (second and subsequent editions), specifies a set of rules for \PS{} to be used as figures in this way. The important features are: \begin{itemize} \item certain ``structured comments'' are required; important ones are the identification of the file type, and information about the ``bounding box'' of the figure (i.e., the minimum rectangle enclosing it); \item some commands are forbidden~--- for example, a |showpage| command will cause the image to disappear, in most \TeX{}-output environments; and \item ``preview information'' is permitted, for the benefit of things such as word processors that don't have the ability to draw \PS{} in their own right~--- this preview information may be in any one of a number of system-specific formats, and any viewing program may choose to ignore it. \end{itemize} A \PS{} figure that conforms to these rules is said to be in ``Encapsulated \PS{}'' format. Most \AllTeX{} packages for including \PS{} are structured to use Encapsulated \PS{}; which of course leads to much hilarity as exasperated \AllTeX{} users struggle to cope with the output of drawing software whose authors don't know the rules. \Question[Q-adobetypen]{Adobe font formats} \keywords{type1 type3} Adobe has specified a number of formats for files to represent fonts in \PS{} files; this question doesn't attempt to be encyclopaedic, but we'll discuss the two formats most commonly encountered in the \AllTeX{} context, types~1 and 3. Adobe Type~1 format specifies a means to represent outlines of the glyphs in a font. The `language' used is closely restricted, to ensure that the font is rendered as quickly as possible. (Or rather, as quickly as possible with Adobe's technology at the time the specification was written: the structure could well be different if it were specified now.) The format has long been the basis of the digital type-foundry business, though things are showing signs of change. %% Type~1 fonts are directly supported by some operating system software, %% and at least one \TeX{} system, the commercial % line break! %% \Qref*{\YandY{} system}{Q-commercial}, bases its entire %% operation on the use of Type~1 fonts. In the \AllTeX{} context, Type~1 fonts are extremely important. Apart from their simple availability (there are thousands of commercial Type~1 text fonts around), the commonest reader for \acro{PDF} files has long (in effect) \emph{insisted} on their use (see \Qref[question]{\acro{PDF} quality}{Q-dvips-pdf}). Type~3 fonts have a more forgiving specification. A wide range of \PS{} operators is permissible, including bitmaps operators. Type~3 is therefore the natural format to be used for programs such as \ProgName{dvips} when they auto-generate something to represent \MF{}-generated fonts in a \PS{} file. It's Adobe Acrobat Viewer's treatment of bitmap Type~3 fonts that has made direct \MF{} output inreasingly unattractive, in recent years. If you have a \acro{PDF} document in which the text looks fuzzy and uneven in Acrobat Reader, ask Reader for the \texttt{File}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Document Properties}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Fonts ...}, and it will show some font or other as ``Type~3'' (usually with encoding ``Custom''). (This problem has disappeared with version 6 of Acrobat Reader.) Type~3 fonts should not entirely be dismissed, however. Acrobat Reader's failure with them is entirely derived from its failure to use the anti-aliasing techniques common in \TeX{}-ware. Choose a different set of \PS{} graphical operators, and you can make pleasing Type~3 fonts that don't ``annoy'' Reader. For example, you may not change colour within a Type~1 font glyph, but there's no such restriction on a Type~3 font, which opens opportunities for some startling effects. \Question[Q-resolns]{What are ``resolutions''} ``Resolution'' is a word that is used with little concern for its multiple meanings, in computer equipment marketing. The word suggests a measure of what an observer (perhaps the human eye) can resolve; yet we regularly see advertisements for printers whose resolution is 1200dpi~--- far finer than the unaided human eye can distinguish. The advertisements are talking about the precision with which the printer can place spots on the printed image, which affects the fineness of the representation of fonts, and the accuracy of the placement of glyphs and other marks on the page. In fact, there are two sorts of ``resolution'' on the printed page that we need to consider for \AllTeX{}'s purposes: \begin{itemize} \item the positioning accuracy, and \item the quality of the fonts. \end{itemize} In the case where \AllTeX{} output is being sent direct to a printer, in the printer's ``native'' language, it's plain that the \acro{DVI} processor must know all such details, and must take detailed account of both types of resolution. In the case where output is being sent to an intermediate distribution format, that has potential for printing (or displaying) we know not where, the final translator, that connects to directly to the printer or display, has the knowledge of the device's properties: the \acro{DVI} processor need not know, and should not presume to guess. Both \PS{} and \acro{PDF} output are in this category. While \PS{} is used less frequently for document distribution nowadays, it is regularly used as the source for distillation into \acro{PDF}; and \acro{PDF} is the workhorse of an enormous explosion of document distribution. Therefore, we need \acro{DVI} processors that will produce ``resolution independent'' \PS{} or \acro{PDF} output; of course, the independence needs to extend to both forms of independence outlined above. Resolution-independence of fonts is forced upon the world by the feebleness of Adobe's \ProgName{Acrobat} \ProgName{Reader} at dealing with bitmap files: a sequence of answers starting with one aiming at the \Qref*{quality of \acro{PDF} from \PS{}}{Q-dvips-pdf} addresses the problems that arise. Resolution-independence of positioning is more troublesome: \ProgName{dvips} is somewhat notorious for insisting on positioning to the accuracy of the declared resolution of the printer. %% ~--- the only %% \PS{} driver the author \emph{knows} to be capable of doing the right %% thing is \Qref*{\YandY{}'s \ProgName{DVIPSONE}}{Q-commercial}. One commonly-used approach is to declare a resolution of 8000 (``better than any device''), and this is reasonably successful though it does have its \Qref*{problems}{Q-8000}. \Question[Q-fontname]{What is the ``Berry naming scheme''} In the olden days, \AllTeX{} distributions were limited by the feebleness of file systems' ability to represent long names. (The \MSDOS{} file system was a particular bugbear: fortunately any current Microsoft system allows rather more freedom to specify file names. Sadly, the ISO~9660 standard for the structure of \CDROM{}s has a similar failing, but that too has been modified by various extension mechanisms.) One area in which this was a particular problem was that of file names for Type~1 fonts. These fonts are distributed by their vendors with pretty meaningless short names, and there's a natural ambition to change the name to something that identifies the font somewhat precisely. Unfortunately, names such as ``BaskervilleMT'' are already far beyond the abilities of the typical feeble file system, and add the specifier of a font shape or variant, and the difficulties spiral out of control. Thus arose the Berry naming scheme. The basis of the scheme is to encode the meanings of the various parts of the file's specification in an extremely terse way, so that enough font names can be expressed even in impoverished file spaces. The encoding allocates one letter to the font ``foundry'', two to the typeface name, one to the weight, and so on. The whole scheme is outlined in the \Package{fontname} distribution, which includes extensive documentation and a set of tables of fonts whose names have been systematised. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fontname distribution]\CTANref{fontname} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \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). The \acro{CTAN} sites are currently \FTP{dante.ctan.org} (Germany), \FTP{cam.ctan.org} (UK) and \FTP{tug.ctan.org} (USA). The organisation of \TeX{} files on all \acro{CTAN} sites is identical and starts at \path{tex-archive/}. 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. 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*{\TeX{}~Live distribution}{Q-CD}. \Question[Q-nonfree]{What's the \acro{CTAN} \texttt{nonfree} tree?} The \acro{CTAN} archives are currently restructuring their holdings so that files that are `not free' are held in a separate tree. The definition of what is `free' (for this purpose) is influenced by, but not exactly the same as the \begin{narrowversion} % really non-hyper version Debian Free Software Guidelines (\acro{DFSG}: see \URL{http://www.debian.org/social_contract#guidelines}). \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} % don't let the line wrap... \href{http://www.debian.org/social_contract#guidelines}{Debian Free Software Guidelines (\acro{DFSG})}. \end{wideversion} Material is placed on the \texttt{nonfree} tree if it is not freely-usable (e.g., if the material is shareware, commercial, or if its usage is not permitted in certain domains at all, or without payment). Users of the archive should check that they are entitled to use material they have retrieved from the \texttt{nonfree} tree. The Catalogue (one of the prime sources for finding \TeX{}-related material via \nothtml{web search~--- }% \Qref{web search}{Q-findfiles}) lists the licence details in each entry in its lists. For details of the licence categories, see its \begin{narrowversion} % really non-hyper version list of licences~--- see \URL{http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/help/Catalogue/licenses.html} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \href{http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/help/Catalogue/licenses.html}{list of licences}. \end{wideversion} \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); best is a \acro{PDF} file of the package documentation, prepared for screen reading. \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}, get yourself a copy of the file \File{README.uploads} from any \Qref*{\acro{CTAN} archive}{Q-archives}. The file 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 principle \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. If you can use neither of these methods, 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. 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 |ftp|, and of course the directory structure on your archive 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 returns the same data as does \texttt{quote site index}, but not truncated and arranged very neatly as a series of links to directories and individual files. The \href{http://www.tex.ac.uk/search}{\acro{UK}} and \href{http://www.ctan.org/search}{\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} 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 Dante's % ! line break ``\texttt{quote site index}'' command uses. 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. % (\Email|lee@sq.sq.com|) %The list contains details both of commercial fonts and of fonts %available via anonymous |ftp|. Most of the fonts are available via %anonymous |ftp| from the \acro{CTAN} archives %(see \Qref[question]{sources of software}{Q-archives}). Nowadays, authors of new material in \MF{} are few and far between (and mostly designing highly specialised things with limited appeal to ordinary users). Most new fonts that appear are prepared in some scalable outline form or other (see \Qref[question]{``choice of scalable fonts''}{Q-psfchoice}), and they are almost all distributed under commercial terms. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\MF{} font list]\CTANref{mf-list} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-CD]{The \TeX{}~Live distribution} 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{}~Live distribution provides this, together with a ready-to-run \TeX{} system. The \TeX{}~Live installation disc offers te\TeX{} for use on Unix-like systems, and fp\TeX{} for use on Windows systems. There is also a `demonstration' disc and an archive snapshot (all on \acro{CD}- or \acro{DVD}-\acro{ROM}s). \TeX{}-Live was originally developed under the auspices of a consortium of User Groups (notably \acro{TUG}, \acro{UK}~\acro{TUG} and \acro{GUT}enberg). All members of several User Groups receive copies free of charge. Some user groups will also sell additional copies: contact your local user group or \Qref*{\acro{TUG}}{Q-TUG*}. Details of \TeX{}~Live are available from its own \begin{wideversion} % this really ought to be "hyperversion" or summat \href{http://www.tug.org/texlive.html}{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/texlive.html} \end{narrowversion} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{\TeX{} Systems} \Question[Q-TeXsystems]{\AllTeX{} for different machines} \keywords{windows,macintosh,ms-dos,os/2,unix,linux} We list here the free or shareware packages; \htmlignore see \Qref{}{Q-commercial} for details of commercial packages. \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} another question addresses \Qref{commercial \TeX{} vendors'}{Q-commercial} products. \end{htmlversion} \begin{description} \item[Unix] Instructions for retrieving the \Package{web2c} Unix \TeX{} distribution via anonymous |ftp| are to be found in \File{unixtex.ftp}, though nowadays the sensible installer will take (and possibly customise) one of the packaged distributions such as te\TeX{}, or the \Qref*{\TeX{}~Live distribution}{Q-CD}. To compile and produce a complete te\TeX{} distribution, you need a \texttt{.tar.gz} file for each of \texttt{teTeX-src}, \texttt{teTeX-texmf} and \texttt{teTeX-texmfsrc}. No sets of te\TeX{} binaries are provided on \acro{CTAN}; however, compilation of te\TeX{} is pretty stable, on a wide variety of platforms. If you don't have the means to compile te\TeX{} yourself, you will find that most ``support'' sites carry compiled versions in their ``free area'', and the \TeX{}-live discs also carry a wide range of binary distributions. There's a mailing list for te\TeX{} installation problems (and the like): subscribe by sending mail to \mailto{majordomo@dbs.uni-hannover.de} containing nothing more than ``\texttt{subscribe tetex}''. The list is archived at \URL{http://www.mail-archive.com/tetex@dbs.uni-hannover.de/}, and an \acro{RSS} feed is available at the same site: \URL{http://www.mail-archive.com/tetex@dbs.uni-hannover.de/maillist.xml} During periods when te\TeX{} is itself under development, a ``te\TeX{}-beta'' is available. Before proceeding with the \ensuremath{\beta}-release, check the \File{ANNOUNCE} files in the two directories on \acro{CTAN}: it may well be that the \ensuremath{\beta}-release doesn't offer you anything new, that you need. Mac\acro{OS} \acro{X} users should refer to the information below, under item ``Mac''. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[tetex]Browse \CTANref{tetex} \item[tetex-beta]\CTANref{tetex-beta} \item[unixtex.ftp]\CTANref{unixtexftp} \item[web2c]\CTANref{web2c} \end{ctanrefs} \item[Linux] Linux users may use te\TeX{} (see above). The most recent offering is a free version of the commercial \nothtml{V\TeX{} (see }% \Qref[question]{V\TeX{}}{Q-commercial}\nothtml{)}, which among other things, specialises in direct production of \acro{PDF} from \AllTeX{} input. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[tetex]Browse \CTANref{tetex} \item[vtex]\CTANref{vtex-linux} \item[vtex \nothtml{\rmfamily}required common files]\CTANref{vtex-common} \end{ctanrefs} \item[\acro{PC}; \MSDOS{} or \acro{OS/}2] Em\TeX{}, by Eberhard Mattes, includes \LaTeX{}, \BibTeX{}, previewers, and drivers, and is available as a series of zip archives. Documentation is available in both German and English. Appropriate memory managers for using em\TeX{} with 386 (and better) processors and under Windows, are included in the distribution. Em\TeX{} will operate under Windows, but Windows users are better advised to use a distribution tailored for the Windows environment. A version of em\TeX{}, packaged to use a % beware line break \Qref*{TDS directory structure}{Q-tds}, is separately available as an em\TeX{} `contribution'. Note that neither em\TeX{} itself, nor em\TeX{}\acro{TDS}, is maintained. Most users of Microsoft operating systems, who want an up-to-date \AllTeX{} system, need to migrate to Win32-based systems. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[emtex]\CTANref{emtex} \item[emtexTDS]\CTANref{emtextds} \end{ctanrefs} \item[\acro{PC}; \MSDOS{}] The most recent \MSDOS{} offering is a port of the Web2C~7.0 implementation, using the \acro{GNU} \ProgName{djgpp} compiler. While this package is more recent than em\TeX{}, it still implements a rather old instance of \AllTeX{}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[djgpp]\CTANref{djgpp} \end{ctanrefs} \item[\acro{PC}; \acro{OS/}2] \acro{OS/}2 may also use a free version of the commercial \nothtml{V\TeX{} (see }% \Qref[question]{V\TeX{}}{Q-commercial}\nothtml{)}, which specialises in direct production of \acro{PDF} from \AllTeX{} input. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[vtex]\CTANref{vtex-os2} \item[vtex \nothtml{\rmfamily}required common files]\CTANref{vtex-common} \end{ctanrefs} \item[\acro{PC}: Win32] fp\TeX{}, by Fabrice Popineau, is a version of te\TeX{} for Windows systems. As such, it is particularly attractive to those who need to switch back and forth between Windows and Unix environments, and to administrators who need to maintain both (fp\TeX{} can use the same \texttt{texmf} tree as a te\TeX{} installation). fp\TeX{}'s previewer (\ProgName{Windvi}) is based on \ProgName{xdvi}, and takes advantage of extra facilities in the Win32 environment. \ProgName{Windvi} is capable of printing directly, and a version of \ProgName{dvips} is also available. MiK\TeX{}, by Christian Schenk, is also a comprehensive distribution, developed separately from the te\TeX{} work. It has its own previewer, \acro{YAP}, which is itself capable of printing, though the distribution also includes a port of \ProgName{dvips}. The current version is available for file-by-file download (the \acro{HTML} files in the directory offer hints on what you need to get going). The MiK\TeX{} developers provide a ready-to-run copy of the distribution, on \CDROM{} (for purchase) via the \href{http://www.miktex.org/cd/}{MiK\TeX{} web site}. \href{http://tug.org/protext/}{Pro\TeX{}t}, by Thomas Feuerstack, is a further option for installing MiK\TeX{}. It bundles a MiK\TeX{} setup with some further useful utilities, together with a \acro{PDF} file which contains clickable links for the various installation steps, along with explanations. It again it is freeware, and copies are distributed with the \Qref*{\TeX{}-live \acro{CD} set}{Q-CD}. A further (free) option arises from the \href{http://www.cygwin.com}{``CygWin'' bundle}, which presents a Unix-like environment over the Win32 interface; an X-windows server is available. If you run CygWin on your Windows machine, you have the option of using te\TeX{}, too (you will need the X-server, to run \ProgName{xdvi}). Of course, te\TeX{} components will look like Unix applications (but that's presumably what you wanted), but it's also reputedly somewhat slower than native Win32 implementations such as MiK\TeX{} or fp\TeX{}. Te\TeX{} is available as part of the CygWin distribution (in the same way that a version is available with most Linux distributions, nowadays), and you may also build your own copy from the current sources. BaKoMa \TeX{}, by Basil Malyshev, is a comprehensive (shareware) distribution, which focuses on support of Acrobat. The distribution comes with a bunch of Type~1 fonts packaged to work with BaKoMa \TeX{}, which further the focus. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[bakoma]\CTANref{bakoma-tex} \item[fptex]\CTANref{fptex} \item[miktex]Acquire \CTANref{miktex-setup}, and read \CTANref{miktex-install} \item[protext.exe]\CTANref{protext} \item[tetex]\CTANref{tetex} \end{ctanrefs} \item[Windows \acro{NT}, other platforms] Ports of MiK\TeX{} for \acro{NT} on Power \acro{PC} and \acro{AXP} are available. Neither version has been updated for version~1.2 (or later) of MiK\TeX{}~--- they may not be satisfactory. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[miktex for AXP]\CTANref{miktex-AXP} \item[miktex for Power PC]\CTANref{miktexppc} \end{ctanrefs} \item[Mac] Oz\TeX{}, by Andrew Trevorrow, is a shareware version of \TeX{} for the Macintosh. A \acro{DVI} previewer and \PS{} driver are also included. % It should run on any Macintosh Plus, SE, II, or newer model, but % will not work on a 128K or 512K Mac \acro{UK}~\acro{TUG} prepays the shareware fee, so that its members may acquire the software without further payment. Questions about Oz\TeX{} may be directed to \mailto{oztex@midway.uchicago.edu} Another partly shareware program is \acro{CM}ac\TeX{}, put together by Tom Kiffe. This is much closer to the Unix \TeX{} setup (it uses \ProgName{dvips}, for instance). \acro{CM}ac\TeX{} includes a port of the latest version of \nothtml{Omega (}\Qref{Omega}{Q-omega}\nothtml{)}. Both Oz\TeX{} and \acro{CM}ac\TeX{} run on either Mac\acro{OS} \acro{X} or on a sufficiently recent Mac\acro{OS} with CarbonLib (v1.3~for Oz\TeX{}, v1.4~for \acro{CM}ac\TeX{}). % beware line wrap Mac\acro{OS}~\acro{X} users also have the option of \href{http://www.rna.nl/tex.html}{gw\TeX{}}, by Gerben Wierda (which is based on te\TeX{}). This is naturally usable from the command line, just like any other Unix-based system, but it can also be used Mac-style as the engine behind Richard Koch's (free) \href{http://www.uoregon.edu/~koch/texshop/texshop.html}{TeXShop}, which is an integrated \TeX{} editor and previewer. \begin{narrowversion} % really, non-hyper version A useful resource for Mac users is to be found at \URL{http://www.esm.psu.edu/mac-tex/}; it has a news and `help' section, as well as details of systems and tools. \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} A useful \href{http://www.esm.psu.edu/mac-tex/}{resource for Mac users} has a news and `help' section, as well as details of systems and tools. \end{wideversion} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[cmactex]\CTANref{cmactex} \item[oztex]\CTANref{oztex} \item[MacOS X teTeX]\URL{ftp://ftp.nluug.nl/pub/comp/macosx/tex-gs/} \item[TeXShop]\URL{http://darkwing.uoregon.edu/~koch/texshop/texshop.html} \end{ctanrefs} \item[Open\acro{VMS}] \TeX{} for Open\acro{VMS} is available. % Standard tape distribution is through \acro{DECUS} % (see \Qref[question]{sources of software}{Q-archives}). \checked{RF}{1994/10/11} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[OpenVMS]\CTANref{OpenVMSTeX} \end{ctanrefs} \item[Atari] \TeX{} is available for the Atari \acro{ST}. If anonymous |ftp| is not available to you, send a message containing the line `|help|' to \mailto{atari@atari.archive.umich.edu} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[Atari TeX]\CTANref{atari} \end{ctanrefs} \item[Amiga] Full implementations of \TeX{} 3.1 (Pas\TeX{}) and \MF{} 2.7 are available. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[PasTeX]\CTANref{amiga} \end{ctanrefs} \item[\acro{TOPS}-20] \TeX{} was originally written on a \acro{DEC}-10 under \acro{WAITS}, and so was easily ported to \acro{TOPS}-20. A distribution that runs on \acro{TOPS}-20 is available via anonymous |ftp| from \FTP|ftp.math.utah.edu| in \path{pub/tex/pub/web} \checked{RF}{2001/03/01} \end{description} \Question[Q-editors]{\TeX{}-friendly editors and shells} There are good \TeX{}-writing environments and editors for most operating systems; some are described below, but this is only a personal selection: \begin{description} \item[Unix] Try \href{http://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/emacs.html}{\acro{GNU}\nobreakspace\ProgName{emacs}} or \href{http://www.xemacs.org/}{\ProgName{XEmacs}}, and the \acro{AUC}-\TeX{} bundle (available from \acro{CTAN}). \acro{AUC}-\TeX{} provides menu items and control sequences for common constructs, checks syntax, lays out markup nicely, lets you call \TeX{} and drivers from within the editor, and everything else like this that you can think of. Complex, but very powerful. Many who fail to find the versions of \ProgName{emacs} attractive, prefer \href{http://vim.sourceforge.net}{\ProgName{vim}}, a highly configurable editor (also available for Windows and Macintosh systems). Many plugins are available to support the needs of the \AllTeX{} user, including syntax highlighting, calling \TeX{} programs, auto-insertion and -completion of common \AllTeX{} structures, and browsing \LaTeX{} help. The scripts \File{auctex.vim} and \File{bibtex.vim} seem to be the most common recommendations. The editor \href{http://nedit.org/}{\ProgName{NEdit}} is also free and programmable, and is available for Unix systems. An \acro{AUC}-\TeX{}-alike set of extensions for \ProgName{NEdit} is available from \acro{CTAN}. \ProgName{LaTeX4Jed} provides much enhanced \LaTeX{} support for the \href{http://www.jedsoft.org/jed/}{\ProgName{jed}} editor. \ProgName{LaTeX4Jed} is similar to \acro{AUC}-\TeX{}: menus, shortcuts, templates, syntax highlighting, document outline, integrated debugging, symbol completion, full integration with external programs, and more. It was designed with both the beginner and the advanced LaTeX user in mind. The \ProgName{Kile} editor that is provided with the \acro{KDE} window manager provides \acro{GUI} ``shell-like'' facilities, in a similar way to the the widely-praised \ProgName{Winedt} (see below); details (and downloads) are available from the project's \href{http://kile.sourceforge.net/}{home on SourceForge}. A newer system (by \ProgName{Kile}'s original author), \href{http://www.xm1math.net/texmaker/}{\ProgName{texmaker}} doesn't rely on \acro{KDE}'s facilities, and so may be more easily portable. \item[\MSDOS{}] \TeX{}shell is a simple, easily-customisable environment, which can be used with the editor of your choice. You can also use \acro{GNU}~\ProgName{emacs} and \acro{AUC}-\TeX{} under \MSDOS{}. \item[Windows '9x, NT, etc.]\ProgName{TeXnicCenter} is a (free) \TeX{}-oriented development system, uniting a powerful platform for executing \AllTeX{} and friends with a configurable editor. \ProgName{Winedt}, a shareware package, is also highly spoken of. It too provides a shell for the use of \TeX{} and related programs, as well as a powerful and well-configured editor. Both \ProgName{emacs} and \ProgName{vim} are available in versions for Windows systems. \item[\acro{OS/}2] \ProgName{epmtex} offers an \acro{OS/}2-specific shell. \item[Macintosh] The commercial Textures provides an excellent integrated Macintosh environment with its own editor. More powerful still (as an editor) is the shareware \ProgName{Alpha} which is extensible enough to let you perform almost any \TeX{}-related job. It works well with Oz\TeX{}. For MacOS~X users, the tool of choice appears to be \href{http://www.uoregon.edu/~koch/texshop/texshop.html}{TeXShop}, which combines an editor and a shell with a coherent philosophy of dealing with \AllTeX{} in the OS~X environment. \ProgName{Vim} is available for use on Macintosh systems. \end{description} Atari, Amiga and \acro{N}e\acro{XT} users also have nice environments. \LaTeX{} users looking for \ProgName{make}-like facilities should try \ProgName{latexmk}. While many \AllTeX{}-oriented editors can support work on \BibTeX{} files, there are many systems that provide specific ``database-like'' access to your \BibTeX{} files~--- % ! line break \htmlonly{see }\Qref{``creating a bibliography file''}{Q-buildbib}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[alpha]\CTANref{alpha} \item[auctex]\CTANref{auctex} \item[epmtex]\CTANref{epmtex} \item[latexmk]\CTANref{latexmk} \item[LaTeX4Jed]\CTANref{latex4jed} \item[Nedit LaTeX support]\CTANref{nedit-latex} \item[TeXnicCenter]\CTANref{texniccenter} \item[TeXshell]\CTANref{texshell} \item[TeXtelmExtel]\CTANref{TeXtelmExtel} \item[winedt]\CTANref{winedt} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-commercial]{Commercial \TeX{} implementations} \keywords{windows,macintosh,commercial} There are many commercial implementations of \TeX{}. The first appeared not long after \TeX{} itself appeared. What follows is probably an incomplete list. Naturally, no warranty or fitness for purpose is implied by the inclusion of any vendor in this list. The source of the information is given to provide some clues to its currency. In general, a commercial implementation will come `complete', that is, with suitable previewers and printer drivers. They normally also have extensive documentation (\emph{i.e}., not just the \TeX{}book!) and some sort of support service. In some cases this is a toll free number (probably applicable only within the \acro{USA} and or Canada), but others also have email, and normal telephone and fax support. \begin{description} \item[\acro{PC}; True\TeX{}] Runs on all versions of Windows. \begin{quote} Richard J. Kinch\\ TrueTeX Software\\ 7890 Pebble Beach Court\\ Lake Worth \acro{FL} 33467\\ \acro{USA}\\[.25\baselineskip] Tel: +1 561-966-8400\\ Email: \mailto{kinch@truetex.com}\\ Web: \URL{http://www.truetex.com/} \end{quote} Source: Mail from Richard Kinch, August 2004. %% \item[\acro{PC}; \YandY{} \TeX{}] ``Bitmap free \TeX{} for Windows.'' %% \begin{quote} %% \YandY{}, Inc.\\ %% 106 Indian Hill, \acro{MA} 01741-1747\\ %% \acro{USA}\\[.25\baselineskip] %% Tel: 800-742-4059 (within North America)\\ %% Tel: +1 978-371-3286\\ %% Fax: +1 978-371-2004\\ %% Email: \mailto{sales-help@YandY.com} and %% \nothtml{\\ \hphantom{Email: }}% %% \mailto{tech-help@YandY.com}\\ %% Web: \URL{http://www.YandY.com/} %% \end{quote} %% Source: Confirmed with \YandY{}, February 2003 \item[pc\TeX{}] Long-established: pc\TeX{}32 is a Windows implementation. \begin{quote} Personal \TeX{} Inc\\ 725 Greenwich Street, Suite 210 \\ San Francisco, \acro{CA} 94133\\ \acro{USA}\\[.25\baselineskip] Tel: 800-808-7906 (within the \acro{USA})\\ Tel: +1 415-296-7550\\ Fax: +1 415-296-7501\\ Email: \mailto{sales@pctex.com}\\ Web: \URL{http://www.pctex.com/} \end{quote} Source: Personal \TeX{} Inc web site, December 2004 \item[\acro{PC}; V\TeX{}] \acro{DVI}, \acro{PDF} and \acro{HTML} backends, Visual Tools and Type 1 fonts \begin{quote} MicroPress Inc\\ 68-30 Harrow Street\\ Forest Hills, \acro{NY} 11375\\ \acro{USA}\\[.25\baselineskip] Tel: +1 718-575-1816\\ Fax: +1 718-575-8038\\ Email: \mailto{support@micropress-inc.com}\\ Web: \URL{http://www.micropress-inc.com/} \end{quote} Source: Mail from MicroPress, Inc., July 1999 \item[\acro{PC}; Scientific Word] Scientific Word and Scientific Workplace offer a mechanism for near-\WYSIWYG{} input of \LaTeX{} documents; they ship with True\TeX{} from Kinch (see above). Queries within the \acro{UK} and Ireland should be addressed to Scientific Word Ltd., others should be addressed directly to the publisher, MacKichan Software Inc. \begin{quote} Dr Christopher Mabb\\ Scientific Word Ltd.\\ 20 Bankpark Crescent\\ Tranent\\ East Lothian, \acro{EH}33 1\acro{AS}\\ \acro{UK}\\[0.25\baselineskip] Tel: 0845 766\,0340 (within the \acro{UK}) \\ Tel: +44 1875 616516 \\ Fax: 01875 613513 (within the \acro{UK}) \\ Email: \mailto{christopher@sciword.demon.co.uk} \\ Web: \URL{http://www.sciword.demon.co.uk} \end{quote} \begin{quote} MacKichan Software Inc.\\ 19307 8th Avenue, Suite C\\ Poulsbo \acro{WA} 98370-7370\\ \acro{USA}\\[0.25\baselineskip] Tel: +1 360 394\,6033\\ Tel: 877 724\,9673 (within the \acro{USA}) Fax: +1 360 394\,6039\\ Email: \mailto{info@mackichan.com}\\ Web: \URL{http://www.mackichan.com} \end{quote} Source: Mail from Christopher Mabb, November 2004 \item[Macintosh; Textures] ``A \TeX{} system `for the rest of us'\,''; also gives away a \MF{} implementation and some font manipulation tools. \begin{quote} Blue Sky Research\\ 534 SW Third Avenue\\ Portland, \acro{OR} 97204\\ \acro{USA}\\[.25\baselineskip] Tel: 800-622-8398 (within the \acro{USA})\\ Tel: +1 503-222-9571\\ Fax: +1 503-222-1643\\ Email: \mailto{sales@bluesky.com}\\ Web: \URL{http://www.bluesky.com/} \end{quote} Source: \TUGboat{} 15(1) (1994) \item[Amiga\TeX{}] A full implementation for the Commodore Amiga, including full, on-screen and printing support for all \PS{} graphics and fonts, IFF raster graphics, automatic font generation, and all of the standard macros and utilities. \begin{quote} Radical Eye Software\\ \acro{PO} Box 2081\\ Stanford, \acro{CA} 94309\\ \acro{USA} \end{quote} Source: Mail from Tom Rokicki, November 1994 \end{description} \checked{mc}{1994/11/09}% \checked{RF}{1994/11/24}% Note that the company \YandY{} has gone out of business, and \YandY{} \TeX{} (and support for it) is therefore no longer available. Users of \YandY{} systems may care to use the self-help \href*{http://lists.ucc.ie/lists/archives/yandytex.html}{mailing list} that was established in 2003. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{\acro{DVI} Drivers and Previewers} \Question[Q-dvips]{\acro{DVI} to \PS{} conversion programs} The best public domain \acro{DVI} to \PS{} conversion program, which runs under many operating systems, is Tom Rokicki's \ProgName{dvips}. \ProgName{dvips} is written in \acro{C} and ports easily. All current development is in the context of Karl Berry's \ProgName{kpathsea} library, and sources are available from the \TeX{}~live repository. An \acro{VMS} versions is available as part of the \acro{CTAN} distribution of \TeX{} for \acro{VMS}. A precompiled version to work with em\TeX{} is available on \acro{CTAN}. %Another good portable program is \ProgName{dvitops} by James Clark, %which is also written in C and will compile under Unix, \MSDOS{}, \acro{VMS}, %and Primos; however, it does not support virtual fonts. It is %available from %\CTANref{dvitops} Macintosh users can use either the excellent drivers built into Oz\TeX{} or Textures, or a port of \ProgName{dvips} in the \acro{CM}ac\TeX{} package. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\MSDOS{} and \nothtml{\acro}{OS/}2]\CTANref{dvips-pc} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}VMS distribution]\CTANref{OpenVMSTeX} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-HPdrivers]{\acro{DVI} drivers for \acro{HP} LaserJet} The em\TeX{} distribution (see \Qref[question]{\TeX{} systems}{Q-TeXsystems}) contains a driver for the LaserJet, \ProgName{dvihplj}. Version 2.10 of the Beebe drivers supports the LaserJet. These drivers will compile under Unix, \acro{VMS}, and on the Atari ST and \acro{DEC}-20s. For Unix systems, Karl Berry's \ProgName{dviljk} uses the same path-searching library as \ProgName{web2c}. \ProgName{dviljk} is no longer distributed as a separate source, but the te\TeX{} distribution holds a copy under the name \ProgName{dvilj}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Beebe drivers]\CTANref{beebe} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-otherprinters]{Output to ``other'' printers} In the early years of \TeX{}, there were masses of \acro{DVI} drivers for any (then) imaginable kind of printer, but the steam seems rather to have gone out of the market for production of such drivers for printer-specific formats. There are several reasons for this, but the primary one is that few formats offer the flexibility available through \PS{}, and \ProgName{ghostscript} is \emph{so} good, and has \emph{such} a wide range of printer drivers (perhaps this is where the \acro{DVI} output driver writers have all gone?). The general advice, then, is to \nothtml{generate \PS{} (}% \Qref{generate \PS{}}{Q-dvips}\nothtml{)}, and to process that with \ProgName{ghostscript} set to generate the format for the printer you actually have. If you are using a Unix system of some sort, it's generally quite easy to insert \ProgName{ghostscript} into the print spooling process. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ghostscript]Browse \CTANref{ghostscript} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-previewers]{\acro{DVI} previewers} Em\TeX{} for \acro{PC}s running \MSDOS{} or \acro{OS/}2, MiK\TeX{} and fp\TeX{} for \acro{PC}s running Windows and Oz\TeX{} for the Macintosh, all come with previewers that can be used on those platforms. Em\TeX{}'s previewer can also be run under Windows~3.1. Commercial \acro{PC} \TeX{} packages (see \Qref[question]{commercial vendors}{Q-commercial}) have good previewers for \acro{PC}s running Windows, or for Macintoshes. For Unix systems, there is one `canonical' viewer, \ProgName{xdvi}. \ProgName{Xdvik} is a version of \ProgName{xdvi} using the \ProgName{web2c} libraries; it is now built from the same distribution as \ProgName{xdvi}. Unix \TeX{} distributions (such as te\TeX{}) include a version of \ProgName{xdvik} using the same version of \ProgName{web2c} as the rest of the distribution. Alternatives to previewing include \begin{itemize} \item conversion to `similar' \acro{ASCII} text (see \Qref[question]{converting to \acro{ASCII}}{Q-toascii}) and using a conventional text viewer to look at that, \item generating a \PS{} version of your document and viewing it with a \ProgName{Ghostscript}-based previewer (see \Qref[question]{previewing \PS{} files}{Q-PSpreview}), and \item generating \acro{PDF} output, and viewing that with \ProgName{Acrobat} \ProgName{Reader} or one of the substitutes for that. \end{itemize} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[xdvi]\CTANref{xdvi} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-dvi-bmp]{Generating bitmaps from \acro{DVI}} In the last analysis, any \acro{DVI} driver or previewer is generating bitmaps: bitmaps for placing tiny dots on paper via a laser- or inkjet-printer, or bitmaps for filling some portion of your screen. However, it's usually difficult to extract any of those bitmaps any way other than by screen capture, and the resolution of \emph{that} is commonly lamentable. Why would one want separate bitmaps? Most often, the requirement is for something that can be included in \acro{HTML} generated from \AllTeX{} source~--- not everything that you can write in \AllTeX{} can be translated to \acro{HTML} (at least, portable \acro{HTML} that may be viewed in `most' browsers), so the commonest avoiding action is to generate a bitmap of the missing bit. Examples are maths (a maths extension to the |*|\acro{ML} family is available but not widely used), and `exotic' typescripts (ones that you cannot guarantee your readers will have available). Other common examples are generation of sample bitmaps, and generation for insertion into some other application's display~--- to insert equations into Microsoft PowerPoint, or to support the enhanced-\ProgName{emacs} setup called \nothtml{\ProgName{preview}-\ProgName{latex} (}% beware line breaks \Qref{\ProgName{preview}-\ProgName{latex}}{Q-WYGexpts}\nothtml{)}. In the past, the commonest way of generating bitmaps was to generate a \PS{} file of the \acro{DVI} and then use \ProgName{ghostscript} to produce the required bitmap format (possibly by way of \acro{PNM} format or something similar). This is an undesirable procedure (it is very slow, and requires two or three steps) but it has served for a long time. \AllTeX{} users may now take advantage of two bitmap `drivers'. The longest-established, \ProgName{dvi2bitmap}, will generate \acro{XBM} and \acro{XPM} formats, the long-deprecated \acro{GIF} format (which is now obsolescent, but is finally, in Summer 2003, to be relieved of the patent protection of the \acro{LZW} compression it uses), and also the modern (\acro{ISO}-standardised) \acro{PNG} format. Dvipng started out as a PNG renderer; from version 1.2 it can also render to the GIF format. It is designed for speed, in environments that generate large numbers of \acro{PNG} files: the \File{README} mentions \ProgName{preview}-\ProgName{latex}, \ProgName{LyX}, and a few web-oriented environments. Note that \ProgName{dvipng} gives high-quality output even though its internal operations are optimised for speed. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[dvi2bitmap]\CTANref{dvi2bitmap} \item[dvipng]\CTANref{dvipng} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Support Packages for \TeX{}} \Question[Q-fig]{Fig, a \AllTeX{}-friendly drawing package} \ProgName{(X)Fig} is a menu driven tool that allows you to draw objects on the screen of an \acro{X} workstation; \ProgName{transfig} is a set of tools which translate the code \ProgName{fig}. The list of export formats is very long, and includes \MF{} and \MP{}, Encapsulated \PS{} and \acro{PDF}, as well as combinations that wrap a graphics format in a \LaTeX{} import file. There's no explicit port of \ProgName{xfig} to windows (although it is believed to work under \ProgName{cygwin} with their X-windows system). However, the program \href{http://tech-www.informatik.uni-hamburg.de/applets/javafig/}{\ProgName{jfig}} is thought by many to be an acceptable substitute, written in Java. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[xfig]\CTANref{xfig} \item[transfig]\CTANref{transfig} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-texcad]{\TeX{}\acro{CAD}, a drawing package for \LaTeX{}} \TeX{}\acro{CAD} is a program for the \acro{PC} which enables the user to draw diagrams on screen using a mouse or arrow keys, with an on-screen menu of available picture-elements. Its output is code for the \LaTeX{} \environment{picture} environment. Optionally, it can be set to include lines at all angles using the em\TeX{} driver-family \htmlignore |\special|s (\Qref{}{Q-specials}). \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \Qref{\csx{special}s}{Q-specials}. \end{htmlversion} \TeX{}\acro{CAD} is part of the em\TeX{} distribution. A Unix port of the program (\ProgName{xtexcad}) has been made. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[emtex]\CTANref{emtex} \item[xtexcad]\CTANref{xtexcad} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-spell]{Spelling checkers for work with \TeX{}} For Unix, \ProgName{ispell} has long the program of choice; it is well integrated with \ProgName{emacs}, and deals with some \TeX{} syntax. However, it is increasingly challenged by \ProgName{aspell}, which was designed as a successor, and certainly performs better on most metrics; there remains some question as to its performance with \AllTeX{} sources. For Windows, there is a good spell checker incorporated into many of the \Qref*{shell/editor}{Q-editors} combinations that are available. The spell checker from the (now defunct) 4All\TeX{} shell remains available as a separate package, \ProgName{4spell}. For the Macintosh, \ProgName{Excalibur} is the program of choice. It will run in native mode on both sorts of Macintosh. The distribution comes with dictionaries for several languages. The \acro{VMS} Pascal program \ProgName{spell} makes special cases of some important features of \LaTeX{} syntax. For \MSDOS{}, there are several programs. \ProgName{Amspell} can be called from within an editor, and \ProgName{jspell} is an extended version of \ProgName{ispell}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[4spell]\CTANref{4spell} \item[amspell]\CTANref{amspell} \item[aspell]Browse \CTANref{aspell}~--- choose just those language dictionaries (under subdirectory \File{dict/} that you need. \item[excalibur]\CTANref{Excalibur} \item[ispell]\CTANref{ispell} \item[jspell]\CTANref{jspell} \item[\nothtml{\bgroup\rmfamily}\acro{VMS}\nothtml{\egroup} spell]% \CTANref{vmspell} \item[winedt]\CTANref{winedt} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-wordcount]{How many words have you written?} One often has to submit a document (e.g., a paper or a dissertation) under some sort of constraint about its size. Sensible people set a constraint in terms of numbers of pages, but there are some that persist in limiting the numbers of words you type. A simple solution to the requirement can be achieved following a simple observation: the powers that be are unlikely to count all the words of a document submitted to them. Therefore, a statistical method can be employed: find how many words there are on a full page; find how many full pages there are in the document (allowing for displays of various sorts, this number will probably not be an integer); multiply the two. However, if the document to be submitted is to determine the success of the rest of one's life, it takes a brave person to thumb their nose at authority quite so comprehensively\dots{} The simplest method is to strip out the \AllTeX{} markup, and to count what's left. On a Unix-like system, this may be done using \ProgName{detex} and the built-in \ProgName{wc}: \begin{verbatim} detex | wc -w \end{verbatim} The \ProgName{latexcount} script does the same sort of job, in one ``step''; being a \ProgName{perl} script, it is in principle rather easily configured (see documentation inside the script). \ProgName{Winedt} (see \Qref[question]{editors and shells}{Q-editors}) provides this functionality direct in the Windows environment. Simply stripping \AllTeX{} markup isn't entirely reliable, however: that markup itself may contribute typeset words, and this could be a problem. The \Package{wordcount} package contains a Bourne shell (i.e., typically Unix) script for running a \LaTeX{} file with a special piece of supporting \TeX{} code, and then counting word indications in the log file. This is probably as accurate automatic counting as you can get. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[detex]\CTANref{detex} \item[wordcount]\CTANref{wordcount} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Literate programming} \Question[Q-lit]{What is Literate Programming?} Literate programming is the combination of documentation and source together in a fashion suited for reading by human beings. In general, literate programs combine source and documentation in a single file. Literate programming tools then parse the file to produce either readable documentation or compilable source. The \acro{WEB} style of literate programming was created by D.~E.~Knuth during the development of \TeX{}. \htmlignore The ``documented \LaTeX{}'' style of programming (\Qref{}{Q-dtx}) \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} The \Qref{``documented \LaTeX{}''}{Q-dtx} style of programming \end{htmlversion} is regarded by some as a form of literate programming, though it only contains a subset of the constructs Knuth used. Discussion of literate programming is conducted in the newsgroup \Newsgroup{comp.programming.literate}, whose \acro{FAQ} is stored on \acro{CTAN}. Another good source of information is \URL{http://www.literateprogramming.com/} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Literate Programming \acro{FAQ}]% \CTANref{LitProg-FAQ} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-webpkgs]{\acro{WEB} systems for various languages} \TeX{} is written in the programming language \acro{WEB}; \acro{WEB} is a tool to implement the concept of ``literate programming''. Knuth's original implementation will be in any respectable distribution of \TeX{}, but the sources of the two tools (\ProgName{tangle} and \ProgName{weave}), together with a manual outlining the programming techniques, may be had from \acro{CTAN}. \acro{\ProgName{CWEB}}, by Silvio Levy, is a \acro{WEB} for \acro{C} programs. Spidery \acro{WEB}, by Norman Ramsey, supports many languages including Ada, |awk|, and \acro{C} and, while not in the public domain, is usable without charge. It is now superseded by \ProgName{noweb} (also by Norman Ramsay) which incorporates the lessons learned in implementing spidery \acro{WEB}, and which is a simpler, equally powerful, tool. \acro{\ProgName{FWEB}}, by John Krommes, is a version for Fortran, Ratfor, and \acro{C}. \ProgName{Scheme}\acro{\ProgName{WEB}}, by John Ramsdell, is a Unix filter that translates Scheme\acro{WEB} into \LaTeX{} source or Scheme source. \acro{\ProgName{APLWEB}} is a version of \acro{WEB} for \acro{APL}. \ProgName{FunnelWeb} is a version of \acro{WEB} that is language independent. Other language independent versions of \acro{WEB} are \ProgName{nuweb} (which is written in \acro{ANSI} \acro{C}). \ProgName{Tweb} is a \acro{WEB} for Plain \TeX{} macro files, using \ProgName{noweb}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[aplweb]\CTANref{aplweb} \item[cweb]\CTANref{cweb} \item[funnelweb]\CTANref{funnelweb} \item[fweb]\CTANref{fweb} \item[noweb]\CTANref{noweb} \item[nuweb]\CTANref{nuweb} \item[schemeweb]\CTANref{schemeweb} \item[spiderweb]\CTANref{spiderweb} \item[tangle]\CTANref{web} \item[tweb]\CTANref{tweb} \item[weave]\CTANref{web} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Format conversions} \Question[Q-toascii]{Conversion from \AllTeX{} to plain \acro{ASCII}} The aim here is to emulate the Unix \ProgName{nroff}, which formats text as best it can for the screen, from the same input as the Unix typesetting program \ProgName{troff}. Converting \acro{DVI} to plain text is the basis of many of these techniques; sometimes the simple conversion provides a good enough response. Options are: \begin{itemize} \item \ProgName{dvi2tty} (one of the earliest) \item \ProgName{crudetype} \item \ProgName{catdvi}, which is also capable of generating Latin-1 or \acro{UTF}-8 encoded output. \ProgName{Catdvi} was conceived as a replacement for \ProgName{dvi2tty}, but can't (quite) be recommended as a complete replacement yet. \end{itemize} Ralph Droms provides a \Package{txt} bundle of things in support of \acro{ASCII} generation, but it doesn't do a good job with tables and mathematics. An alternative is the \Package{screen} package. Another possibility is to use the \LaTeX{}-to-\acro{ASCII} conversion program, \ProgName{l2a}, although this is really more of a de-\TeX{}ing program. The canonical de-\TeX{}ing program is \ProgName{detex}, which removes all comments and control sequences from its input before writing it to its output. Its original purpose was to prepare input for a dumb spelling checker, and it's only usable for preparing useful \acro{ASCII} versions of a document in highly restricted circumstances. \ProgName{Tex2mail} is slightly more than a de-TeX{}er~--- it's a \ProgName{Perl} script that converts \TeX{} files into plain text files, expanding various mathematical symbols (sums, products, integrals, sub/superscripts, fractions, square roots, \dots{}\@) into ``\acro{ASCII} art'' that spreads over multiple lines if necessary. The result is more readable to human beings than the flat-style \TeX{} code. Another significant possibility is to use one of the \nothtml{\acro{HTML}-generation solutions (}% % beware line wrap \Qref{\acro{HTML}-generation solutions}{Q-LaTeX2HTML}\nothtml{)}, and then to use a browser such as \ProgName{lynx} to dump the resulting \acro{HTML} as plain text. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[catdvi]\CTANref{catdvi} \item[crudetype]\CTANref{crudetype} \item[detex]\CTANref{detex} \item[dvi2tty]\CTANref{dvi2tty} \item[l2a]\CTANref{l2a} \item[screen.sty]\CTANref{screensty} \item[tex2mail]\CTANref{tex2mail} \item[txt]\CTANref{txtdist} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-SGML2TeX]{Conversion from \acro{SGML} or \acro{HTML} to \protect\TeX{}} \acro{SGML} is a very important system for document storage and interchange, but it has no formatting features; its companion \acro{ISO} standard \acro{DSSSL} (see \URL{http://www.jclark.com/dsssl/}) is designed for writing transformations and formatting, but this has not yet been widely implemented. Some \acro{SGML} authoring systems (e.g., SoftQuad \ProgName{Author/Editor}) have formatting abilities, and there are high-end specialist \acro{SGML} typesetting systems (e.g., Miles33's \ProgName{Genera}). However, the majority of \acro{SGML} users probably transform the source to an existing typesetting system when they want to print. \TeX{} is a good candidate for this. There are three approaches to writing a translator: \begin{enumerate} \item Write a free-standing translator in the traditional way, with tools like \ProgName{yacc} and \ProgName{lex}; this is hard, in practice, because of the complexity of \acro{SGML}. \item Use a specialist language designed for \acro{SGML} transformations; the best known are probably \ProgName{Omnimark} and \ProgName{Balise}. They are expensive, but powerful, incorporating \acro{SGML} query and transformation abilities as well as simple translation. \item Build a translator on top of an existing \acro{SGML} parser. By far the best-known (and free!) parser is James Clark's \ProgName{nsgmls}, and this produces a much simpler output format, called \acro{ESIS}, which can be parsed quite straightforwardly (one also has the benefit of an \acro{SGML} parse against the \acro{DTD}). Two good public domain packages use this method: \begin{itemize} \item \begin{narrowversion} % really non-hyper David Megginson's \ProgName{sgmlspm}, written in \ProgName{Perl} 5, which is available from \URL{http://www.perl.com/CPAN/modules/by-module/SGMLS} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} David Megginson's \href{http://www.perl.com/CPAN/modules/by-module/SGMLS}{\ProgName{sgmlspm}}, written in \ProgName{Perl} 5. \end{wideversion} %or |home.sprynet.com/sprynet/dmeggins/SGMLSpm-1.03ii.tar.gz| %was |www.uottawa.ca/~dmeggins/SGMLSpm/sgmlspm.html| \item \begin{narrowversion} % really non-hyper Joachim Schrod and Christine Detig's \ProgName{stil}, written in Common Lisp, which is available from \URL{ftp://ftp.th-darmstadt.de/pub/text/sgml/stil} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} Joachim Schrod and Christine Detig's \href{ftp://ftp.th-darmstadt.de/pub/text/sgml/stil}{\ProgName{stil}}, written in Common Lisp. \end{wideversion} % checked RF 2001/03/19 \end{itemize} Both of these allow the user to write `handlers' for every \acro{SGML} element, with plenty of access to attributes, entities, and information about the context within the document tree. If these packages don't meet your needs for an average \acro{SGML} typesetting job, you need the big commercial stuff. \end{enumerate} Since \acro{HTML} is simply an example of \acro{SGML}, we do not need a specific system for \acro{HTML}. However, Nathan Torkington developed % (\Email|Nathan.Torkington@vuw.ac.nz|) \ProgName{html2latex} from the \acro{HTML} parser in \acro{NCSA}'s Xmosaic package. The program takes an \acro{HTML} file and generates a \LaTeX{} file from it. The conversion code is subject to \acro{NCSA} restrictions, but the whole source is available on \acro{CTAN}. Michel Goossens and Janne Saarela published a very useful summary of \acro{SGML}, and of public domain tools for writing and manipulating it, in \TUGboat{} 16(2). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[html2latex \nothtml{\rmfamily}source]\CTANref{html2latex} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-LaTeX2HTML]{Conversion from \AllTeX{} to \acro{HTML}} \TeX{} and \LaTeX{} are well suited to producing electronically publishable documents. However, it is important to realize the difference between page layout and functional markup. \TeX{} is capable of extremely detailed page layout; \acro{HTML} is not, because \acro{HTML} is a functional markup language not a page layout language. \acro{HTML}'s exact rendering is not specified by the document that is published but is, to some degree, left to the discretion of the browser. If you require your readers to see an exact replication of what your document looks like to you, then you cannot use \acro{HTML} and you must use some other publishing format such as \acro{PDF}. That is true for any \acro{HTML} authoring tool. \TeX{}'s excellent mathematical capabilities remain a challenge in the business of conversion to \acro{HTML}. There are only two generally reliable techniques for generating mathematics on the web: creating bitmaps of bits of typesetting that can't be translated, and using symbols and table constructs. Neither technique is entirely satisfactory. Bitmaps lead to a profusion of tiny files, are slow to load, and are inaccessible to those with visual disabilities. The symbol fonts offer poor coverage of mathematics, and their use requires configuration of the browser. The future of mathematical browsing may be brighter~--- see % beware line break \Qref[question]{future Web technologies}{Q-mathml}. For today, possible packages are: \begin{description} \item[\ProgName{LaTeX2HTML}]a \ProgName{Perl} script package that supports \LaTeX{} only, and generates mathematics (and other ``difficult'' things) using bitmaps. The original version was written by Nikos Drakos for Unix systems, but the package now sports an illustrious list of co-authors and is also available for Windows systems. Michel Goossens and Janne Saarela published a detailed discussion of \ProgName{LaTeX2HTML}, and how to tailor it, in \TUGboat{} 16(2). A mailing list for users may be found via \URL{http://tug.org/mailman/listinfo/latex2html} \item[\ProgName{TtH}]a compiled program that supports either \LaTeX{} or plain \TeX{}, and uses the font/table technique for representing mathematics. It is written by Ian Hutchinson, using \ProgName{flex}. The distribution consists of a single \acro{C} source (or a compiled executable), which is easy to install and very fast-running. \item[\ProgName{Tex4ht}]a compiled program that supports either \LaTeX{} or plain \TeX{}, by processing a \acro{DVI} file; it uses bitmaps for mathematics, but can also use other technologies where appropriate. Written by Eitan Gurari, it parses the \acro{DVI} file generated when you run \AllTeX{} over your file with \ProgName{tex4ht}'s macros included. As a result, it's pretty robust against the macros you include in your document, and it's also pretty fast. \item[\ProgName{TeXpider}] a commercial program from % beware line breaks \nothtml{MicroPress (see }% \Qref[question]{Micropress}{Q-commercial}\latexhtml{),}{,} which is described on \URL{http://www.micropress-inc.com/webb/wbstart.htm}; it uses bitmaps for equations. \item[\ProgName{Hevea}] a compiled program that supports \LaTeX{} only, and uses the font/table technique for equations (indeed its entire approach is very similar to \ProgName{TtH}). It is written in Objective \acro{CAML} by Luc Maranget. \ProgName{Hevea} isn't archived on \acro{CTAN}; details (including download points) are available via \URL{http://pauillac.inria.fr/~maranget/hevea/} \end{description} An interesting set of samples, including conversion of the same text by the four free programs listed above, is available at \URL{http://www.mayer.dial.pipex.com/samples/example.htm}; a linked page gives lists of pros and cons, by way of comparison. The World Wide Web Consortium maintains a list of ``filters'' to \acro{HTML}, with sections on \AllTeX{} and \BibTeX{}~--- see \URL{http://www.w3.org/Tools/Word_proc_filters.html} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[latex2html]Browse \CTANref{latex2html} \item[tex4ht]\CTANref{tex4ht} \item[tth]\CTANref{tth} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-fmtconv]{Other conversions to and from \AllTeX{}} \begin{description} \item[troff]\ProgName{troff-to-latex}, written by Kamal Al-Yahya at Stanford University (California, \acro{USA}), assists in the translation of a \ProgName{troff} document into \LaTeX{} format. It recognises most |-ms| and |-man| macros, plus most \ProgName{eqn} and some \ProgName{tbl} preprocessor commands. Anything fancier needs to be done by hand. Two style files are provided. There is also a man page (which converts very well to \LaTeX{}\dots{}). The program is copyrighted but free. \ProgName{tr2latex} is an enhanced version of this \ProgName{troff-to-latex}. % The \acro{DECUS} \TeX{} distribution (see % \Qref[question]{sources of software}{Q-archives}) % also contains a program which converts \ProgName{troff} to \TeX{}. %\item[Scribe] Mark James (\Email|jamesm@dialogic.com|) has a copy of % \ProgName{scribe2latex} he has been unable to test but which he will % let anyone interested have. The program was written by Van Jacobson % of Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory.% % \checked{RF}{1994/11/18} \item[WordPerfect] \ProgName{wp2latex} has recently been much improved, and is now available either for \MSDOS{} or for Unix systems, thanks to its current maintainer Jaroslav Fojtik. \item[\acro{PC}-Write]\ProgName{pcwritex.arc} is a print driver for \acro{PC}-Write that ``prints'' a \acro{PC}-Write V2.71 document to a \TeX{}-compatible disk file. It was written by Peter Flynn at University College, Cork, Republic of Ireland. \item[runoff] Peter Vanroose's \ProgName{rnototex} conversion program is written in \acro{VMS} Pascal. The sources are distributed with a \acro{VAX} executable. \item[refer/tib] There are a few programs for converting bibliographic data between \BibTeX{} and \ProgName{refer}/\ProgName{tib} formats. The collection includes a shell script converter from \BibTeX{} to \ProgName{refer} format as well. The collection is not maintained. \item[\acro{RTF}] \ProgName{Rtf2tex}, by Robert Lupton, is for converting Microsoft's Rich Text Format to \TeX{}. There is also a convertor to \LaTeX{} by Erwin Wechtl, called \ProgName{rtf2latex}. The latest converter, by Ujwal Sathyam and Scott Prahl, is \ProgName{rtf2latex2e}; this system seems rather good already, and is still being improved. Translation \emph{to} \acro{RTF} may be done (for a somewhat constrained set of \LaTeX{} documents) by \TeX{}2\acro{RTF}, which can produce ordinary \acro{RTF}, Windows Help \acro{RTF} (as well as \acro{HTML}, \Qref{conversion to HTML}{Q-LaTeX2HTML}). \TeX{}2\acro{RTF} is supported on various Unix platforms and under Windows~3.1 \item[Microsoft Word] A rudimentary (free) program for converting MS-Word to \LaTeX{} is \ProgName{wd2latex}, which runs on \MSDOS{}. \ProgName{Word2}\emph{\TeX{}} and \emph{\TeX{}}\ProgName{2Word} are shareware translators from % beware line break \href{http://www.chikrii.com/}{Chikrii Softlab}; users' reports are very positive. If cost is a constraint, the best bet is probably to use an intermediate format such as \acro{RTF} or \acro{HTML}. \ProgName{Word} outputs and reads both, so in principle this route may be useful. Another, unlikely, intermediate form is \acro{PDF}: Acrobat Reader for Windows (version 5.0 and later) will output rather feeble \acro{RTF} that \ProgName{Word} can read. \item[Excel] \ProgName{Excel2Latex} converts an \ProgName{Excel} file into a \LaTeX{} \environment{tabular} environment; it comes as a |.xls| file which defines some \ProgName{Excel} macros to produce output in a new format. \end{description} % beware line breaks \href{http://www.tug.org/utilities/texconv/index.html}{Wilfried Hennings' \acro{FAQ}}, which deals specifically with conversions between \TeX{}-based formats and word processor formats, offers much detail as well as tables that allow quick comparison of features. A group at Ohio State University (\acro{USA}) is working on a common document format based on \acro{SGML}, with the ambition that any format could be translated to or from this one. \ProgName{FrameMaker} provides ``import filters'' to aid translation from alien formats (presumably including \TeX{}) to \ProgName{FrameMaker}'s own. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[excel2latex]\CTANref{excel2latex} \item[pcwritex.arc]\CTANref{pcwritex} \item[refer and tib tools]\CTANref{refer-tools} \item[rnototex]\CTANref{rnototex} \item[rtf2latex]\CTANref{rtf2latex} \item[rtf2latex2e]\CTANref{rtf2latex2e} \item[rtf2tex]\CTANref{rtf2tex} \item[tex2rtf]\CTANref{tex2rtf} \item[tr2latex]\CTANref{tr2latex} \item[troff-to-latex]\CTANref{troff-to-latex} \item[wd2latex]\CTANref{wd2latex} \item[wp2latex]\CTANref{wp2latex} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Word processor \acro{FAQ} (source)]% \CTANref{texcnvfaq} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-readML]{Using \TeX{} to read \acro{SGML} or \acro{XML} directly} This can nowadays be done, with a certain amount of clever macro programming. David Carlisle's \Package{xmltex} is the prime example; it offers a practical solution to typesetting \acro{XML} files. One use of a \TeX{} that can typeset \acro{XML} files is as a backend processor for \acro{XSL} formatting objects, serialized as \acro{XML}. Sebastian Rahtz's Passive\TeX{} uses \Package{xmltex} to achieve this end. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[xmltex]\CTANref{xmltex} \item[passivetex]\CTANref{passivetex} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-recovertex]{Retrieving \AllTeX{} from \acro{DVI}, etc.} The job just can't be done automatically: \acro{DVI}, \PS{} and \acro{PDF} are ``final'' formats, supposedly not susceptible to further editing~--- information about where things came from has been discarded. So if you've lost your \AllTeX{} source (or never had the source of a document you need to work on) you've a serious job on your hands. In many circumstances, the best strategy is to retype the whole document, but this strategy is to be tempered by consideration of the size of the document and the potential typists' skills. If automatic assistance is necessary, it's unlikely that any more than text retrieval is going to be possible; the \AllTeX{} markup that creates the typographic effects of the document needs to be recreated by editing. If the file you have is in \acro{DVI} format, many of the techniques for \nothtml{converting \AllTeX{} to \acro{ASCII} (}% \Qref{converting \AllTeX{} to \acro{ASCII}}{Q-toascii}\nothtml{)} are applicable. Consider \ProgName{dvi2tty}, \ProgName{crudetype} and \ProgName{catdvi}. Remember that there are likely to be problems finding included material (such as included \PS{} figures, that don't appear in the \acro{DVI} file itself), and mathematics is unlikely to convert easily. To retrieve text from \PS{} files, the \ProgName{ps2ascii} tool (part of the \ProgName{ghostscript} distribution) is available. One could try applying this tool to \PS{} derived from an \acro{PDF} file using \ProgName{pdf2ps} (also from the \ProgName{ghostscript} distribution), or \ProgName{Acrobat} \ProgName{Reader} itself; an alternative is \ProgName{pdftotext}, which is distributed with \ProgName{xpdf}. Another avenue available to those with a \acro{PDF} file they want to process is offered by Adobe \ProgName{Acrobat} (version 5 or later): you can tag the \acro{PDF} file into an estructured document, output thence to well-formed \acro{XHTML}, and import the results into Microsoft \ProgName{Word} (2000 or later). From there, one may convert to \AllTeX{} using one of the techniques discussed in % beware line break \htmlonly{``}\Qref[question]{converting to and from \AllTeX{}}{Q-fmtconv}\htmlonly{''}. The result will typically (at best) be poorly marked-up. Problems may also arise from the oddity of typical \TeX{} font encodings (notably those of the maths fonts), which \ProgName{Acrobat} doesn't know how to map to its standard Unicode representation. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[catdvi]\CTANref{catdvi} \item[crudetype]\CTANref{crudetype} \item[dvi2tty]\CTANref{dvi2tty} \item[ghostscript]Browse \CTANref{ghostscript} \item[xpdf]Browse \CTANref{xpdf} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-LaTeXtoPlain]{Translating \LaTeX{} to Plain \TeX{}} Unfortunately, no ``general'', simple, automatic process is likely to succeed at this task. See % beware (lots of) line breaks \nothtml{``How does \LaTeX{} relate to Plain \TeX{}'' (}% \htmlonly{``}\Qref{How does \LaTeX{} relate to Plain \TeX{}}{Q-LaTeXandPlain}\latexhtml{)}{''} for further details. Translating a document designed to work with \LaTeX{} into one designed to work with Plain \TeX{} is likely to amount to carefully including (or otherwise re-implementing) all those parts of \LaTeX{}, beyond the provisions of Plain \TeX{}, which the document uses. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Installing \AllTeX{} files} \Question[Q-instpackages]{Installing a new package} The first step in installing a new package for your \LaTeX{} system is usually to \Qref*{find where it is}{Q-findfiles} and then to get it, usually from \acro{CTAN}. However MiK\TeX{}, since version 2.1, offers a \Qref*{simpler procedure}{Q-miktexinst} than that described here, for packages it knows about. Ordinarily, you should download the whole distribution directory; the only occasion when this is not necessary is when you are getting something from one of the \AllTeX{} contributed ``\File{misc}'' directories on \acro{CTAN}; these directories contain collections of single files, which are supposedly complete in themselves. A small package \meta{smallpack} might be just a single \texttt{.sty} file (typically \File{smallpack.sty}) with the usage instructions either included as comments in the file or in a seperate user manual or \File{README} file. More often a package \meta{pack} will come as a pair of files, \File{pack.ins} and \File{pack.dtx}, written to be used with the \LaTeX{} \Package{doc} system. The package code must be extracted from these files. If there is a \File{README} file as part of the package distribution, read it! In the \Package{doc} system, the user manual and documented package code is in the |.dtx| file, and the |.ins| file contains \LaTeX{} instructions on what code should be extracted from the |.dtx| file. To unpack a \Package{doc} package \meta{pack}, do the following: \begin{itemize} \item Run latex on \Package{pack.ins}. This will generate one or more files (normally a \Package{pack.sty} file but there may be others depending on the particular package). \item Run latex on \Package{pack.dtx} as a start to getting the user manual and possibly a commented version of the package code. \item Run latex again on \Package{pack.dtx}, which should resolve any references and generate a Table of Contents if it was called for. \item \LaTeX{} may have said ``|No file pack.ind|''; this is the source for the command index; if you want the index, process the raw material with:\\ | makeindex -s gind.ist pack|\\ and run \LaTeX{} again. \item Print and read \File{pack.dvi} \end{itemize} Sometimes a user manual is supplied seperately from the \File{.dtx} file. Process this \emph{after} doing the above, just in case the user manual uses the package it is describing. Almost the final stage of the installation is to put the package file(s) \emph{`where \LaTeX{} can find them'}. Where the magic place is, and how you put the files there depends on your particular \LaTeX{} system and how it is set up (see % beware line-breaking, next three lines \Qref[question]{the \TeX{} directory structure standard}{Q-tds} for general principles, \Qref[question]{where to put files}{Q-wherefiles} for specific advice). The final stage is to tell \LaTeX{} that there is a new file, or files, that it should be able to go and find. Most free \LaTeX{} systems maintain a database of the names and locations of latex-related files to enable faster searching. In these systems the database must be updated, using the script or program provided with the distribution for this purpose. \begin{description} \item[te\TeX{}] Run: \\ \texttt{texhash} \item[web2c] On a current \Package{web2c} distribution, \texttt{texhash} ought to work; if it doesn't, run \texttt{mktexlsr} \item[fp\TeX{}] Click \texttt{Start}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Programs}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Texlive}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Maintenance}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Rebuild ls-R filenames databases}, or open a ``command'' window and run \texttt{texhash} \item[MiK\TeX{}] On a \Package{MikTeX} distribution earlier than v2.0, click \texttt{Start}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Programs}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{MikTeX}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Maintenance}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Refresh filename database} % this sequence confirmed ok for miktex 1.20, 2000/09/14, by Michael % Dewey of Nottingham University or get a DOS window and run:\\ \texttt{initexmf -\relax-update-fndb} On a \Package{MikTeX} distribution v2.0 or later, do:\\ \texttt{Start}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Programs}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{MikTeX 2}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{MikTeX Options}, and press the % beware line break \texttt{Refresh now} button (\texttt{Update filename database} in earlier versions of MiK\TeX{}). \end{description} Remember that a |\usepackage{pack}| command must be put in the preamble of each document in which you want to use the \Package{pack} package. \Question[Q-wherefiles]{Where to put new files} Where precisely you put files that you have downloaded does depend on what \TeX{} distribution you have. However, assuming that you have one of the modern \acro{TDS}-compliant distributions (such as te\TeX{}, fp\TeX{} or mik\TeX{}) there are some general rules that you can follow: % we're sort-of emulating an enumerated list here, but avoiding the % indentation normally associated with it. we can't afford the % indentation, since the columns (in 2-column mode) are so narrow. \htmlignore \vspace{2pt} \noindent \endhtmlignore (1) Always install new files in a local \File{texmf} tree. The root directory will be named something like: \begin{verbatim} teTeX: /usr/share/texmf-local/ or /usr/local/share/texmf/ fpTeX: c:\Programs\TeXLive\texmf-local\ mikTeX: c:\localtexmf\ \end{verbatim} (In fact, a te\TeX{} system can be asked to tell you what its local root is; on a Unix system, the command to use is: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} kpsewhich -expand-var "\$TEXMFLOCAL" \end{verbatim} \end{quote} the output being the actual path.) Let's write \texttt{\$TEXMF} for this root, whatever it is for your system. \htmlignore \vspace{2pt} \noindent \endhtmlignore (2) In your local texmf tree, imitate the directory structure in your main tree. Here are some examples of where files of given extensions should go: \begin{verbatim} .sty, .cls or .fd: $TEXMF/tex/latex// .dvi, .ps or .pdf: $TEXMF/doc/latex// .mf: $TEXMF/fonts/source/// .tfm: $TEXMF/fonts/tfm/// .vf: $TEXMF/fonts/vf/// .afm: $TEXMF/fonts/afm/// .pfb: $TEXMF/fonts/type1/// .ttf: $TEXMF/fonts/truetype/// \end{verbatim} and for modern systems (te\TeX{}~3.0, and the like, using \acro{TDS} v1.1 format): \begin{verbatim} .map: $TEXMF/fonts/map/// .enc: $TEXMF/fonts/enc/// \end{verbatim} Where of course \meta{package}, \meta{font} and \meta{supplier} depend upon what's appropriate for the individual file. The \meta{syntax} (for \texttt{.map} and \texttt{.enc} files) is a categorisation based on the way the files are written; typically, it's the name of a program such as \ProgName{dvips} or \ProgName{pdftex}. ``Straight'' \AllTeX{} input can take other forms than the \texttt{.sty}, \texttt{.cls} or \texttt{.fd} listed above, too. Examples are \texttt{.sto} and \texttt{.clo} for package and class options, \texttt{.cfg} for configuration information, and so on. Note that \meta{font} may stand for a single font or an entire family: for example, files for all of Knuth's Computer Modern fonts are to be found in \texttt{.../public/cm}, with various prefixes as appropriate. The font ``supplier'' \emph{public} is a sort of hold-all for ``free fonts produced for use with \AllTeX{}'': as well as Knuth's fonts, \emph{public}'s directory holds fonts designed by others (originally, but no longer exclusively, in \MF{}). Some packages have configuration files (commonly with file suffix \texttt{.cfg}), and occasionally other run-time files. The package documentation \emph{should} mention these things, but sometimes doesn't. A common exception is the \texttt{.drv} file, used by some packages as part of the documentation building process; this is a hang-over from the pre-\LaTeXe{} predecessor of the package documentation process. \Question[Q-miktexinst]{Installing MiK\TeX{} ``known packages''} MiK\TeX{} 2.1 (and later) maintains a database of packages it ``knows about'', together with (coded) installation instructions that enable it to install the packages with minimal user intervention. If MiK\TeX{} does know about a package you need installed, it's worth using the system. First, open the MiK\TeX{} packages window: click on \texttt{Start}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Programs}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{MikTeX}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{MikTeX Options}, and select the \texttt{Packages} tab. On the tab, there is an Explorer-style display of packages. Right-click on the root of the tree, ``\texttt{MikTeX Packages}'', and select ``\texttt{Search}'': enter the name of the package you're interested in, and press the ``\texttt{Search}'' button. If MiK\TeX{} knows about your package, it will open up the tree to show you a tick box for your package: check that box. If MiK\TeX{} \emph{doesn't} know about the package you're interested in, you have to use the \Qref*{long-winded procedure}{Q-instpackages} outlined elsewhere in this \acro{FAQ}. If necessary, repeat to select other packages, and then press ``\texttt{OK}''; MiK\TeX{} tells you how many packages you have selected~--- if you're happy, press ``\texttt{OK}'' again. MiK\TeX{} will go off, download the package (as a \texttt{.cab} file), if necessary, install the files of the package, and then refresh the filename database so that the files will be found. \Question[Q-tempinst]{``Temporary'' installation of \AllTeX{} files} Operating systems and applications need to know where to find files: many files that they need are ``just named''~--- the user doesn't necessarily know \emph{where} they are, but knows to ask for them. The commonest case, of course, is the commands whose names you type to a shell (yes, even Windows' ``\MSDOS{} prompt'') are using a shell to read what you type: many of the commands simply involve loading and executing a file, and the \texttt{PATH} variable tells the shell where to find those files. Modern \TeX{} implementations come with a bunch of search paths built in to them. In most circumstances these paths are adequate, but one sometimes needs to extend them to pick up files in strange places: for example, we may wish to try a new bundle of packages before \nothtml{installing them `properly' (}% % beware line break \Qref{installing them `properly'}{Q-instpackages}\nothtml{)}. To do this, we need to change the relevant path as \TeX{} perceives it. However, we don't want to throw away \TeX{}'s built-in path (all of a sudden, \TeX{} won't know how to deal with all sorts of things). To \emph{extend} a \TeX{} path, we define an operating system environment variable in `path format', but leaving a gap which \TeX{} will fill with its built-in value for the path. The commonest case is that we want to place our extension in front of the path, so that our new things will be chosen in preference, so we leave our `gap to be filled' at the end of the environment variable. The syntax is simple (though it depends which shell you're actually using): so on a Unix-like system, using the \ProgName{bash} shell, the job might be done like: \begin{verbatim} export TEXINPUTS=/tmp: \end{verbatim} while in a Windows system, within a \MSDOS{} window, it would be: \begin{verbatim} set TEXINPUTS=C:/temp; \end{verbatim} In either case, we're asking \TeX{} to load files from the root disc temporary files directory; in the Unix case, the ``empty slot'' is designated by putting the path separator `|:|' on its own at the end of the line, while in the Windows case, the technique is the same, but the path separator is `|;|'. Note that in either sort of system, the change will only affect instances of \TeX{} that are started from the shell where the environment variable was set. If you run \TeX{} from another window, it will use the original input path. To make a change of input path that will ``stick'' for all windows, set the environment variable in your login script or profile (or whatever) in a Unix system and log out and in again, or in \File{autoexec.bat} in a Windows system, and reboot the system. While all of the above has talked about where \TeX{} finds its macro files, it's applicable to pretty much any sort of file any \TeX{}-related program reads~--- there are lots of these paths, and of their corresponding environment variables. In a \ProgName{web2c}-based system, the copious annotations in the \File{texmf.cnf} system configuration file help you to learn which path names correspond to which type of file. \Question[Q-privinst]{``Private'' installations of files} It sometimes happens that you need a new version of some macro package or font, but that the machine you use is maintained by someone who's unwilling to update and won't give you privileges to do the job yourself. A \Qref*{``temporary'' installation}{Q-tempinst} is sometimes the correct approach, but if there's the slightest chance that the installation will be needed on more than one project, temporary installations aren't right. In circumstances where you have plenty of quota on backed-up media, or adequate local scratch space, the correct approach is to create a private installation of \AllTeX{} which includes the new stuff you need; this is the ideal, but is not generally possible. So, since you can't install into the public \texttt{texmf} tree, you have to install into a \File{texmf} of your own; fortunately, the \acro{TDS} standard allows for this, and te\TeX{} 2.0 actually makes provision for it, defining an internal variable \texttt{HOMETEXMF} which points to the directory \File{$HOME/texmf}. (Te\TeX{} 1.0 had the definition, but suppressed it with comment markers.) So, install your new package (or whatever) in the \Qref*{correct place}{Q-wherefiles} in a tree based on \File{$HOME/texmf}, and generate an index of that tree \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} texhash $HOME/texmf \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (the argument specifies which tree you are indexing: it's necessary since you don't, by hypothesis, have access to the main tree, and \ProgName{texhash} without the argument would try to write the main tree. There are two wrinkles to this simple formula: first, the installation you're using may \emph{not} define \texttt{HOMETEXMF} (te\TeX{}~1.0 didn't, for example), and second, there may be some obstruction to using \File{$HOME/texmf} as the default name. In either case, a good solution is to have your own \File{texmf.cnf}~--- an idea that sounds more frightening that it actually is. The installation's existing file may be located with the command: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} kpsewhich texmf.cnf \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Take a copy of the file and put it into a directory of your own; this could be any directory, but an obvious choice is the \File{web2c} directory of the tree you want to create, i.e., \File{$HOME/texmf/web2c} or the like. Make an environment variable to point to this directory: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} TEXMFCNF=$HOME/texmf/web2c export TEXMFCNF \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (for a Bourne shell style system), or \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} setenv TEXMFCNF $HOME/texmf/web2c \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (for a C-shell style system). Now edit the copy of \File{texmf.cnf} There will be a line in the existing file that defines the tree where everything searches; the simplest form of the line is: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} TEXMF = !!$TEXMFMAIN \end{verbatim} \end{quote} but, as te\TeX{}~1.0 is distributed, there are several alternative settings behind comment markers (``\texttt{\textpercent}''), and the person who installed your system may have left them there. Whatever, you need to modify the line that's in effect: change the above to three lines: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} HOMETEXMF = $HOME/texmf TEXMF = {$HOMETEXMF,!!$TEXMFMAIN} % TEXMF = !!$TEXMFMAIN \end{verbatim} \end{quote} the important point being that |$HOMETEXMF| must come before whatever was there before, inside the braces. For example, if the original was \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} TEXMF = {!!$LOCALTEXMF,!!$TEXMFMAIN} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} it should be converted to: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} HOMETEXMF = $HOME/texmf TEXMF = {$HOMETEXMF,!!$LOCALTEXMF, !!$TEXMFMAIN} % TEXMF = {!!$LOCALTEXMF,!!$TEXMFMAIN} \end{verbatim} {\small Note that the \texttt{TEXMF} line is only wrapped to make it fit in the column; there should be no line break or space between the final comma on the line and the \texttt{!!} on the next line.\par }% \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} HOMETEXMF = $HOME/texmf TEXMF = {$HOMETEXMF,!!$LOCALTEXMF,!!$TEXMFMAIN} % TEXMF = {!!$LOCALTEXMF,!!$TEXMFMAIN} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} (retaining the original, as a comment, is merely an aide-memoir in case you need to make another change, later). The \texttt{!!} signs tell the file-searching library that it should insist on a \ProgName{texhash}-ed directory tree; if you can count on yourself remembering to run \ProgName{texhash} on your new tree every time you change it, then it's worth adding the marks to your tree: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} TEXMF = {!!$HOMETEXMF,!!$LOCALTEXMF, !!$TEXMFMAIN} \end{verbatim} {\small Note that the line is only wrapped to make it fit in the column; there should be no line break or space between the final comma on the line and the \texttt{!!} on the next line.\par }% \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} TEXMF = {!!$HOMETEXMF,!!$LOCALTEXMF,!!$TEXMFMAIN} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} as this will make \AllTeX{} find its files marginally faster. Having made all these changes, \AllTeX{} should ``just use'' files in your new tree, in preference to anything in the main tree~--- you can use it for updates to packages in the main tree, as well as for installing new versions of things. \Question[Q-instfont]{Installing a new font} Fonts are really ``just another package'', and so should be installed in the same sort of way as packages. However, fonts tend to be more complicated than the average package, and as a result it's sometimes difficult to see the overall structure. Font files may appear in any of a large number of different formats; each format has a different function in a \TeX{} system, and each is stored in a directory its own sub-tree in the installation's \acro{TDS} tree; all these sub-trees have the directory \File{$TEXMF/fonts} as their root. A sequence of answers% \nothtml{, below,} describes the installation of fonts\latexhtml{.}{:} \begin{htmlversion} follow the list through the ``next question'' links at the bottom of this answer to view them all. \end{htmlversion} Other answers discuss specific font families~--- see, for example, % ! line break \htmlonly{``}\Qref[\htmlonly]{using the concrete fonts}{Q-concrete}\htmlonly{''}. \Question[Q-instmffont]{Installing a font provided as \MF{} source} Metafont fonts are (by comparison with other sorts of font) rather pleasingly simple. Nowadays, they are mostly distributed just as the \MF{} source, since modern \TeX{} distributions are able to produce everything the user needs ``on the fly''; however, if the distribution \emph{does} include \acro{TFM} files, do install them, too, since they save a little time and don't occupy much disc space. Always distrust distributions of \acro{PK} font bitmap files: there's no way of learning from them what printer they were generated for, and naming schemes under different operating systems are another source of confusion. ``\Qref*{Where to install files}{Q-wherefiles}'' specifies where the files should go. Further confusion is introduced by font families whose authors devise rules for automatic generation of \MF{} sources for generating fonts at particular sizes; the installation has to know about the rules, as otherwise it cannot generate font files. \Question[Q-instprinterfont]{Installing a \PS{} printer built-in font} There is a ``standard'' set of fonts that has appeared in every \PS{} printer since the second generation of the type. These fonts (8~families of four text fonts each, and three special-purpose fonts) are of course widely used, because of their simple availability. The set consists of: \begin{itemize} \item \FontName{Times} family (4 fonts) \item \FontName{Palatino} family (4 fonts) \item \FontName{New} \FontName{Century} \FontName{Schoolbook} family (4 fonts) \item \FontName{Bookman} family (4 fonts) \item \FontName{Helvetica} family (4 fonts) \item \FontName{Avant} \FontName{Garde} (4 fonts) \item \FontName{Courier} family (4 fonts) \item \FontName{Utopia} family (4 fonts) \item Zapf \FontName{Chancery} (1 font) \item Zapf \FontName{Dingbats} (1 font) \item \FontName{Symbol} (1 font) \end{itemize} All these fonts are supported, for \LaTeX{} users, by the \Package{psnfss} set of metrics and support files in the file \File{lw35nfss.zip} on \acro{CTAN}. Almost any remotely modern \TeX{} system will have some version of \Package{psnfss} installed, but users should note that the most recent version has much improved coverage of maths-with-\FontName{Times} and -\FontName{Palatino}, as well as a more reliable set of font metrics. The archive \File{lw35nfss.zip} is laid out according to the \acro{TDS}, so in principle, installation consists simply of ``unzipping'' the file at the root of a \path{texmf} tree. Documentation of the \Package{psnfss} bundle is provided in \File{psnfss2e.pdf} in the distribution. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[psnfss \nothtml{\rmfamily}bundle]\CTANref{psnfss} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-inst1cm]{Installing the Bluesky versions of the CM~fonts} This is a specialised case of \nothtml{installing a font (}% \Qref{installing a font}{Q-instfont}\nothtml{)}, but it comes easier than most, since the font metrics are installed in every \AllTeX{} system before you even start. Indeed, most recent systems will have the Type~1 fonts themselves already installed, so that the job is already done, and all you need is to start using them: so the first thing to do is to just try it. On a system that uses \ProgName{dvips} (most systems nowadays do), try the sequence: \begin{verbatim} latex sample2e dvips -Pcmz -Pamz -o sample2e.ps sample2e \end{verbatim} at a ``command prompt'' (\ProgName{shell}, in a Unix-style system, ``\acro{DOS} box'' in a Windows system). If the command works at all, the console output of the command will include a sequence of Type~1 font file names, listed as || and so on; this is \ProgName{dvips} telling you it's including the Type~1 font, and you need do no more. If the test has failed, you need to install your own set of the fonts. The \acro{CTAN} directories listed below contain compressed archives of the Type~1 files for various architectures, both for the Computer Modern fonts and for the \acro{AMS} fonts of mathematical and other useful things. Download the archives that are appropriate for your architecture, and extract the files~--- you only actually need the contents of the \File{pfb} directories, since you already have the fonts installed in the ``ordinary'' way, so that the \acro{TFM} files are already present. (You don't need the \PS{} font metric~--- \acro{AFM} and \acro{PFM}~--- files in any case.) The files should go into your local |texmf| tree (\File{texmf.local}, \File{texmf-local}, \File{localtexmf}, or whatever). Create directories at offsets \path{fonts/type1/bluesky/cm} and \path{fonts/type1/bluesky/ams}, and copy the |pfb| files into them. Now you need to tell \ProgName{dvips}, \PDFTeX{}, etc., that the fonts are available. This is done by use of a \emph{map file}, which lists \emph{font name} (as \TeX{} understands it), \emph{font name} (as it appears in the type~1 file itself), and where the program will find the file. Map files are provided in the download bundles for the \acro{AMS} fonts; for the \acro{CM} fonts, map files are available separately. The set of map files includes files |config.*|; each of these contains an instruction to load a single map file. For ordinary use, you instruct \ProgName{dvips} to load the ``detailed'' map of the \acro{CM} fonts by use of the command: \begin{verbatim} dvips -Pcmz myfile \end{verbatim} The same can be done with the \acro{AMS} fonts, and you may invoke both sets of fonts with: \begin{verbatim} dvips -Pcmz -Pamz myfile \end{verbatim} Alternatively, the contents of \File{config.cmz} and \File{config.amz} could be combined into a single file, perhaps \File{config.bluesky}, loaded by the command \begin{verbatim} dvips -Pbluesky myfile \end{verbatim} Remember, after all such changes, the % beware line breaks \nothtml{file-name database must be refreshed (}% \Qref{file-name database must be refreshed}{Q-instpackages}\nothtml{)}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[AMS fonts]Browse \CTANref{ams-AMStype1} \item[CM fonts]Browse \CTANref{bluesky} \item[CM font maps]\CTANref{bluesky-maps} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-instt1font]{Installing a Type~1 font} The process of installing a Type~1 font set is rather convoluted, but it may be separated into a modest set of stages. \begin{itemize} \item Acquire the font. A very small set of Type~1 fonts is installed in most \PS{} printers you will encounter. For those few (whose use is covered by the basic \acro{PSNFSS} package), you don't need the Type~1 font itself, to be able to print using the font. For all the myriad other Type~1 fonts, to be able to print using the font you need the Type~1 file itself. Some of these are available for free (they've either been donated to the public domain, or were developed as part of a free software project), but the vast majority are commercial products, requiring you to spend real money. \item Acquire the fonts' \acro{AFM} files. \acro{AFM} files contain information from the font foundry, about the sizes of the characters in the font, and how they fit together. One measure of the quality of a font-supplier is that they provide the \acro{AFM} files by default: if the files are not available, you are unlikely to be able to use the font with \AllTeX{}. \item Rename the \acro{AFM} files and the Type~1 files to match the \latexhtml{``Berry font naming scheme'' (}{``}% beware line wraps \Qref{Berry font naming scheme}{Q-fontname}\latexhtml{)}{''}. \item Generate \TeX{} metric files from the \acro{AFM} files. The commonest tool for this task is \Package{fontinst}; the package documentation helps, but other guides are available (see below). The simplest possible script to pass to \Package{fontinst} is: \begin{quote} |\latinfamily{xyz}{}|\\ |\bye| \end{quote} where \texttt{xyz} is the Berry name of the font family. This simple script is adequate for most purposes: its output covers the font family in both |T1| and |OT1| font encodings. Nevertheless, with fancier fonts, more elaborate things are possible with \Package{fontinst}: see the documentation for details. \Package{Fontinst} also generates map files, and \LaTeX{} font definition (|.fd|) files. \item Install the files, in your \texttt{texmf} tree. All the strictures about installing non-standard things apply here: be sure to put the files in the local tree. Reasonable destinations for the various files are: \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} .pfb, .pfa .../fonts/type1// .tfm .../fonts/tfm// .vf .../fonts/vf// .fd .../tex/latex/fontinst/ \ / .map .../dvips/fontinst/ \end{verbatim} {% \small Note: the split line is only to fit into the column: in actual use, reconstruct the line and suppress the spaces.\par } \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} .pfb, .pfa .../fonts/type1// .tfm .../fonts/tfm// .vf .../fonts/vf// .fd .../tex/latex/fontinst// .map .../dvips/fontinst/ \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \item Regenerate the file indexes (as described in \Qref[question]{package installation}{Q-instpackages}). \item Update the \ProgName{dvips} and other maps: \begin{itemize} \item On a te\TeX{} system earlier than version~2.0, edit the file \File{$TEXMF/dvips/config/updmap} and insert an absolute path for the \File{lm.map} just after the line that starts |extra_modules="| (and before the closing quotes). \item On a te\TeX{} version~2.0 (or later), execute the command \begin{verbatim} updmap --enable Map .map \end{verbatim} \item On a MiK\TeX{} system earlier than version~2.2, the ``Refresh filename database'' operation, which you performed after installing files, also updates the system's ``\PS{} resources database''. \item On a MiK\TeX{} system, version~2.2 or later, update \File{updmap.cfg} which is described in MiK\TeX{} % beware line break \href{http://www.miktex.org/manual/psfonts.html}{online documentation}. Then execute the command \texttt{initexmf -\relax-mkmaps}, and the job is done. \end{itemize} \end{itemize} The whole process is very well (and thoroughly) described in Philipp Lehman's guide to font installation, which may be found on \acro{CTAN}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fontinst.sty]\CTANref{fontinst} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Type 1 installation guide]\CTANref{T1instguide} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Fonts} \subsection{\MF{} fonts} \Question[Q-useMF]{Getting \MF{} to do what you want} \MF{} allows you to create your own fonts, and most \TeX{} users will never need to use it. \MF{}, unlike \TeX{}, requires some customisation: each output device for which you will be generating fonts needs a mode associated with it. Modes are defined using the |mode_def| convention described on page~94 of \emph{The \MF{}book} (see \Qref[question]{\TeX{}-related books}{Q-books}). You will need a file, which conventionally called \File{local.mf}, containing all the |mode_def|s you will be using. If \File{local.mf} doesn't already exist, Karl Berry's collection of modes (\File{modes.mf}) is a good starting point (it can be used as a `\File{local.mf}' without modification in a `big enough' implementation of \MF{}). Lists of settings for various output devices are also published periodically in \textsl{TUGboat} (see \Qref[question]{\acro{TUG}}{Q-TUG*}). Now create a |plain| base file using \ProgName{inimf}, |plain.mf|, and |local.mf|: \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} % inimf This is METAFONT... **plain # you type plain (output) *input local # you type this (output) *dump # you type this Beginning to dump on file plain... (output) \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} \htmlignore \par\vspace{\topsep} %\begin{tabular}{@{}l@{}l@{}} %|% inimf|\\ %This is METAFONT\dots{}\\{} %**|plain|& you type `|plain|'\\{} %(output)\\{} %*|input local|& you type this\\{} %(output)\\{} %*|dump|& you type this\\{} %Beginning to dump on file plain\dots{}\\{} %(output)\\{} %\end{tabular}\par \begin{list}{}{}\item\relax |% inimf|\\ This is METAFONT\dots{}\\{} \fullline{**\texttt{plain}\hss you type `\texttt{plain}'} (\emph{output})\\{} \fullline{*\texttt{input local}\hss you type this} (\emph{output})\\{} \fullline{*\texttt{dump}\hss you type this} Beginning to dump on file plain\dots{}\\{} (\emph{output}) \end{list}\par \endhtmlignore This will create a base file named \File{plain.base} (or something similar; for example, it will be \htmlignore \acro{\File{PLAIN.BAS}} \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \File{PLAIN.BAS} \end{htmlversion} on \MSDOS{} systems) which should be moved to the directory containing the base files on your system (note that some systems have two or more such directories, one for each `size' of \MF{} used). Now you need to make sure \MF{} loads this new base when it starts up. If \MF{} loads the |plain| base by default on your system, then you're ready to go. Under Unix (using the default \ProgName{web2c} distribution% \begin{footnoteenv} The \ProgName{command_name} is symbolically linked to \ProgName{virmf}, and \ProgName{virmf} loads \File{command_name.base} \end{footnoteenv}) this does indeed happen, but we could for instance define a command \ProgName{mf} which executes |virmf &plain| loading the |plain| base file. The usual way to create a font with |plain| \MF{} is to start it with the line \htmlignore \bgroup \par\vskip\topsep \hangindent3em\hangafter1\raggedright\parindent10pt\relax |\mode=;| |mag=;| |input |% \par\vskip\topsep \egroup \noindent in \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} \mode=; mag=; input \end{verbatim} in \end{htmlversion} response to the `**' prompt or on the \MF{} command line. (If || is unknown or omitted, the mode defaults to `proof' and \MF{} will produce an output file called % beware!! -- argument of \File naturally breaks across line end \File{.2602gf}) The || is a floating point number or `magstep' (magsteps are defined in \emph{The \MF{}book} and \emph{The \TeX{}book}). If |mag=| is omitted, then the default is 1 (magstep 0). For example, to generate cmr10 at 12pt for an epson printer you would type \begin{verbatim} mf \mode=epson; mag=magstep 1; input cmr10 \end{verbatim} Note that under Unix the |\| and |;| characters must usually be quoted or escaped, so this would typically look something like \begin{verbatim} mf '\mode=epson; mag=magstep 1; input cmr10' \end{verbatim} If you don't have \ProgName{inimf} or need a special mode that isn't in the base, you can put its commands in a file (\emph{e.g.}, \File{ln03.mf}) and invoke it on the fly with the |\smode| command. For example, to create \File{cmr10.300gf} for an \acro{LN}03 printer, using the file \begin{verbatim} % This is ln03.mf as of 1990/02/27 % mode_def courtesy of John Sauter proofing:=0; fontmaking:=1; tracingtitles:=0; pixels_per_inch:=300; blacker:=0.65; fillin:=-0.1; o_correction:=.5; \end{verbatim} (note the absence of the |mode_def| and |enddef| commands), you would type \begin{verbatim} mf \smode="ln03"; input cmr10 \end{verbatim} This technique isn't one you should regularly use, but it may prove useful if you acquire a new printer and want to experiment with parameters, or for some other reason are regularly editing the parameters you're using. Once you've settled on an appropriate set of parameters, you should use them to rebuild the base file that you use. Other sources of help are mentioned in % beware line break \Qref[question]{\MF{} and \MP{} Tutorials}{Q-mfptutorials}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[modes.mf]\CTANref{modes-file} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-keepfonts]{Which font files should be kept} \MF{} produces from its run three files, a metrics (\acro{TFM}) file, a generic font (\acro{GF}) file, and a log file; all of these files have the same base name as does the input (\emph{e.g.}, if the input file was \File{cmr10.mf}, the outputs will be \File{cmr10.tfm}, \File{cmr10.nnngf}% \begin{footnoteenv} Note that the file name may be transmuted by such operating systems as \MSDOS{}, which don't permit long file names \end{footnoteenv} and \File{cmr10.log}). For \TeX{} to use the font, you need a \acro{TFM} file, so you need to keep that. However, you are likely to generate the same font at more than one magnification, and each time you do so you'll (incidentally) generate another \acro{TFM} file; these files are all the same, so you only need to keep one of them. To preview or to produce printed output, the \acro{DVI} processor will need a font raster file; this is what the \acro{GF} file provides. However, while there used (once upon a time) to be \acro{DVI} processors that could use \acro{GF} files, modern processors use packed raster (\acro{PK}) files. Therefore, you need to generate a \acro{PK} file from the \acro{GF} file; the program \ProgName{gftopk} does this for you, and once you've done that you may throw the \acro{GF} file away. The log file should never need to be used, unless there was some sort of problem in the \MF{} run, and need not be ordinarily kept. \Question[Q-getbitmap]{Acquiring bitmap fonts} When \acro{CTAN} was young, most people would start using \TeX{} with a 300 dots-per-inch (dpi) laser printer, and sets of Computer Modern bitmap fonts for this resolution are available on \acro{CTAN}. (There are separate sets for write-black and write-white printers, as well as sets at 120~dpi and 240~dpi.) Over the years, there have been regular requests that \acro{CTAN} should hold a wider range of resolutions, but they were resisted for two reasons: \begin{itemize} \item The need to decide which printers to generate fonts for. The broad-brush approach taken for 300~dpi printers was (more or less) justified back then, given the dominance of certain printer `engines', but nowadays one could not make any such assumption. \item Given the above, justifying the space taken up by a huge array of bitmap fonts. \end{itemize} Fortunately, \AllTeX{} distribution technology has put a stop to these arguments: most (if not all) current distributions generate bitmap fonts as needed, and cache them for later re-use. The impatient user, who is determined that all bitmap fonts should be created once and for all, may be supported by scripts such as \ProgName{allcm} (distributed with te\TeX{}, at least; otherwise such a person should consult \Qref[question]{"the use of \MF{}"}{Q-useMF}). If your output is to a \PS{}-capable device, you advised to switch to using Type~1 versions of the \acro{CM} fonts. Two free sets are currently available; the older (\Package{bakoma}) is somewhat less well produced than the \Package{bluesky} fonts, which were originally professionally produced and sold, but were then donated to the public domain by their originators \YandY{} and Bluesky Research, in association with the \acro{AMS}. Unfortunately, the coverage of the sets is slightly different, but you are advised to use the \Package{bluesky} set except when \Package{bakoma} is for some reason absolutely unavoidable. In recent years, several other `\MF{}' fonts have been converted to Type~1 format; it's common never to need to generate bitmap fonts for any purpose other than previewing (see % beware of line wrap \Qref[question]{``previewing documents with Type~1 fonts''}{Q-PSpreview}). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[bakoma]\CTANref{bakoma} \item[bluesky]Browse \CTANref{bluesky} \item[cm fonts \nothtml{\rmfamily}(write-black printers)]\CTANref{pk300} \item[cm fonts \nothtml{\rmfamily}(write-white printers)]\CTANref{pk300w} \end{ctanrefs} \subsection{Adobe Type~1 (``\PS{}'') fonts} \Question[Q-usepsfont]{Using \PS{} fonts with \protect\TeX{}} In order to use \PS{} fonts, \TeX{} needs \emph{metric} (called \acro{TFM}) files. Several sets of metrics are available from the archives; for mechanisms for generating new ones, see \Qref[question]{metrics for \PS{} fonts}{Q-metrics}. You also need the fonts themselves; \PS{} printers come with a set of fonts built in, but to extend your repertoire you almost invariably need to buy from one of the many commercial font vendors (see, for example, \Qref[question]{``choice of fonts''}{Q-psfchoice}). If you use \LaTeXe{}, the best way to get \PS{} fonts into your document is to use the \acro{PSNFSS} package maintained by Walter Schmidt. The \LaTeX{}3 project team declare that \acro{PSNFSS} is ``required'', and bug reports may be submitted via the % line break \Qref*{\LaTeX{} bugs system}{Q-latexbug}. \acro{PSNFSS} gives you a set of packages for changing the default roman, sans-serif and typewriter fonts; \emph{e.g}., the \Package{mathptmx} package will set up \FontName{Times} \FontName{Roman} as the main text font (and introduces mechanisms to typeset mathematics using \FontName{Times} and various more-or-less matching fonts), while package \Package{avant} changes the sans-serif family to \FontName{AvantGarde}, and \Package{Courier} changes the typewriter font to \FontName{Courier}. To go with these packages, you need the font metric files and font description (\File{.fd}) files for each font family you want to use. For convenience, metrics for the `common 35' \PS{} fonts found in most \PS{} printers are provided with \acro{PSNFSS}, packaged as the ``Laserwriter set''. For older versions of \LaTeX{} there are various schemes, of which the simplest to use is probably the \acro{PS}\LaTeX{} macros distributed with \ProgName{dvips}. For Plain \TeX{}, you load whatever fonts you like; if the encoding of the fonts is not the same as Computer Modern it will be up to you to redefine various macros and accents, or you can use the font re-encoding mechanisms available in many drivers and in \ProgName{ps2pk} and \ProgName{afm2tfm}. Victor Eijkhout's\nothtml{ Lollipop package (}% \Qref{Lollipop package}{Q-lollipop}\nothtml{)} supports declaration of font families and styles in a similar way to \LaTeX{}'s \acro{NFSS}, and so is easy to use with \PS{} fonts. Some common problems encountered are discussed elsewhere (see \Qref[question]{problems with \acro{PS} fonts}{Q-psfontprob}). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[Metrics for the `Laserwriter' set of 35 fonts]\CTANref{lw35nfss-zip} \item[lollipop]\CTANref{lollipop} \item[psnfss]\CTANref{psnfss} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-PSpreview]{Previewing files using Type 1 fonts} Until recently, free \TeX{} previewers have only been capable of displaying bitmap \acro{PK} fonts, but current versions of \ProgName{xdvi} sport a Type~1 font renderer. %% \YandY{}'s commercial %% previewer \Qref*{\acro{DVIW}indo}{Q-commercial} has in the past used %% \ProgName{Adobe} \ProgName{Type} \ProgName{Manager} to display Type~1 %% fonts directly and now uses the system-provided font renderer %% available in Windows~2000 and~XP. Other (free) previewers of the current generation offer automatic generation of the requisite \acro{PK} files (using \ProgName{gsftopk}, or similar, behind the scenes). If your previewer isn't capable of this, you have three options: \begin{itemize} \item Convert the \acro{DVI} file to \PS{} and use a \PS{} previewer. Some systems offer this capability as standard, but most people will need to use a separate previewer such as \ProgName{ghostscript} or \ProgName{ghostscript}-based viewers such as \ProgName{ghostview} or shareware offering \ProgName{GSview}. \item Under Windows on a \acro{PC}, or on a Macintosh, let Adobe Type Manager display the fonts (textures, on the Macintosh, works like this). %% , and under %% Windows you can use \YandY{}'s \ProgName{dviwindo} for bitmap-free %% previewing. \begin{narrowversion} % really hyper (See \Qref[question]{}{Q-commercial} for details of these suppliers.) \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} (See \Qref{commercial suppliers}{Q-commercial} for details.) \end{wideversion} \item If you have the \PS{} fonts in Type~1 format, use \ProgName{ps2pk} or \ProgName{gsftopk} (designed for use with the \ProgName{ghostscript} fonts) to make \acro{PK} bitmap fonts which your previewer will understand. This can produce excellent results, also suitable for printing with non-\PS{} devices. Check the legalities of this if you have purchased the fonts. \end{itemize} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ghostscript]Browse \CTANref{ghostscript} \item[ghostview]Browse \CTANref{ghostview} \item[gsftopk]\CTANref{gsftopk} \item[GSview]Browse \CTANref{gsview} \item[ps2pk]\CTANref{ps2pk} \item[xdvi]\CTANref{xdvi} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-metrics]{\protect\TeX{} font metric files for \PS{} fonts} Reputable font vendors such as Adobe supply metric files for each font, in \acro{AFM} (Adobe Font Metric) form; these can be converted to \acro{TFM} (\TeX{} Font Metric) form. Most modern distributions have prebuilt metrics which will be more than enough for many people; but you may need to do the conversion yourself if you have special needs or acquire a new font. One important question is the \emph{encoding} of (Latin character) fonts; while we all more or less agree about the position of about 96 characters in fonts (the basic \acro{ASCII} set), the rest of the (typically) 256 vary. The most obvious problems are with floating accents and special characters such as the `pounds sterling' sign. There are three ways of dealing with this: either you change the \TeX{} macros which reference the characters (not much fun, and error-prone); or you change the encoding of the font (easier than you might think); or you use \Qref*{virtual fonts}{Q-virtualfonts} to \emph{pretend} to \TeX{} that the encoding is the same as it is used to. \LaTeXe{} has facilities for dealing with fonts in different encodings; read the \Qref*{\emph{\LaTeX{} Companion}}{Q-books} for more details. In practice, if you do much non-English (but Latin script) typesetting, you are strongly recommended to use the \Package{fontenc} package with option `\pkgoption{T1}' to select \Qref*{`Cork'}{Q-ECfonts} encoding. A useful alternative is \YandY{}'s ``private'' \acro{LY}1 encoding, which is designed to sit well with ``Adobe standard'' encoded fonts. Basic support of \acro{LY1} is available on \acro{CTAN}: note that the ``relation with Adobe's encoding'' means that there are no virtual fonts in the \acro{LY}1 world. Alan Jeffrey's \ProgName{fontinst} package is an \acro{AFM} to \acro{TFM} converter written in \TeX{}; it is used to generate the files used by \LaTeXe{}'s \acro{PSNFSS} package to support use of \PS{} fonts. It is a sophisticated package, not for the faint-hearted, but is powerful enough to cope with most needs. Much of its power relies on the use of \Qref*{virtual fonts}{Q-virtualfonts}. For slightly simpler problems, Rokicki's \ProgName{afm2tfm}, distributed with \ProgName{dvips}, is fast and efficient; note that the metrics and styles that come with \ProgName{dvips} are \emph{not} currently \LaTeXe{} compatible. For the Macintosh (classic), there is a program called \ProgName{EdMetrics} which does the job (and more). \ProgName{EdMetrics} comes with the (commercial) \Qref*{Textures}{Q-commercial} distribution, but is itself free software, and is available on \acro{CTAN}. %% \par %% Windows users can buy \Qref*{\YandY{}'s}{Q-commercial} %% Font Manipulation Tools package which includes a powerful %% \ProgName{afmtotfm} program among many other goodies. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[dvips]\CTANref{dvips} \item[EdMetrics]\CTANref{edmetrics} \item[fontinst]\CTANref{fontinst} \item[LY1 support]\CTANref{ly1} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-psfontprob]{Deploying Type 1 fonts} For the \LaTeX{} user trying to use the \nothtml{\acro{PSNFSS} (}\Qref{\acro{PSNFSS}}{Q-usepsfont}\nothtml{)} package, three questions may arise. First, you have to declare to the \acro{DVI} driver that you are using \PS{} fonts; in the case of \ProgName{dvips}, this means adding lines to the |psfonts.map| file, so that \ProgName{dvips} will know where the proper fonts are, and won't try to find \acro{PK} files. If the font isn't built into the printer, you have to acquire it (which may mean that you need to purchase the font files). Second, your previewer must know what to do with the fonts: see \Qref[question]{previewing type 1 fonts}{Q-PSpreview}. Third, the stretch and shrink between words is a function of the font metric; it is not specified in \acro{AFM} files, so different converters choose different values. The \PS{} metrics that come with \acro{PSNFSS} used to produce quite tight setting, but they were revised in mid 1995 to produce a compromise between American and European practice. Sophisticated users may not find even the new the values to their taste, and want to override them. Even the casual user may find more hyphenation or overfull boxes than Computer Modern produces; but \acro{CM} is extremely generous. \Question[Q-psfchoice]{Choice of scalable outline fonts} If you are interested in text alone, you can in principle use any of the huge numbers of text fonts in Adobe Type~1, TrueType or OpenType formats. The constraint is, of course, that your previewer and printer driver should support such fonts (\TeX{} itself \emph{only} cares about metrics, not the actual character programs). If you also need mathematics, then you are severely limited by the demands that \TeX{} makes of maths fonts (for details, see the paper by B.K.P. Horn in \TUGboat{} 14(3)). For maths, then, there are relatively few choices (though the list is at last growing). There are several font families available that are based on Knuth's original designs, and some that complement other commercial text font designs; one set (MicroPress's `informal math') stands alone. ``Free'' font families that will support \TeX{} mathematics include: \begin{booklist} \item[Computer Modern](75 fonts~--- optical scaling) Donald E. Knuth\\ The \acro{CM} fonts were originally designed in \MF{}, but are also now available in scalable outline form. There are commercial as well as public domain versions, and there are both Adobe Type~1 and TrueType versions. A set of outline versions of the fonts was developed as a commercial venture by \YandY{} and Blue Sky Research; they have since assigned the copyright to the \acro{AMS}, and the fonts are now freely available from \acro{CTAN}. Their quality is such that they have become the \emph{de facto} standard for Type~1 versions of the fonts. \item[\acro{AMS} fonts](52 fonts, optical scaling) The \acro{AMS}\\ This set of fonts offers adjuncts to the \acro{CM} set, including two sets of symbol fonts (|msam| and |msbm|) and Euler text fonts. These are not a self-standing family, but merit discussion here (not least because several other families mimic the symbol fonts). Freely-available Type~1 versions of the fonts are available on \acro{CTAN}. The \Package{eulervm} package permits use of the Euler maths alphabet in conjunction with text fonts that do not provide maths alphabets of their own (for instance, Adobe Palatino or Minion). \item[mathpazo version 1.003](5 fonts) Diego Puga\\ The Pazo Math fonts are a family of type~1 fonts suitable for typesetting maths in combination with the Palatino family of text fonts. Four of the five fonts of the distribution are maths alphabets, in upright and italic shapes, medium and bold weights; the fifth font contains a small selection of ``blackboard bold'' characters (chosen for their mathematical significance). Support under \LaTeXe{} is available in \nothtml{\acro{PSNFSS} (}% \Qref{\acro{PSNFSS}}{Q-usepsfont}\nothtml{)}; the fonts are licensed under the \acro{GPL}, with legalese permitting the use of the fonts in published documents. \item[Fourier/Utopia](15 fonts) Michel Bovani\\ \FontName{Fourier} is a family built on Adobe \FontName{Utopia} (which has been released for usage free of charge by Adobe). The fonts provide the basic Computer Modern set of mathematical symbols, and add many of the \acro{AMS} mathematical symbols (though you are expected to use some from the \acro{AMS} fonts themselves). There are also several other mathematical and decorative symbols. The fonts come with a \Package{fourier} package for use with \LaTeX{}; text support of \acro{OT}1 encoding is not provided~--- you are expected to use \acro{T}1. \item[MathDesign](3 entire families\dots{}so far) Paul Pichareau\\ This (very new: first release was in April 2005) set so far offers mathematics fonts to match Adobe Utopia, URW Garamond and Bitstream Charter (all of which are separately available, on \acro{CTAN}, in Type~1 format). There has been a little comment on these fonts, but none from actual users posted to the public forums. Users, particularly those who are willing to discuss their experiences, would obviously be welcome. Browse the \acro{CTAN} directory and see which you want: there is a wealth of documentation and examples. \item[Belleek](3 fonts) Richard Kinch\\ Belleek is the upshot of Kinch's thoughts on how \MF{} might be used in the future: they were published simultaneously as \MF{} source, as Type~1 fonts, and as TrueType fonts. The fonts act as ``drop-in'' replacements for the basic MathTime set (as an example of ``what might be done''). The paper outlining Kinch's thoughts, proceeding from considerations of the `intellectual' superiority of \MF{} to evaluations of why its adoption is so limited and what might be done about the problem, is to be found at \URL{http://truetex.com/belleek.pdf} (the paper is a good read, but exhibits the problems discussed in % line wrap \htmlonly{``}\Qref[question]{getting good \acro{PDF}}{Q-dvips-pdf}\htmlonly{''}~--- don't try to read it on-screen in Acrobat reader). \item[mathptmx]Alan Jeffrey, Walter Schmidt and others.\\ This set contains maths italic, symbol, extension, and roman virtual fonts, built from Adobe Times, Symbol, Zapf Chancery, and the Computer Modern fonts. The resulting mixture is not entirely acceptable, but can pass in many circumstances. The real advantage is that the mathptm fonts are (effectively) free, and the resulting \PS{} files can be freely exchanged. Support under \LaTeXe{} is available in \Qref*{\acro{PSNFSS}}{Q-usepsfont}. \item[Computer Modern Bright]Free scalable outline versions of these fonts do exist; they are covered below together with their commercial parallels. \end{booklist} Fonts capable of setting \TeX{} mathematics, that are available commercially, include: \begin{booklist} \item[BA Math](13 fonts) MicroPress Inc.\\ BA Math is a family of serif fonts, inspired by the elegant and graphically perfect font design of John Baskerville. BA Math comprises the fonts necessary for mathematical typesetting (maths italic, math symbols and extensions) in normal and bold weights. The family also includes all \acro{OT}1 and \acro{T}1 encoded text fonts of various shapes, as well as fonts with most useful glyphs of the \acro{TS}1 encoding. Macros for using the fonts with Plain~\TeX{}, \LaTeXo{} and current \LaTeX{} are provided. \nothtml{\bgroup\raggedwithindent} For further details (including samples) see\\ \URL{http://www.micropress-inc.com/fonts/bamath/bamain.htm} \nothtml{\par\egroup} \item[CH Math](15 fonts) MicroPress Inc.\\ CH Math is a family of slab serif fonts, designed as a maths companion for Bitstream Charter. (The distribution includes four free Bitstream text fonts, in addition to the 15 hand-hinted MicroPress fonts.) \nothtml{\bgroup\raggedwithindent} For further details (including samples) see\\ \URL{http://www.micropress-inc.com/fonts/chmath/chmain.htm} \nothtml{\par\egroup} \item[Computer Modern Bright](62 fonts~--- optical scaling) Walter Schmidt\\ \acro{CM} Bright is a family of sans serif fonts, based on Knuth's \acro{CM} fonts. It comprises the fonts necessary for mathematical typesetting, including \acro{AMS} symbols, as well as text and text symbol fonts of various shapes. The collection comes with its own set of files for use with \LaTeX{}. The \acro{CM} Bright fonts are supplied in Type~1 format by MicroPress, Inc. The \Package{hfbright} bundle offers free Type~1 fonts for text using the \acro{OT}1 encoding~--- the \Package{cm-super} set for use with \acro{T}1 texts doesn't (yet) offer support for mathematics. \nothtml{\bgroup\raggedwithindent} For further details of Micropress' offering (including samples) see\\ \URL{http://www.micropress-inc.com/fonts/brmath/brmain.htm} \nothtml{\par\egroup} \item[Concrete Math](25 fonts~--- optical scaling) Ulrik Vieth\\ The Concrete Math font set was derived from the Concrete Roman typefaces designed by Knuth. The set provides a collection of math italics, math symbol, and math extension fonts, and fonts of \acro{AMS} symbols that fit with the Concrete set, so that Concrete may be used as a complete replacement for Computer Modern. Since Concrete is considerably darker than \acro{CM}, the family may particularly attractive for use in low-resolution printing or in applications such as posters or transparencies. Concrete Math fonts, as well as Concrete Roman fonts, are supplied in Type 1 format by MicroPress, Inc. \nothtml{\bgroup\raggedwithindent} For further information (including samples) see\\ \URL{http://www.micropress-inc.com/fonts/ccmath/ccmain.htm} \nothtml{\par\egroup} \item[HV Math](14 fonts) MicroPress Inc.\\ HV Math is a family of sans serif fonts, inspired by the Helvetica (\acro{TM}) typeface. HV Math comprises the fonts necessary for mathematical typesetting (maths italic, maths symbols and extensions) in normal and bold weights. The family also includes all \acro{OT}1 and \acro{T}1 encoded text fonts of various shapes, as well as fonts with most useful glyphs of the \acro{TS}1 encoding. Macros for using the fonts with Plain~\TeX{}, \LaTeXo{} and current \LaTeX{} are provided. Bitmapped copies of the fonts are available free, on \acro{CTAN}. \nothtml{\bgroup\raggedwithindent} For further details (and samples) see\\ \URL{http://www.micropress-inc.com/fonts/hvmath/hvmain.htm} \nothtml{\par\egroup} \item[Informal Math](7 outline fonts) MicroPress Inc.\\ Informal Math is a family of fanciful fonts loosely based on the Adobe's Tekton (\acro{TM}) family, fonts which imitate handwritten text. Informal Math comprises the fonts necessary for mathematical typesetting (maths italic, maths symbols and extensions) in normal weight, as well as \acro{OT}1 encoded text fonts in upright and oblique shapes. Macros for using the fonts with Plain~\TeX{}, \LaTeXo{} and current \LaTeX{} are provided. \nothtml{\bgroup\raggedwithindent} For further details (including samples) see\\ \URL{http://www.micropress-inc.com/fonts/ifmath/ifmain.htm} \nothtml{\par\egroup} %% \item[Lucida Bright \emph{with} Lucida New Math](25 fonts) Chuck Bigelow and %% Kris Holmes\\ %% Lucida is a family of related fonts including seriffed, sans serif, %% sans serif fixed width, calligraphic, blackletter, fax, Kris Holmes' %% connected handwriting font, \emph{etc}; they're not as `spindly' as %% Computer Modern, with a large x-height, and include a larger set of %% maths symbols, operators, relations and delimiters than \acro{CM} %% (over 800 instead of 384: among others, it also includes the %% \acro{AMS} |msam| and |msbm| symbol sets). `Lucida Bright Expert' %% (14 fonts) adds seriffed fixed width, another handwriting font, %% smallcaps, bold maths, upright `maths italic', \emph{etc}., to the %% set. The distribution includes support for use with Plain \TeX{} %% and \LaTeXo{}. Support under \LaTeXe{} is provided in %% \Qref*{\acro{PSNFSS}}{Q-usepsfont} %% thanks to Sebastian Rahtz and David Carlisle. %% \par %% \nothtml{\bgroup\raggedwithindent} %% For a sample, see \URL{http://www.YandY.com/download/chironlb.pdf} %% \nothtml{\par\egroup} \item[Adobe Lucida, LucidaSans \emph{and} LucidaMath](12 fonts)\\ Lucida and LucidaMath are generally considered to be a bit heavy. The three maths fonts contain only the glyphs in the \acro{CM} maths italic, symbol, and extension fonts. Support for using LucidaMath with \TeX{} is not very good; you will need to do some work reencoding fonts \emph{etc}. (In some sense this set is the ancestor of the LucidaBright plus LucidaNewMath font set, which are not currently available.) %% \item[MathTime 1.1](3 fonts) Publish or Perish (Michael Spivak)\\ %% The set contains maths italic, symbol, and extension fonts, designed %% to work well with the Times-Roman family, which is resident on many %% printers, and which is supplied with some \acro{PC} versions. In %% addition you may want to complement this basic set with Adobe's %% Times Smallcap, and perhaps the set of Adobe `Math Pi' fonts, which %% include blackboard bold, blackletter, and script faces. %% \par %% \nothtml{\bgroup\raggedwithindent} %% For a sample, see \URL{http://www.YandY.com/download/chironmt.pdf} %% \nothtml{\par\egroup} %% \item[MathTime Plus](12 fonts) Publish or Perish (Michael Spivak)\\ %% Adds bold and heavy versions of the basic math fonts, as well as %% upright math ``italic''. There are also Greek letters for use in %% typesetting terms commonly used in physics, as well as regular and %% bold script faces. Both MathTime distributions include support for %% use with Plain \TeX{} and \LaTeXo{} (including code to link in %% Adobe Math Pi~2 and Math Pi~6). Support under \LaTeXe{} is provided %% in %% \Qref*{\acro{PSNFSS}}{Q-usepsfont} %% thanks to Frank Mittelbach and David Carlisle. %% \par %% \nothtml{\bgroup\raggedwithindent} %% For a sample, see \URL{http://www.YandY.com/download/mathplus.pdf} %% \nothtml{\par\egroup} \item[MathTime Pro]Publish or Perish (Michael Spivak)\\ This latest instance of the MathTime family covers all the weights (medium, bold and heavy) and symbols of previous versions of MathTime. In addition it has a much extended range of symbols, and many typographic improvements that make for high-quality documents. The fonts are supported under both Plain \TeX{} and \LaTeXe{}, and are exclusively available for purchase from \Qref*{Personal \TeX{} Inc}{Q-commercial}. \par \nothtml{\bgroup\raggedwithindent} For a sample, see \URL{http://www.pctex.com/mtpdemo.pdf} \nothtml{\par\egroup} \item[PA Math] PA~Math is a family of serif fonts loosely based on the Palatino (\acro{TM}) typeface. PA~Math comprises the fonts necessary for mathematical typesetting (maths italics, maths, calligraphic and oldstyle symbols, and extensions) in normal and bold weights. The family also includes all \acro{OT}1, \acro{T}1 encoded text fonts of various shapes, as well as fonts with the most useful glyphs of the \acro{TS}1 encoding. Macros for using the fonts with Plain~\TeX{}, \LaTeXo{} and current \LaTeX{} are provided. \nothtml{\bgroup\raggedwithindent} For further details (and samples) see\\ \URL{http://www.micropress-inc.com/fonts/pamath/pamain.htm} \nothtml{\par\egroup} \item[TM Math](14 fonts) MicroPress Inc.\\ TM Math is a family of serif fonts, inspired by the Times (\acro{TM}) typeface. TM Math comprises the fonts necessary for mathematical typesetting (maths italic, maths symbols and extensions) in normal and bold weights. The family also includes all \acro{OT}1 and \acro{T}1 encoded text fonts of various shapes, as well as fonts with most useful glyphs of the \acro{TS}1 encoding. Macros for using the fonts with Plain~\TeX{}, \LaTeXo{} and current \LaTeX{} are provided. Bitmapped copies of the fonts are available free, on \acro{CTAN}. \nothtml{\bgroup\raggedwithindent} For further details (and samples) see\\ \URL{http://www.micropress-inc.com/fonts/tmmath/tmmain.htm} \nothtml{\par\egroup} \end{booklist} Two other font sets should be mentioned, even though they don't currently produce satisfactory output~--- their author is no longer working on them, and several problems have been identified: \begin{booklist} \item[pxfonts set version 1.0](26 fonts) by Young Ryu\\ The \FontName{pxfonts} set consists of \begin{itemize} \item virtual text fonts using \FontName{Adobe} \FontName{Palatino} (or the \acro{URW} replacement used by \ProgName{ghostscript}) with modified plus, equal and slash symbols; \item maths alphabets using \FontName{Palatino}; \item maths fonts of all symbols in the computer modern maths fonts (\FontName{cmsy}, \FontName{cmmi}, \FontName{cmex} and the Greek letters of \FontName{cmr}) \item maths fonts of all symbols corresponding to the \acro{AMS} fonts (\FontName{msam} and \FontName{msbm}); \item additional maths fonts of various symbols. \end{itemize} The text fonts are available in \acro{OT}1, \acro{T}1 and \acro{LY}1 encodings, and \acro{TS} encoded symbols are also available. The sans serif and monospaced fonts supplied with the \FontName{txfonts} set (see below) may be used with \FontName{pxfonts}; the \FontName{txfonts} set should be installed whenever \FontName{pxfonts} are. \LaTeX{}, \ProgName{dvips} and \PDFTeX{} support files are included. \begin{narrowversion} % really non-hyper version Documentation (\URL{http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/fonts/pxfonts/doc/pxfontsdocA4.pdf}) \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \href{http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/fonts/pxfonts/doc/pxfontsdocA4.pdf}{Documentation} \end{wideversion} is readily available. The fonts are licensed under the \acro{GPL}; use in published documents is permitted. \item[txfonts set version 3.1](42 fonts) by Young Ryu\\ The \FontName{txfonts} set consists of \begin{itemize} \item virtual text fonts using \FontName{Adobe} \FontName{Times} (or the \acro{URW} replacement used by \ProgName{ghostscript}) with modified plus, equal and slash symbols; \item matching sets of sans serif and monospace (`typewriter') fonts (the sans serif set is based on \FontName{Adobe} \FontName{Helvetica}); \item maths alphabets using \FontName{Times}; \item maths fonts of all symbols in the computer modern maths fonts (\FontName{cmsy}, \FontName{cmmi}, \FontName{cmex} and the Greek letters of \FontName{cmr}) \item maths fonts of all symbols corresponding to the \acro{AMS} fonts (\FontName{msam} and \FontName{msbm}); \item additional maths fonts of various symbols. \end{itemize} The text fonts are available in \acro{OT}1, \acro{T}1 and \acro{LY}1 encodings, and \acro{TS} encoded symbols are also available. \begin{narrowversion} % really non-hyper version Documentation (\URL{http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/fonts/txfonts/doc/txfontsdocA4.pdf}) \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \href{http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/fonts/txfonts/doc/txfontsdocA4.pdf}{Documentation} \end{wideversion} is readily available. The fonts are licensed under the \acro{GPL}; use in published documents is permitted. \end{booklist} Finally, one must not forget: \begin{booklist} \item[Proprietary fonts]Various sources.\\ Since having a high quality font set in scalable outline form that works with \TeX{} can give a publisher a real competitive advantage, there are some publishers that have paid (a lot) to have such font sets made for them. Unfortunately, these sets are not available on the open market, despite the likelihood that they're more complete than those that are. \end{booklist} We observe a very limited selection of commercial maths font sets; a maths font has to be explicitly designed for use with \TeX{}, which is an expensive business, and is of little appeal in other markets. Furthermore, the \TeX{} market for commercial fonts is minute by comparison with the huge sales of other font sets. Text fonts in Type~1 format are available from many vendors including Adobe, Monotype and Bitstream. However, be careful with cheap font ``collections''; many of them dodge copyright restrictions by removing (or crippling) parts of the font programs such as hinting. Such behaviour is both unethical and bad for the consumer. The fonts may not render well (or at all, under \acro{ATM}), may not have the `standard' complement of 228 glyphs, or may not include metric files (which you need to make \acro{TFM} files). TrueType remains the ``native'' format for Windows. Some \TeX{} implementations such as \Qref*{True\TeX{}}{Q-commercial} use TrueType versions of Computer Modern and Times Maths fonts to render \TeX{} documents in Windows without the need for additional system software like \acro{ATM}. (When used on a system running Windows~XP, True\TeX{} can also use Type~1 fonts.) When choosing fonts, your own system environment may not be the only one of interest. If you will be sending your finished documents to others for further use, you should consider whether a given font format will introduce compatibility problems. Publishers may require TrueType exclusively because their systems are Windows-based, or Type~1 exclusively, because their systems are based on the early popularity of that format in the publishing industry. Many service bureaus don't care as long as you present them with a finished print file (\PS{} or \acro{PDF}) for their output device. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[CM \nothtml{\normalfont}family collection]% Browse \CTANref{cm-AMStype1} \item[AMS \nothtml{\normalfont}font collection]% Browse \CTANref{ams-AMStype1} \item[Belleek \nothtml{\normalfont}fonts]% \CTANref{belleek} \item[CM-super \nothtml{\normalfont}collection]\CTANref{cm-super} \item[eulervm.sty \nothtml{\normalfont}and supporting metrics]% \CTANref{eulervm} \item[fourier \nothtml{\normalfont}(including metrics and other support for \nothtml{\itshape}utopia]% \CTANref{fourier} \item[hfbright \nothtml{\normalfont}collection]\CTANref{hfbright} \item[hvmath \nothtml{\normalfont\itshape}(free bitmapped version)]% \CTANref{hvmath} \item[MathDesign \nothtml{\normalfont}collection]\CTANref{mathdesign} \item[pxfonts]\CTANref{pxfonts} \item[tmmath \nothtml{\normalfont\itshape}(free bitmapped version)]% \CTANref{tmmath} \item[txfonts]\CTANref{txfonts} \item[utopia \nothtml{\normalfont}fonts]\CTANref{utopia} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-charshift]{Weird characters in \ProgName{dvips} output} \keywords{fi ligature pound pounds sterling elephants} You've innocently generated output, using \ProgName{dvips}, and there are weird transpositions in it: for example, the \texttt{fi} ligature has appeared as a \textsterling{} symbol. This is an unwanted side-effect of the precautions\nothtml{ about generating \PS{} for \acro{PDF}} % beware line break outlined in \Qref[question]{generating \PS{} for PDF}{Q-dvips-pdf}. The \texttt{-G1} switch discussed in that question is appropriate for Knuth's text fonts, but doesn't work with text fonts that don't follow Knuth's patterns (such as fonts supplied by Adobe). If the problem arises, suppress the \texttt{-G1} switch: if you were using it explicitly, \emph{don't}; if you were using \texttt{-Ppdf}, add \texttt{-G0} to suppress the implicit switch in the pseudo-printer file. The problem has been corrected in \ProgName{dvips} v~5.90 (and later versions), which should be available in any recent \TeX{} distribution. \subsection{Particular font families} \Question[Q-concrete]{Using the ``Concrete'' fonts} The Concrete Roman fonts were designed by Don Knuth for a book called ``Concrete Mathematics'', which he wrote with Graham and Patashnik (\emph{the} Patashnik, of \BibTeX{} fame). Knuth only designed text fonts, since the book used the Euler fonts for mathematics. The book was typeset using Plain \TeX{}, of course, with additional macros that may be viewed in a file \File{gkpmac.tex}, which is available on \acro{CTAN}. The packages \Package{beton}, \Package{concmath}, and \Package{ccfonts} are \LaTeX{} packages that change the default text fonts from Computer Modern to Concrete. Packages \Package{beton} and \Package{ccfonts} also slightly increase the default value of \csx{baselineskip} to account for the rather heavier weight of the Concrete fonts. If you wish to use the \FontName{Euler} fonts for mathematics, as Knuth did, there's the \Package{euler} package which has been developed from Knuth's own Plain \TeX{}-based set: these macros are currently deprecated (they clash with many things, including \AMSLaTeX{}). The independently-developed \Package{eulervm} bundle is therefore preferred to the \Package{euler} package. (Note that installing the \Package{eulervm} bundle involves installing a series of virtual fonts. While most modern distributions seem to have the requisite files installed by default, you may find you have to install them. If so, see the file \File{readme} in the \Package{eulervm} distribution.) A few years after Knuth's original design, Ulrik Vieth designed the Concrete Math fonts. Packages \Package{concmath}, and \Package{ccfonts} also change the default math fonts from Computer Modern to Concrete and use the Concrete versions of the \acro{AMS} fonts (this last behaviour is optional in the case of the \Package{concmath} package). There are no bold Concrete fonts, but it is generally accepted that the Computer Modern Sans Serif demibold condensed fonts are an adequate substitute. If you are using \Package{concmath} or \Package{ccfonts} and you want to follow this suggestion, then use the package with \pkgoption{boldsans} class option (in spite of the fact that the \Package{concmath} documentation calls it \pkgoption{sansbold} class option). If you are using \Package{beton}, add \begin{quote} \cmdinvoke{renewcommand}{\csx{bfdefault}}{sbc} \end{quote} to the preamble of your document. Type~1 versions of the fonts are available. For the OT1 encoding, they are available from \nothtml{MicroPress (}% beware line break \Qref{MicroPress}{Q-psfchoice}\nothtml{)}. The \nothtml{CM-Super fonts (}% beware line break \Qref{CM-Super fonts}{Q-textrace}\nothtml{)} contain Type~1 versions of the Concrete fonts in the T1 encoding. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[beton.sty]\CTANref{beton} \item[ccfonts.sty]\CTANref{ccfonts} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}CM-Super fonts]\CTANref{cm-super} \item[concmath.sty]\CTANref{concmath} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Concmath fonts]\CTANref{concmath-f} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Concrete fonts]\CTANref{concrete} \item[euler.sty]\CTANref{euler-latex} \item[eulervm \nothtml{\rmfamily}bundle]\CTANref{eulervm} \item[gkpmac.tex]\CTANref{gkpmac} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-uselmfonts]{Using the Latin Modern fonts} The \Package{lm} fonts are an exciting addition to the armoury of the \AllTeX{} user: high quality outlines of fonts that were until recently difficult to obtain, all in a free and relatively compact package. However, the spartan information file that comes with the fonts remarks ``It is presumed that a potential user knows what to do with all these files''. This answer aims to fill in the requirements: the job is really not terribly difficult. Note that te\TeX{} distributions, from version~3.0, already have the \Package{lm} fonts: all you need do is use them. The fonts may also be installed via the package manager, in a current MiK\TeX{} system. The remainder of this answer, then, is for people who don't use such systems. The font (and related) files appear on \acro{CTAN} as a set of single-entry \Qref*{\acro{TDS} trees}{Q-tds}~--- \File{fonts}, \File{dvips}, \File{tex} and \File{doc}. The \File{doc} subtree really need not be copied (it's really a pair of sample files), but copy the other three into your existing Local |$TEXMF| tree, and % beware line break \Qref*{update the filename database}{Q-instpackages}. Now, incorporate the fonts in the set searched by \PDFLaTeX{}, \ProgName{dvips}, \ProgName{dvipdfm}, your previewers and Type~1-to-\acro{PK} conversion programs, by \begin{itemize} \item On a te\TeX{} system earlier than version~2.0, edit the file \File{$TEXMF/dvips/config/updmap} and insert an absolute path for the \File{lm.map} just after the line that starts |extra_modules="| (and before the closing quotes). \item On a te\TeX{} version~2.0 (or later), execute the command \begin{verbatim} updmap --enable Map lm.map \end{verbatim} \item On a MiK\TeX{} system earlier than version~2.2, the ``Refresh filename database'' operation, which you performed after installing files, also updates the system's ``\PS{} resources database''. \item On a MiK\TeX{} system, version~2.2 or later, update \File{updmap.cfg} as described in the MiK\TeX{} % beware line break \href{http://www.miktex.org/manual/psfonts.html}{online documentation}. Then execute the command \texttt{initexmf -\relax-mkmaps}, and the job is done. \end{itemize} To use the fonts in a \LaTeX{} document, you should \begin{quote} \cmdinvoke{usepackage}{lmodern} \end{quote} this will make the fonts the default for all three \LaTeX{} font families (``roman'', ``sans-serif'' and ``typewriter''). You also need \begin{quote} \cmdinvoke{usepackage}[T1]{fontenc} \end{quote} for text, and \begin{quote} \cmdinvoke{usepackage}{textcomp} \end{quote} if you want to use any of the \acro{TS}1-encoding symbols. There is no support for using fonts according to the \acro{OT}1 encoding. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Latin Modern fonts]\CTANref{lm} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Hypertext and \acro{PDF}} \Question[Q-hyper]{Making hypertext documents from \TeX{}} If you want on-line hypertext with a \AllTeX{} source, probably on the World Wide Web, there are four technologies to consider: \begin{itemize} \item Direct \nothtml{\AllTeX{} conversion to \acro{HTML} (}% \Qref{\AllTeX{} conversion to \acro{HTML}}{Q-LaTeX2HTML}\nothtml{)}; % beware line break \item Use \Qref*{\Package{Texinfo}}{Q-texinfo}, and use the \ProgName{info} viewer, or convert the \Package{texinfo} to \acro{HTML}; \item Use Adobe Acrobat, which will preserve your typesetting perfectly (see \Qref[question]{Making Acrobat documents from \LaTeX{}}{Q-acrobat}); \item The hyper\TeX{} conventions (standardised \csx{special} commands); there are supporting macro packages for Plain \TeX{} and \LaTeX{}). \end{itemize} The Hyper\TeX{} project extended the functionality of all the \LaTeX{} cross-referencing commands (including the table of contents) to produce \csx{special} commands which are parsed by \acro{DVI} processors conforming to the Hyper\TeX{} guidelines; it provides general hypertext links, including those to external documents. The Hyper\TeX{} specification says that conformant viewers/translators must recognize the following set of \csx{special} commands: \begin{description} \item[href:] |html:| \item[name:] |html:| \item[end:] |html:| \item[image:] |html:| \item[base\_name:] |html:| \end{description} The \emph{href}, \emph{name} and \emph{end} commands are used to do the basic hypertext operations of establishing links between sections of documents. Further details are available on \URL{http://arXiv.org/hypertex/}; there are two commonly-used implementations of the specification, a modified \ProgName{xdvi} and (recent releases of) \ProgName{dvips}. Output from the latter may be used in recent releases of \ProgName{ghostscript} or Acrobat Distiller. \Question[Q-acrobat]{Making Acrobat documents from \LaTeX{}} There are three general routes to Acrobat output: Adobe's original `distillation' route (via \PS{} output), conversion of a \acro{DVI} file, and the use of a direct \acro{PDF} generator such as \PDFTeX{} (see \Qref[question]{the \PDFTeX{} project}{Q-pdftex}) or MicroPress's V\TeX{} (see % beware line breaks \Qref[questions]{commercial \TeX{} implementations}{Q-commercial} and \Qref[\htmlonly]{`free' \TeX{} implementations)}{Q-TeXsystems}). For simple documents (with no hyper-references), you can either \begin{itemize} \item process the document in the normal way, produce \PS{} output and distill it; \item (on a Windows or Macintosh machine with the appropriate Adobe tools installed) pass the output through the \acro{PDF}writer in place of a printer driver (this route is a dead end: the \acro{PDF}writer cannot create hyperlinks); \item process the document in the normal way and generate \acro{PDF} direct from the \acro{DVI} with \ProgName{dvipdfm}; or \item process the document direct to \acro{PDF} with \PDFTeX{} or V\TeX{}. \PDFTeX{} has the advantage of availability for a wide range of platforms, V\TeX{} (available commercially for Windows, or free of charge for Linux or \acro{OS/}2) has wider graphics capability, dealing with encapsulated \PS{} and some in-line \PS{}. \end{itemize} To translate all the \LaTeX{} cross-referencing into Acrobat links, you need a \LaTeX{} package to suitably redefine the internal commands. There are two of these for \LaTeX{}, both capable of conforming to the Hyper\TeX{} specification (see \Qref[question]{Making hypertext documents from \TeX{}}{Q-hyper}): Sebastian Rahtz's \Package{hyperref}, and Michael Mehlich's \Package{hyper}. \Package{Hyperref} uses a configuration file to determine how it will generate hypertext; it can operate using \PDFTeX{} primitives, the hyper\TeX{} \csx{special}s, or \acro{DVI} driver-specific \csx{special} commands. %% Both \ProgName{dvips} and \YandY{}'s \acro{\ProgName{DVIPSONE}} \ProgName{Dvips} translates the \acro{DVI} with these \csx{special} commands into \PS{} acceptable to Distiller, and \ProgName{dvipdfm} has \csx{special} commands of its own. There is no free implementation of all of \ProgName{Adobe} \ProgName{Distiller}'s functionality, but recent versions of \ProgName{ghostscript} provide pretty reliable distillation (but beware of the problems discussed in % beware line break \Qref[question]{\ProgName{dvips} output for distillation}{Q-dvips-pdf}). In fact, \ProgName{Distiller} itself is now remarkably cheap (for academics at least). For viewing (and printing) the resulting files, Adobe's \ProgName{Acrobat} \ProgName{Reader} is available for a fair range of platforms; for those for which Adobe's reader is unavailable, remotely current versions of \ProgName{ghostscript} combined with \ProgName{ghostview} or \ProgName{GSview} can display and print \acro{PDF} files. In many circumstances, \ProgName{ghostscript} combined with a viewer application is actually preferable to Acrobat Reader. For example, on Windows Acrobat Reader locks the |.pdf| file it's displaying: this makes the traditional (and highly effective) \AllTeX{} development cycle of ``Edit\arrowhyph{}Process\arrowhyph{}Preview'' become incredibly clumsy~--- \ProgName{GSview} doesn't make the same mistake. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Acrobat Reader]browse \URL{ftp://ftp.adobe.com/pub/adobe/acrobatreader} \item[dvipdfm]\CTANref{dvipdfm} \item[ghostscript]Browse \CTANref{ghostscript} \item[ghostview]Browse \CTANref{ghostview} \item[GSview]Browse \CTANref{gsview} \item[hyper.sty]\CTANref{hyper} \item[hyperref.sty]\CTANref{hyperref} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-dvips-pdf]{Quality of \acro{PDF} from \PS{}} \keywords{blurry fuzzy crippled} Any reasonable \PS{}, including any output of \ProgName{dvips}, may be converted to \acro{PDF}, using (for example) a sufficiently recent version of \ProgName{ghostscript}, Frank Siegert's (shareware) \href{http://www.pstill.com/}{\ProgName{PStill}}, or Adobe's (commercial) \ProgName{Distiller}. But, although the job may (almost always) be done, the results are often not acceptable: the most frequent problem is bad presentation of the character glyphs that make up the document. The following answers offer solutions to this (and other) problems of bad presentation. Issues covered are: \begin{itemize} % beware line breaks (two lines) \item \nothtml{Wrong type of fonts used (}% \Qref{Wrong type of fonts used}{Q-fuzzy-type3}\nothtml{)}, which is the commonest cause of fuzzy text. % beware line breaks (two lines) \item \nothtml{\ProgName{ghostscript} too old (}% \Qref{\ProgName{ghostscript} too old}{Q-fuzzy-gs}\nothtml{)}, which can also result in fuzzy text. \item \nothtml{Switching to font encoding T1 (}% \Qref{Switching to font encoding T1}{Q-fuzzy-T1}\nothtml{)}, which is yet another possible cause of fuzzy text. \item Another problem~--- missing characters~--- arises from an % beware line breaks \nothtml{aged version of \ProgName{Adobe}~\ProgName{Distiller} (}% \Qref{aged version of \ProgName{Adobe}~\ProgName{Distiller}}{Q-distill-prob}\nothtml{)}. \item Finally, there's the common confusion that arises from using the \ProgName{dvips} configuration file \texttt{-Ppdf}, the \nothtml{weird characters (}% \Qref{weird characters}{Q-charshift}\nothtml{)}. \end{itemize} It should be noted that \ProgName{Adobe} % \ProgName{Acrobat} no longer % part of the name \ProgName{Reader}~6 (released in mid-2003) does not exhibit the ``fuzziness'' that so many of the answers below address. This is of course good news: however, it will inevitably be a long time before every user in the world has this (or later) versions, so the remedies below are going to remain for some time to come. \Question[Q-fuzzy-type3]{The wrong type of fonts in \acro{PDF}} \keywords{crippled blurry} This is far the commonest problem: the symptom is that text in the document looks ``fuzzy''. Most people use \ProgName{Adobe} \ProgName{Acrobat} \ProgName{Reader} to view their \acro{PDF}: \ProgName{Reader} is distributed free of charge, and is widely available, for all its faults. One of those faults is its failure to deal with bitmap fonts (at least, in all versions earlier than the recently released version~6). So we don't want bitmap fonts in our \PS{}: with them, characters show up in \ProgName{Reader}'s display as blurred blobs which are often not recognisable as the original letter, and are often not properly placed on the line. Nevertheless, even now, most \TeX{} systems have \ProgName{dvips} configured to use \nothtml{\texttt{.pk} files (}% beware line breaks \Qref{\texttt{.pk} files}{Q-pk}\nothtml{)} in its output. Even \PDFTeX{} will use \texttt{.pk} files if it can see no alternative for a font in the document it is processing. Our remedy is to use % perniciously dangerous line wraps await editors here ;-) \latexhtml{``Adobe Type~1'' (}{``}\Qref{Adobe Type~1}{Q-adobetypen}\latexhtml{)}{''} versions of the fonts we need. Since Adobe are in the business of selling Type~1 fonts, \ProgName{Reader} was of course made to deal with them really rather well, from the very beginning. Of course, if your document uses nothing but fonts that came from Adobe in the first place~--- fonts such as \FontName{Times} that appear in pretty much every \PS{} printer, or such as Adobe \FontName{Sabon} that you pay extra for~--- then there's no problem. But most people use \FontName{Computer} \FontName{Modern} to start with, and even those relative sophisticates who use something as exotic as \ProgName{Sabon} often find themselves using odd characters from \acro{CM} without really intending to do so. Fortunately, rather good versions of the \acro{CM} fonts are available from the \acro{AMS} % beware line break (who have them courtesy of \nothtml{Blue Sky Research~---} \Qref{Blue Sky Research}{Q-commercial}\nothtml{ and \YandY{}}). Most modern systems have the fonts installed ready to use; and any system installed less than 3~years ago has a \ProgName{dvips} configuration file `\texttt{pdf}' that signals the use of the \acro{CM} fonts, and also sets a few other parameters to improve \ProgName{dvips}' output. Use this configuration as: \begin{verbatim} dvips -Ppdf myfile -o myfile.ps \end{verbatim} This may produce a warning message about failing to find the configuration file: \begin{verbatim} dvips: warning: no config file for `pdf' \end{verbatim} or something similar, or about failing to find a font file: \begin{verbatim} dvips: ! Couldn't find header file cmr10.pfb \end{verbatim} Either of these failures signals that your system doesn't have the fonts in the first place. A way of using the fonts that doesn't involve the sophistication of the \texttt{-Ppdf} mechanism is simply to load maps: \begin{verbatim} dvips -Pcmz -Pamz myfile -o myfile.ps \end{verbatim} You may encounter the same warning messages as listed above. If your system does not have the fonts, it won't have the configuration file either; however, it might have the configuration file without the fonts. In either case, you need to \nothtml{install the fonts (}% beware line breaks \Qref{install the fonts}{Q-inst1cm}\nothtml{)}. \Question[Q-fuzzy-gs]{Fuzzy fonts because \ProgName{Ghostscript} too old} \keywords{crippled blurry} So you've done everything the \acro{FAQ} has told you that you need, correct fonts properly installed and appearing in the \ProgName{dvips} output, but \emph{still} you get fuzzy character output after distilling with \ProgName{ghostscript}. The problem could arise from too old a version of \ProgName{ghostscript}, which you may be using directly, or via a script such as \ProgName{ps2pdf} (distributed with \ProgName{ghostscript} itself), \ProgName{dvipdf}, or similar. Though \ProgName{ghostscript} was capable of distillation from version~5.50, that version could only produce bitmap Type~3 output of any font other than the fundamental 35~fonts (\FontName{Times}, \FontName{Helvetica}, etc.). Later versions added `complete' distillation, but it wasn't until version~6.50 that one could rely on it for everyday work. So, if your \acro{PDF} output still looks fuzzy in \ProgName{Acrobat} \ProgName{Reader}, upgrade \ProgName{ghostscript}. The new version should be at least version~6.50, of course, but it's usually good policy to go to the most recent version (version~8.12 at the time of writing~--- 2003). \Question[Q-fuzzy-T1]{Fonts go fuzzy when you switch to T1} \keywords{crippled blurry} You've been having problems with hyphenation, and someone has suggested that you should use ``\cmdinvoke{usepackage}[T1]{fontenc}'' to help sort them out. Suddenly you find that your final \acro{PDF} has become fuzzy. The problem may arise whether you are using \PS{} output and then distilling it, or you are using \PDFTeX{} for the whole job. In fact, this is the same problem as most others about the \nothtml{quality of \acro{PDF} (}% beware line break \Qref{quality of \acro{PDF}}{Q-dvips-pdf}\nothtml{)}: you've abandoned your previous setup using Type~1 versions of the \acro{CM} fonts, and \ProgName{dvips} has inserted Type~3 versions of the \acro{EC} fonts into your document output. (See % beware line break \htmlonly{``}\Qref[question]{Adobe font types}{Q-adobetypen}\htmlonly{''} for details of these font types; also, note that the font \emph{encoding}~T1 has nothing directly to do with the font \emph{type}~Type~1). However, as noted in % beware line break \htmlonly{``}\Qref[question]{8-bit Type~1 fonts}{Q-type1T1}\htmlonly{''}, Type~1 versions of \acro{CM}-like fonts in T1 (or equivalent) encoding are now available, both as ``real'' fonts, and as virtual font sets. One solution, therefore, is to use one of these alternatives. The alternative is to switch font family altogether, to something like \FontName{Times} (as a no-thought default) or one of the many more pleasing Adobe-encoded fonts. The default action of \Package{fontinst}, when creating metrics for such a font, is to create settings for both OT1 and T1 encodings, so there's little change in what goes on (at the user level) even if you have switched to T1~encoding when using the fonts. \Question[Q-distill-prob]{Characters missing from \acro{PDF} output} If you're using \ProgName{Acrobat} \ProgName{Distiller} to create your \acro{PDF} output, you may find characters missing. This may manifest itself as messed-up maths equations (missing ``\latexhtml{\ensuremath{-}}{-}'' signs, for example), or bits missing from large symbols. Early versions of \ProgName{Distiller} used to ignore character positions 0--31 and 128--159 of every font: Adobe's fonts never use such positions, so why should \ProgName{Distiller}? Well, the answer to this question is ``because Adobe don't produce all the world's fonts''~--- fonts like \FontName{Computer} \FontName{Modern} were around before Adobe came on the scene, and \emph{they} use positions 0--31. Adobe don't react to complaints like that in the previous sentence, but they do release new versions of their programs; and \ProgName{Distiller}, since at least version~4.0, \emph{has} recognised the font positions it used to shun. Meanwhile, \TeX{} users with old versions of \ProgName{Distiller} need to deal with their fonts. \ProgName{Dvips} comes to our aid: the switch \texttt{-G1} (``remap characters''), which moves the offending characters out of the way. The \acro{PDF} configuration file (\texttt{-Ppdf}), recommended % beware line break \latexhtml{above}{in ``\Qref{the wrong type of fonts}{Q-fuzzy-type3}''}, includes the switch. The switch is not without its problems; pre-2003 versions of \ProgName{dvips} will apply it to Adobe fonts as well, causing \nothtml{havoc (}\Qref{havoc}{Q-charshift}\nothtml{)}, but fortunately that problem is usually soluble. However, a document using both \acro{CM} and Adobe-specified fonts is stuck. The only real solution is either to upgrade \ProgName{dvips}, or to spend money to upgrade \ProgName{Distiller}. \Question[Q-type1T1]{Finding `8-bit' Type~1 fonts} \keywords{eight} Elsewhere, answers to these \acro{FAQ}s recommend that you use an `8-bit' font to permit % line break!! \Qref*{accentuation of inflected languages}{Q-hyphenaccents}, and also recommend the use of Type~1 fonts to ensure that you get \Qref*{good quality \acro{PDF}}{Q-fuzzy-type3}. These recommendations used to be contradictory: one could not just ``switch'' from the free \acro{CM} fonts to free Cork- (or similarly) encoded Type~1 fonts. The first approach that started to alleviate these problems, was the development of virtual fonts that make a good approach to the Cork encoding (see below). Now, however, we have ``true'' Type~1 fonts available: as always, we have an embarrassment of riches with three free alternatives, and one commercial and one shareware version. \Package{CM-super} is an auto-traced set which encompasses all of the \acro{T}1 and \acro{TS}1 encodings as well as the \acro{T}2* series (the family of encodings that cover languages based on Cyrillic alphabets). These fonts are pretty easy to install (the installation instructions are clear), but they are huge: don't try to install them if you're short of disc space. \Package{CM-LGC} is a similar ``super-font'' set, but of much more modest size; it covers \acro{T}1, \acro{TS}1 and \acro{T}2{A} encodings (as does \Package{CM-super}, and also covers the \acro{LGR} encoding (for typesetting Greek, based on Claudio Beccari's \MF{} sources). \Package{CM-LGC} manages to be small by going to the opposite extreme from \Package{CM-super}, which includes fonts at all the sizes supported by the original \acro{EC} (a huge range); \Package{CM-LGC} has one font per font shape, getting other sizes by scaling. There is an inevitable loss of quality inherent in this approach, but for the disc-space-challenged machine, \Package{CM-LGC} is an obvious choice. \Package{Tt2001} is a simple scan of the \acro{EC} and \acro{TC} fonts, and has some virtues~--- it's noticeably smaller than \Package{CM-super} while being less stark than \Package{CM-LGC}. \Package{Latin} \Package{Modern} is produced using the program \Qref*{\ProgName{MetaType1}}{Q-textrace}. The \Package{Latin} \Package{Modern} set comes with \acro{T}1, \acro{TS}1 \acro{LY}1 encoded variants (as well as a variant using the Polish \acro{QX} encoding); for the glyph set it covers, its outlines seem rather cleaner than those of \Package{CM-super}. \Package{Latin} \Package{Modern} is more modest in its disc space demands than is \Package{CM-super}, while not being nearly as stark in its range of design sizes as is \Package{CM-LGC}~--- \Package{Latin} \Package{Modern}'s fonts are offered in the same set of sizes as the original \Package{CM} fonts. It's hard to argue with the choice: Knuth's range of sizes has stood the test of time, and is one of the bases on which the excellence of the \TeX{} system rests. \Qref*{Virtual fonts}{Q-virtualfonts} help us deal with the problem, since they allow us to map ``bits of \acro{DVI} file'' to single characters in the virtual font; so we can create an ``\'e'' character by recreating the \acro{DVI} commands that would result from the code ``|\'||e|''. However, since this involves two characters being selected from a font, the arrangement is sufficient to fool \ProgName{Acrobat} \ProgName{Reader}: you can't use the program's facilities for searching for text that contains inflected characters, and if you \emph{cut} text from a window that contains such a character, you'll find something unexpected (typically the accent and the `base' characters separated by a space) when you \ProgName{paste} the result. However, if you can live with this difficulty, virtual fonts are a useful and straightforward solution to the problem. There are two virtual-font offerings of \acro{CM}-based 8-bit fonts~--- the \Package{ae} (``almost \acro{EC}'') and \Package{zefonts} sets; the \Package{zefonts} set has wider coverage (though the \Package{ae} set may be extended to offer guillemets by use of the \Package{aeguill} package). Neither offers characters such as |eth| and |thorn| (used in, for example, in Icelandic), but the \Package{aecompl} package works with the \Package{ae} fonts to provide the missing characters from the \acro{EC} fonts (i.e., as bitmaps). The sole remaining commercial \acro{CM}-like 8-bit font comes from Micropress, who offer the complete \acro{EC} set in Type~1 format, as part of their range of outline versions of fonts that were originally distributed in \MF{} format. See \Qref[question]{``commercial distributions''}{Q-commercial}. The shareware % ! line break \Qref*{BaKoMa \TeX{} distribution}{Q-TeXsystems} offers a set of Type~1 \acro{EC} fonts, as an extra shareware option. (As far as the present author can tell, these fonts are \emph{only} available to users of BaKoMa \TeX{}: they are stored in an archive format that seems not to be publicly available.) Finally, you can use one of the myriad text fonts available in Type~1 format (with appropriate \acro{PSNFSS} metrics for \acro{T}1 encoding, or metrics for some other 8-bit encoding such as \acro{LY}1). However, if you use someone else's text font (even something as simple as Adobe's Times family) you have to find a matching family of mathematical fonts, which is a non-trivial undertaking~--- \htmlonly{see }\Qref{``choice of scalable fonts''}{Q-psfchoice}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}ae fonts]\CTANref{ae} \item[aecompl.sty]Distributed with \CTANref{ae} \item[aeguill.sty]\CTANref{aeguill} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}BaKoMa fonts]Browse \CTANref{bakoma-texfonts} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}CM-LGC fonts]\CTANref{cm-lgc} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}CM-super fonts]\CTANref{cm-super} (beware: very large download) \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Latin Modern fonts]\CTANref{lm} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}tt2001 fonts]\CTANref{tt2001} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}zefonts]\CTANref{zefonts} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-pkfix]{Replacing Type 3 fonts in \PS{}} One often comes across a \PS{} file generated by \ProgName{dvips} which contains embedded \acro{PK} fonts; if you try to generate \acro{PDF} from such a file, the quality will be poor. Of course, the proper solution is to regenerate the \PS{} file, but if neither the sources nor the \acro{DVI} file are available, one must needs resort to some sort of patching to replace the bitmap fonts in the file by outline fonts. The program \ProgName{pkfix} (by Heiko Oberdiek) will do this patching, for files created by ``not too old versions'' of \ProgName{dvips}: it finds the fonts to be replaced by examining the \PS{} comments \ProgName{dvips} has put in the file. For each font, \ProgName{pkfix} puts appropriate \TeX{} commands in a file, which it then processes and runs through \ProgName{dvips} (with switch |-Ppdf|) to acquire an appropriate copy of the font; these copies are then patched back into the original file. %% Another program, available free from \nothtml{\YandY{} (}% beware line break %% \Qref{\YandY{}}{Q-commercial}\nothtml{)} for Windows users who also %% have Adobe \ProgName{Acrobat} \ProgName{Distiller} available, is %% \href{http://www.yandy.com/download/dvipsstrip.exe}{\ProgName{dvipsstrip}}. %% \ProgName{Dvipsstrip} simply removes %% the fonts: the idea is that you then reinstate them in the course of a %% run through \ProgName{distiller} (which only works if %% \ProgName{distiller} `knows' about the fonts: it can be instructed via %% its \texttt{Settings}\arrowhyph{}\texttt{Font Locations} tool). %% \par Yet another option is Frank Siegert's (shareware) \href{http://www.pstill.com}{PStill}, which is capable of processing the \PS{} it is distilling, and one option is to replace bitmap fonts in the file with Type~1 versions. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[pkfix]\CTANref{pkfix} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-pdfpagelabels]{\Package{Hyperref} and repeated page numbers} The \Class{book} class (and its friends and relations) automatically changes the display of page numbers in the frontmatter of the document to lower-case roman. This is fine for human readers, but it confuses \Package{hyperref} since there are pages which seem (to \Package{hyperref}) to have the same page number. Fortunately, there are configuration options to make \Package{hyperref} ``do the right thing''. The two options in question are: \begin{description} \item[\pkgoption{plainpages=false}] Make page anchors using the formatted form of the page number. With this option, \Package{hyperref} writes different anchors for pages `ii' and `2'. (If the option is set `\texttt{true}'~--- the default~--- \Package{hyperref} writes page anchors as the arabic form of the absolute page number, rather than the formatted form.) \item[\pkgoption{pdfpagelabels}] Set \acro{PDF} page labels; i.e., write the value of \csx{thepage} to the \acro{PDF} file so that \Package{Acrobat Reader} can display the page number as (say) `ii (4 of 40)' rather than simply `4 of 40'. \end{description} The two should be used whenever page numbering is not just `1\texttt{..}\ensuremath{n}'; they may be used independently, but usually are not. The recipe isn't perfect: it relies on \csx{thepage} being different for every page in the document. A common problem arises when there is an unnumbered title page, after which page numbers are reset: the \PDFTeX{} warning of ``\Qref*{duplicate destinations}{Q-hyperdupdest}'' will happen in this case, regardless of the options. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[hyperref.sty]\CTANref{hyperref} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Graphics} \Question[Q-impgraph]{How to import graphics into \AllTeX{} documents} Knuth, when designing the current version of \TeX{} back in the early 1980s, could discern no ``standard'' way of expressing graphics in documents. He reasoned that this state could not persist for ever, but that it would be foolish for him to define \TeX{} primitives that allowed the import of graphical image definitions. He therefore deferred the specification of the use of graphics to the writers of \acro{DVI} drivers; \TeX{} documents would control the drivers by means of \nothtml{\csx{special} commands (}% beware line breaks \Qref{\csx{special} commands}{Q-specials}\nothtml{)}. There is therefore a straightforward way for anyone to import graphics into their document: read the specification of the \csx{special} commands your driver uses, and `just' code them. This is the hair-shirt approach: it definitely works, but it's not for everyone. Over the years, therefore, ``graphics inclusion'' packages have sprung up; most were designed for inclusion of \nothtml{Encapsulated \PS{} graphics (}% beware line break \Qref{Encapsulated \PS{} graphics}{Q-eps}\nothtml{)}\nobreakspace--- which has become the \emph{lingua franca} of graphics inclusion over the last decade or so. Notable examples are the \Package{epsf} package (distributed with \ProgName{dvips}) and the \Package{psfig} package. (Both of these packages were designed to work well with both Plain \TeX{} and \LaTeXo{}; they are both still available.) All such packages were tied to a particular \acro{DVI} driver (\ProgName{dvips}, in the above two cases), but their code could be configured for others. The obvious next step was to make the code configurable dynamically. The \LaTeX{} standard \Package{graphics} package and its derivatives made this step: it is strongly preferred for all current work. It can also be used (with the help of the \Package{miniltx} ``\LaTeX{} emulator'' and the \Package{graphicx.tex} front-end) in documents written in Plain \TeX{}. The \Package{graphics} package takes a variety of ``driver options''~--- package options that select code to generate the commands appropriate to the \acro{DVI} driver in use. In most cases, your \AllTeX{} distribution will provide a \File{graphics.cfg} file that will select the correct driver for what you're doing (for example, a distribution that provides both \LaTeX{} and \PDFLaTeX{} will usually provide a configuration file that determins whether \PDFLaTeX{} is running, and selects the definitions for it if so). The \Package{graphics} package provides a toolkit of commands (insert graphics, scale a box, rotate a box), which may be composed to provide most facilities you need; the basic command, \csx{includegraphics}, takes one optional argument, which specifies the bounding box of the graphics to be included. The \Package{graphicx} package uses the facilities of of \Package{graphics} behind a rather more sophisticated command syntax to provide a very powerful version of the \csx{includegraphics} command. \Package{graphicx}'s version can combine scaling and rotation, viewporting and clipping, and many other things. While this is all a convenience (at some cost of syntax), it is also capable of producing noticeably more efficient \PS{}, and some of its combinations are simply not possible with the \Package{graphics} package version. The \Package{epsfig} package provides the same facilities as \Package{graphicx}, but via a \csx{psfig} command (also known as \csx{epsfig}), capable of emulating the behaviour (if not the bugs) the old \Package{psfig} package. \Package{Epsfig} also supplies homely support for former users of the \Package{epsf} package. However, there's a support issue: if you declare you're using \Package{epsfig}, any potential mailing list or usenet helper has to clear out of the equation the possibility that you're using ``old'' \Package{epsfig}, so that support is slower coming than it would otherwise be. There is no rational reason to stick with the old packages, which have never been entirely satisfactory in the \LaTeX{} context. (One irrational reason to leave them behind is that their replacement's name tends not to imply that it's exclusively related to \PS{} graphics. The reasoning also excludes \Package{epsfig}, of course.) A wide variety of detailed techniques and tricks have been developed over the years, and Keith Reckdahl's \Package{epslatex} outlines them in compendious detail: this highly recommendable document is available from \acro{CTAN}. An invaluable review of the practicalities of exchanging graphics between sites, % beware multiple line break problems \begin{wideversion} % hyperversion ``\href{http://silas.psfc.mit.edu/elec_fig/elec_figures.pdf}{Graphics for Inclusion in Electronic Documents}'' \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} % non-hyper \href{http://silas.psfc.mit.edu/elec_fig/elec_figures.pdf}% {``Graphics for Inclusion in Electronic Documents''} \end{narrowversion} has been written by Ian Hutchinson; the document isn't on \acro{CTAN}, but may also be % beware line breaks \href{http://silas.psfc.mit.edu/elec_fig/}{browsed on the Web}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[epsf.tex]\CTANref{epsf} \item[epsfig.sty]Part of the \CTANref{graphics} bundle \item[epslatex.pdf]\CTANref{epslatex}; the document is also available in \PS{} format as \CTANref{epslatex_ps} \item[graphics.sty]\CTANref{graphics} \item[graphicx.sty]Part of the \CTANref{graphics} bundle \item[miniltx.tex]\CTANref{graphics-plain} \item[psfig.sty]\CTANref{psfig} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-dvipsgraphics]{Imported graphics in \ProgName{dvips}} \ProgName{Dvips}, as originally conceived, can only import a single graphics format: \nothtml{encapsulated \PS{} (\texttt{.eps} files, }% \Qref{encapsulated \PS{}}{Q-eps}\htmlonly{ (\texttt{.eps} files}). \ProgName{Dvips} also deals with the slightly eccentric \acro{EPS} that is created by \Qref*{\MP{}}{Q-MP}. Apart from the fact that a depressing proportion of drawing applications produce corrupt \acro{EPS} when asked for such output, this is pretty satisfactory for vector graphics work. To include bitmap graphics, you need some means of converting them to \PS{}; in fact many standard image manipulators (such as \ProgName{ImageMagick}'s \ProgName{convert}) make a good job of creating \acro{EPS} files. (Though \ProgName{Unix} users should beware of \ProgName{xv}'s claims: it has a tendency to downsample your bitmap to your screen resolution.) Special purpose applications \ProgName{jpeg2ps} (which converts \acro{JPEG} files using \PS{} level 2 functionality) and \ProgName{bmeps} (which converts both \acro{JPEG} and \acro{PNG} files) are also considered ``good bets''. \ProgName{Bmeps} comes with patches to produce your own version of \ProgName{dvips} that can cope with \acro{JPEG} and \acro{PNG} direct, using \ProgName{bmeps}'s conversion library. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[bmeps]\CTANref{bmeps} \item[jpeg2ps]\CTANref{jpeg2ps} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-pdftexgraphics]{Imported graphics in \PDFLaTeX{}} \PDFTeX{} itself has a rather wide range of formats that it can ``natively'' incorporate into its output \acro{PDF} stream: \acro{JPEG} (\texttt{.jpg} files) for photographs and similar images, \acro{PNG} files for artificial bitmap images, and \acro{PDF} for vector drawings. Old versions of \PDFTeX{} (prior to version~1.10a) supported \acro{TIFF} (\texttt{.tif} files) format as an alternative to \acro{PNG} files; don't rely on this facility, even if you \emph{are} running an old enough version of \PDFTeX{}\dots{} In addition to the `native' formats, the standard \PDFLaTeX{} \Package{graphics} package setup causes Hans Hagen's \File{supp-pdf} macros to be loaded: these macros are capable of translating the output of \MP{} to \acro{PDF} ``on the fly''; thus \MP{} output (\texttt{.mps} files) may also be included in \PDFLaTeX{} documents. The commonest problem users encounter, when switching from \TeX{}, is that there is no straightforward way to include \acro{EPS} files: since \PDFTeX{} is its own ``driver'', and since it contains no means of converting \PS{} to \acro{PDF}, there's no direct way the job can be done. The simple solution is to convert the \acro{EPS} to an appropriate \acro{PDF} file. The \ProgName{epstopdf} program will do this: it's available either as a Windows executable or as a \ProgName{Perl} script to run on Unix and other similar systems. A \LaTeX{} package, \Package{epstopdf}, can be used to generate the requisite \acro{PDF} files ``on the fly''; this is convenient, but requires that you suppress one of \TeX{}'s security checks: don't use it in files from sources you don't entirely trust. A similar package, \Package{ps4pdf}, permits other things than `mere' graphics files in its argument. (Documentation is scarce: see the \href{http://www.perce.de/LaTeX/ps4pdf/Examples/}{distribution page} for some examples.) An alternative solution is to use \ProgName{purifyeps}, a \ProgName{Perl} script which uses the good offices of \ProgName{pstoedit} and of \MP{} to convert your Encapsulated \PS{} to ``Encapsulated \PS{} that comes out of \MP{}'', and can therefore be included directly. Sadly, \ProgName{purifyeps} doesn't work for all \texttt{.eps} files. Good coverage of the problem is to be found in Herbert Vo\ss{}' \href{http://pstricks.de/pdf/pdfoutput.phtml#pdftricks}{\acro{PDF}tricks support page}, which is, in fact, targeted at the use of \Package{pstricks} in \PDFLaTeX{}, and also covers the \Package{pstricks}-specific package \Package{pdftricks}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[epstopdf]Browse \CTANref{epstopdf} \item[epstopdf.sty]Distributed with Heiko Oberdiek's packages \CTANref{oberdiek} \item[pdftricks.sty]\CTANref{pdftricks} \item[ps4pdf.sty]\CTANref{ps4pdf} \item[pstoedit]\CTANref{pstoedit} \item[purifyeps]\CTANref{purifyeps} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-dvipdfmgraphics]{Imported graphics in \ProgName{dvipdfm}} \ProgName{Dvipdfm} translates direct from \acro{DVI} to \acro{PDF} (all other available routes produce \PS{} output using \ProgName{dvips} and then convert that to \acro{PDF} with \ProgName{ghostscript} or \ProgName{Acrobat} \ProgName{Distiller}). \ProgName{Dvipdfm} is a particularly flexible application. It will permit the inclusion of bitmap and \acro{PDF} graphics, as does \Qref*{\PDFTeX{}}{Q-pdftexgraphics}, but is also capable of employing \ProgName{ghostscript} ``on the fly'' so as to be able to permit the inclusion of encapsulated \PS{} (\texttt{.eps}) files by translating them to \acro{PDF}. In this way, \ProgName{dvipdfm} combines the good qualities of \ProgName{dvips} and of \PDFTeX{} as a means of processing illustrated documents. Unfortunately, ``ordinary'' \LaTeX{} can't deduce the bounding box of a binary bitmap file (such as \acro{JPEG} or \acro{PNG}), so you have to specify the bounding box. This may be done explicitly, in the document: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[dvipdfm]{graphicx} ... \includegraphics[bb=0 0 540 405]{photo.jpg} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} It's usually not obvious what values to give the ``\texttt{bb}'' key, but the program \ProgName{ebb} will generate a file containing the information; the above numbers came from an \ProgName{ebb} output file \File{photo.bb}: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} %%Title: /home/gsm10/photo.jpg %%Creator: ebb Version 0.5.2 %%BoundingBox: 0 0 540 405 %%CreationDate: Mon Mar 8 15:17:47 2004 \end{verbatim} \end{quote} However, if such a file is available, you may abbreviate the inclusion code, above, to read: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[dvipdfm]{graphicx} ... \includegraphics{photo} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which makes the operation feel as simple as does including \texttt{.eps} images in a \LaTeX{} file for processing with \ProgName{dvips}; the \Package{graphicx} package knows to look for a \texttt{.bb} file if no bounding box is provided in the \csx{includegraphics} command. The one place where usage isn't quite so simple is the need to quote \ProgName{dvipdfm} explicitly, as an option when loading the \Package{graphicx} package: if you are using \ProgName{dvips}, you don't ordinarily need to specify the fact, since the default graphics configuration file (of most distributions) ``guesses'' the \texttt{dvips} option if you're using \TeX{}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[dvipdfm]\CTANref{dvipdfm} \item[ebb]Distributed as part of \CTANref{dvipdfm} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-graphicspath]{Importing graphics from ``somewhere else''} By default, graphics commands like \csx{includegraphics} look ``wherever \TeX{} files are found'' for the graphic file they're being asked to use. This can reduce your flexibility if you choose to hold your graphics files in a common directory, away from your \AllTeX{} sources. The simplest solution is to patch \TeX{}'s path, by changing the default path. On most systems, the default path is taken from the environment variable |TEXINPUTS|, if it's present; you can adapt that to take in the path it already has, by setting the variable to \begin{verbatim} TEXINPUTS=.:: \end{verbatim} on a Unix system; on a Windows system the separator will be ``|;|'' rather than ``|:|''. The ``|.|'' is there to ensure that the current directory is searched first; the trailing ``|:|'' says ``patch in the value of |TEXINPUTS| from your configuration file, here''. This method has the merit of efficiency (\AllTeX{} does \emph{all} of the searches, which is quick), but it's always clumsy and may prove inconvenient to use in Windows setups (at least). The alternative is to use the \Package{graphics} package command \csx{graphicspath}; this command is of course also available to users of the \Package{graphicx} and the \Package{epsfig} packages. The syntax of \csx{graphicspath}'s one argument is slightly odd: it's a sequence of paths (typically relative paths), each of which is enclosed in braces. A slightly odd sample, given in the \Package{graphics} bundle documentation, is: \begin{verbatim} \graphicspath{{eps/}{tiff/}} \end{verbatim} however, if the security checks on your \AllTeX{} system allow, the path may be anything you choose (rather than strictly relative, like those above). Be aware that \csx{graphicspath} does not affect the operations of graphics macros other than those from the graphics bundle~--- in particular, those of the outdated \Package{epsf} and \Package{psfig} packages are immune. The disadvantage of the \csx{graphicspath} method is inefficiency. The package will call \AllTeX{} once for each entry in the list, which is itself slows things. More seriously, \TeX{} remembers the file name, thus effectively losing memory, every time it's asked to look up a file, so a document that uses a huge number of graphical inputs could be embarrassed by lack of memory. If your document is split into a variety of directories, and each directory has its associated graphics, the \Package{import} package may well be the thing for you; see the discussion % beware line break \latexhtml{of ``bits of document in other directories'' (}{in the question ``}% \Qref{bits of document in other directories}{Q-docotherdir}% \latexhtml{)}{''}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[graphics \nothtml{\rmfamily}bundle]\CTANref{graphics} \item[import.sty]\CTANref{import} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-graph-pspdf]{Portable imported graphics} A regular need is a document to be distributed in more than one format: commonly both \PS{} and \acro{PDF}. The following advice is based on a post by one with much experience of dealing with the problem of dealing with \acro{EPS} graphics in this case. \begin{itemize} \item Don't specify a driver when loading loading whichever version of the \Package{graphics} package you use. The scheme relies on the distribution's ability to decide which driver is going to be used: the choice is between \ProgName{dvips} and \PDFTeX{}, in this case. Be sure to exclude options \pkgoption{dvips}, \pkgoption{pdftex} and \pkgoption{dvipdfm} (\ProgName{dvipdfm} is not used in this scheme, but the aspirant \acro{PDF}-maker may be using it for his output, before switching to the scheme). \item Use \cmdinvoke{includegraphics}[...]{filename} without specifying the extension (i.e., neither |.eps| nor |.pdf|). \item For every |.eps| file you will be including, produce a |.pdf| version, as described in % beware line break \Qref[question]{Graphics in \PDFLaTeX{}}{Q-pdftexgraphics}. Having done this, you will have two copies of each graphic (a |.eps| and a |.pdf| file) in your directory. \item Use \PDFLaTeX{} (rather than \LaTeX{}--\ProgName{dvips}--distillation or \LaTeX{}--\ProgName{dvipdfm}) to produce your \acro{PDF} output. \end{itemize} \ProgName{Dvipdfm}'s charms are less than attractive here: the document itself needs to be altered from its default (\ProgName{dvips}) state, before \ProgName{dvipdfm} will process it. \Question[Q-grmaxwidth]{Limit the width of imported graphics} Suppose you have graphics which may or may not be able to fit within the width of the page; if they will fit, you want to set them at their natural size, but otherwise you want to scale the whole picture so that it fits within the page width. You do this by delving into the innards of the graphics package (which of course needs a little \LaTeX{} internals programming): \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \makeatletter \def\maxwidth{% \ifdim\Gin@nat@width>\linewidth \linewidth \else \Gin@nat@width \fi } \makeatother \end{verbatim} \end{quote} This defines a ``variable'' width which has the properties you want. Replace \csx{linewidth} if you have a different constraint on the width of the graphic. Use the command as follows: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \includegraphics[width=\maxwidth]{figure} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \Question[Q-topgraph]{Top-aligning imported graphics} When \TeX{} sets a line of anything, it ensures that the base-line of each object in the line is at the same level as the base-line of the final object. (Apart, of course, from \csx{raisebox} commands\dots{}) Most imported graphics have their base-line set at the bottom of the picture. When using packages such as \Package{subfig}, one often wants to align figures by their tops. The following odd little bit of code does this: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \vtop{% \vskip0pt \hbox{% \includegraphics{figure}% }% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \csx{vtop} primitive sets the base-line of the resulting object to that of the first ``line'' in it; the \csx{vskip} creates the illusion of an empty line, so \csx{vtop} makes the very top of the box into the base-line. In cases where the graphics are to be aligned with text, there is a case for making the base-line one ex-height below the top of the box, as in: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \vtop{% \vskip-1ex \hbox{% \includegraphics{figure}% }% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The fact is, \emph{you} may choose where the base-line ends up. This answer merely shows you sensible choices you might make. \Question[Q-mpprologues]{Making \MP{} output display in \ProgName{ghostscript}} \MP{} ordinarily expects its output to be included in some context where the `standard' \MF{} fonts (that you've specified) are already defined~--- for example, as a figure in \TeX{} document. If you're debugging your \MP{} code, you may want to view it in \ProgName{ghostscript} (or some other \PS{} previewer). However, the \PS{} `engine' in \ProgName{ghostscript} \emph{doesn't} ordinarily have the fonts loaded, and you'll eperience an error such as \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} Error: /undefined in cmmi10 \end{verbatim} \end{quote} There is provision in \MP{} for avoiding this problem: issue the command |prologues := 2;| at the start of the |.mp| file. Unfortunately, the \PS{} that \MP{} inserts in its output, following this command, is incompatible with ordinary use of the \PS{} in inclusions into \AllTeX{} documents, so it's best to make the |prologues| command optional. Furthermore, \MP{} takes a very simple-minded approach to font encoding: since \TeX{} font encodings regularly confuse sophisticated minds, this can prove troublesome. If you're suffering such problems (the symptom is that characters disappear, or are wrongly presented) the only solution is to view the `original' metapost output after processing through \LaTeX{} and \ProgName{dvips}. Conditional compilation may be done either by inputting \File{MyFigure.mp} indirectly from a simple wrapper \File{MyFigureDisplay.mp}: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} prologues := 2; input MyFigure \end{verbatim} \end{quote} or by issuing a shell command such as \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} mp '\prologues:=2; input MyFigure' \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (which will work without the quote marks if you're not using a Unix shell). A suitable \LaTeX{} route would involve processing \File{MyFigure.tex}, which contains: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \documentclass{article} \usepackage{graphicx} \begin{document} \thispagestyle{empty} \includegraphics{MyFigure.1} \end{document} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Processing the resulting \acro{DVI} file with the \ProgName{dvips} command \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} dvips -E -o MyFigure.eps MyFigure \end{verbatim} \end{quote} would then give a satisfactory Encapsulated \PS{} file. This procedure may be automated using the \ProgName{Perl} script \ProgName{mps2eps}, thus saving a certain amount of tedium. The Plain~\TeX{} user may use an adaptation of a jiffy of Knuth's, by Dan Luecking. Dan's version \Package{mpsproof.tex} will work under \TeX{} to produce a \acro{DVI} file for use with \ProgName{dvips}, or under \PDFTeX{} to produce a \acro{PDF} file, direct. The output is set up to look like a proof sheet. A script application, \ProgName{mptopdf}, is available in recent \AllTeX{} distributions: it seems fairly reliably to produce \acro{PDF} from \MP{}, so may reasonably be considered an answer to the question\dots{} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[mps2eps]\CTANref{mps2eps} \item[mpsproof.tex]\CTANref{mpsproof} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-drawing]{Drawing with \TeX{}} There are many packages to do pictures in \AllTeX{} itself (rather than importing graphics created externally), ranging from simple use of \LaTeX{} \environment{picture} environment, through enhancements like \ProgName{epic}, to sophisticated (but slow) drawing with \PiCTeX{}. Depending on your type of drawing, and setup, here are a few systems you may consider: \begin{itemize} \item \Package{pict2e}; this was advertised in % !line break \Qref*{the \LaTeX{} manual}{Q-books}, but didn't appear for nearly ten years after publication of the book! It removes all the petty niggles that surround the use of the \environment{picture} environment. It therefore suffers \emph{only} from the rather eccentric drawing language of the environment, and is a far more useful tool than the original environment has ever been. (Note that \Package{pict2e} supersedes David Carlisle's stop-gap \Package{pspicture}.) \item \Package{pstricks}; this gives you access to all the power of \PS{} from \TeX{} itself, by sophisticated use of \Qref*{\csx{special} commands}{Q-specials}. Since \PS{} is itself a pretty powerful programming language, this means there are many astounding things that can in principle be achieved. \Package{pstricks}' \csx{special}s are by default specific to \ProgName{dvips}, but V\TeX{} (both in its commercial and in its free versions) understands them. \PDFTeX{} users may use \Package{pdftricks}, which (like \Package{epstopdf}~--- see % ! line break \Qref[question]{\PDFLaTeX{} graphics}{Q-pdftexgraphics}) generates \acro{PDF} files on the fly from \Package{pstricks} commands. The documentation is good (you may browse it via the % ! line break \href{http://www.tug.org/applications/PSTricks/}{\Package{pstricks} page} on the \acro{TUG} web site), and another extremely valuable \href{http://www.pstricks.de}{web site} lists supporting packages (for various specialised drawing operations) and many enticing examples. There is also a mailing list (\mailto{pstricks@tug.org}) which you may \href{http://tug.org/mailman/listinfo/pstricks}{join}, or you may just browse the \href{http://tug.org/pipermail/pstricks/}{list archives}. \item \Package{pgf}: while \Package{pstricks} is very powerful and convenient, using it with \PDFLaTeX{} is an awful fidget: if you simply want the graphical capabilities, \Package{pgf} may be a good bet for you. While \acro{PDF} has (in essence) the same graphical capabilities as \PS{}, it isn't programmable; \Package{pgf} provides common \LaTeX{} commands that will utilise the graphical capabilities of both \PS{} and \acro{PDF} equally. \item \MP{}; you liked \MF{}, but never got to grips with font files? Try \Qref*{\MP{}}{Q-MP}~--- all the power of \MF{}, but it generates \PS{} figures; \MP{} is nowadays part of most serious \AllTeX{} distributions. Knuth uses it for all his work\dots{} \item \ProgName{Mfpic}; you liked \MF{}, but can't understand the language? The package makes up \MF{} or \MP{} code for you within using familiar-looking \TeX{} macros. Not \emph{quite} the full power of \MP{}, but a friendlier interface; of course, with \MP{} output, the results can be used equally well in either \LaTeX{} or \PDFLaTeX{}. \item You liked \PiCTeX{} but don't have enough memory or time? Look at Eitan Gurari's \Package{dratex}, which is as powerful as most other \TeX{} drawing packages, but is an entirely new implementation, which is not as hard on memory, is much more readable (and is fully documented). \end{itemize} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[dratex.sty]\CTANref{dratex} \item[mfpic]\CTANref{mfpic} \item[pdftricks.sty]\CTANref{pdftricks} \item[pspicture.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{carlisle} \item[pgf.sty]\CTANref{pgf} \item[pict2e.sty]\CTANref{pict2e} \item[pstricks]\CTANref{pstricks} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-drawFeyn]{Drawing Feynman diagrams in \LaTeX{}} Michael Levine's \Package{feynman} bundle for drawing the diagrams in \LaTeXo{} is still available. Thorsten Ohl's \Package{feynmf} is designed for use with current \LaTeX{}, and works in combination with \MF{} (or, in its \Package{feynmp} incarnation, with \MP{}). The \ProgName{feynmf} or \ProgName{feynmp} package reads a description of the diagram written in \TeX{}, and writes out code. \MF{} (or \MP{}) can then produce a font (or \PS{} file) for use in a subsequent \LaTeX{} run. For new users, who have access to \MP{}, the \PS{} version is probably the better route, for document portability and other reasons. % checked rf 2001/03/22 Jos Vermaseren's \Package{axodraw} is mentioned as an alternative in the documentation of \Package{feynmf}, but it is written entirely in terms of \ProgName{dvips} \csx{special} commands, and is thus rather imperfectly portable. An alternative approach is implemented by Norman Gray's \Package{feyn} package. Rather than creating complete diagrams as postscript images, \Package{feyn} provides a font (in a variety of sizes) containing fragments, which you can compose to produce complete diagrams. It offers fairly simple diagrams which look good in equations, rather than complicated ones more suitable for display in figures. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[axodraw]\CTANref{axodraw} \item[feyn \nothtml{\rmfamily}font bundle]\CTANref{feyn} \item[feynman bundle]\CTANref{feynman} \item[feynmf/feynmp bundle]\CTANref{feynmf} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-labelfig]{Labelling graphics} ``Technical'' graphics (such as graphs and diagrams) are often labelled with quite complex mathematical expressions: there are few drawing or graphing tools that can do such things (the honourable exception being \MP{}, which allows you to program the labels, in \AllTeX{}, in the middle of specifying your graphic). Labels on graphics produced by all those \emph{other} tools is where the \Package{psfrag} package can help. Place an unique text in your graphic, using the normal text features of your tool, and you can ask \Package{psfrag} to replace the text with arbitrary \AllTeX{} material. \Package{Psfrag}'s ``operative'' command is \cmdinvoke{psfrag}{\emph{PS text}}{\emph{Repl text}}, which instructs the system to replace the original (``\texttt{PS}'') text with the \TeX{}-typeset replacement text. Optional arguments permit adjustment of position, scale and rotation; full details may be found in \File{pfgguide} in the distribution. (Unfortunately, \Package{psfrag} can't be used with \PDFLaTeX{}, though one might hope that it would be susceptible to the same sort of treatment as is used in the \Package{pdftricks} package. On the other hand, \Qref*{V\TeX{}}{Q-commercial}'s GeX processor explicitly deals with \Package{psfrag}, both in its free and commercial instances.) Another useful approach is \Package{overpic}, which overlays a \environment{picture} environment on a graphic included by use of \csx{includegraphics}. This treatment lends itself to ready placement of texts and the like on top of a graphic. The package can draw a grid for planning your ``attack''; the distribution comes with simple examples. \Package{Pstricks} can of course do everything that \Package{overpic} can, with all the flexibility of \PS{} programming that it offers. The \Package{pstricks} web site has a page of % ! line break \href{http://pstricks.de/Examples/overlay.phtml}{examples of labelling} which will get you started; if \Package{pstricks} is % ! line break \Qref*{an option for you}{Q-drawing}, this route is worth a try. The confident user may, of course, do the whole job in a picture environment which itself includes the graphic. I would recommend \Package{overpic} or the \Package{pstricks} approach, but such things are plainly little more than a convenience over what is achievable with the do-it-yourself approach. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[overpic.sty]\CTANref{overpic} \item[psfrag.sty]\CTANref{psfrag} \item[pstricks.sty]\CTANref{pstricks} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Bibliographies and citations} \subsection{Creating bibliographies} \Question[Q-buildbib]{Creating a \BibTeX{} bibliography file} A \BibTeX{} bibliography file may reasonably be compared to a small database, the entries in which are references to literature that may be called up by citations in a document. Each entry in the bibliography has a \emph{type} and a unique \emph{key}. The bibliography is read, by \BibTeX{}, using the details specified in a \emph{bibliography style}. From the style, \BibTeX{} finds what entry types are permissible, what \emph{fields} each entry type has, and how to format the whole entry. The type specifies the type of document you're making reference to; it may run all the way from things like ``\environment{Book}'' and ``\environment{Proceedings}'' (which may even contain other citations of type ``\environment{InBook}'' or ``\environment{InProceedings}'') through dissertation styles like ``\environment{PhdThesis}'' to otherwise-uncategorisable things such as ``\environment{Misc}''. The unique key is something you choose yourself: it's what you use when you want to \Qref*{cite an entry in the file}{Q-usebibtex}. People commonly create a key that combines the (primary) author's name and the year of publication, possibly with a marker to distinguish publications in the same year. So, for example, the Dyson, Eddington, Davidson paper about deflection of starlight appears in my experimental \texttt{.bib} file as \texttt{Dyson20.1}. So, noting the rules of the style, you have `simply' to write a bibliography database. Fortunately, there are several tools to help in this endeavour: \begin{itemize} \item Most of the better \Qref*{\AllTeX{}-oriented editors}{Q-editors} have ``\BibTeX{} modes''. \item If you have an existing \environment{thebibliography} environment, the \ProgName{Perl} script \ProgName{tex2bib} will probably help (there's no documentation other than the oddly-named \File{tex2bib.readme}). \item There are a number of \BibTeX{} bibliography management systems available, some of which permit a graphical user interface to the task. Sadly, none seems to be available with the ordinary \TeX{} distributions. Tools such as \ProgName{Xbibfile} (a graphical user interface), \ProgName{ebib} (a database application written to run `inside' \ProgName{emacs}) and \ProgName{btOOL} (a set of \ProgName{perl} tools for building \BibTeX{} database handlers) are available from \acro{CTAN}. Other systems, such as \href{http://refdb.sourceforge.net/}{\ProgName{RefDB}}, \href{http://www.nongnu.org/biborb}{BibORB}, \href{http://bibdesk.sourceforge.net/}{\ProgName{BibDesk}}, \href{http://pybliographer.org}{\ProgName{pybliographer}} and the \ProgName{Java}-based \href{http://freshmeat.net/projects/bibkeeper/}{\ProgName{Bibkeeper}} and \href{http://jabref.sourceforge.net}{\ProgName{JabRef}} (which claims to supersede \ProgName{Bibkeeper}) are only available from their development sites. % review of web database offerings in textex_368 \item Some commercial citation-management systems will export in \BibTeX{} format; an example is \href{http://www.endnote.com/}{EndNote}. \item Data from on-line citation databases may often be translated to \BibTeX{} format by utilities to be found on \acro{CTAN}. For example, the \ProgName{Perl} script \ProgName{isi2bibtex} will translate citations from \acro{ISI} ``Web of knowledge'' (a subscription service, available to \acro{UK} academics as \acro{BIDS}). \end{itemize} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[btOOL]\CTANref{btOOL} \item[ebib]\CTANref{ebib} \item[isi2bibtex]\CTANref{isi2bibtex} \item[tex2bib]\CTANref{tex2bib} \item[tex2bib.readme]\CTANref{tex2bib-doc} \item[xbibfile]\CTANref{xbibfile} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-custbib]{Creating a bibliography style} It \emph{is} possible to write your own: the standard bibliography styles are distributed in a commented form, and there is a description of the language (see % beware line-wrap \Qref[question]{BibTeX documentation}{Q-BibTeXing}). However, it must be admitted that the language in which \BibTeX{} styles are written is pretty obscure, and one would not recommend anyone who's not a confident programmer to write their own, though minor changes to an existing style may be within the grasp of many. If your style isn't too `far out', you can probably generate it by using the facilities of the \Package{custom-bib} bundle. This contains a file \File{makebst.tex}, which runs you through a text menu to produce a file of instructions, with which you can generate your own \texttt{.bst} file. This technique doesn't offer entirely new styles of document, but the system's ``master \BibTeX{} styles'' already offer significantly more than the \BibTeX{} standard set. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\normalfont}\BibTeX{} documentation]\CTANref{bibtex-doc} \item[makebst.tex]Distributed with \CTANref{custom-bib} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-capbibtex]{Capitalisation in \BibTeX{}} The standard \BibTeX{} bibliography styles impose fixed ideas about the capitalisation of titles of things in the bibliography. While this is not unreasonable by \BibTeX{}'s lights (the rules come from the \emph{Chicago Manual of Style}) it can be troublesome, since \BibTeX{} fails to recognise special uses (such as acronyms, chemical formulae, etc.). The solution is to enclose the letter or letters, whose capitalisation \BibTeX{} should not touch, in braces, as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} title = {The {THE} operating system}, \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Sometimes you find \BibTeX{} changing the case of a single letter inappropriately. No matter: the technique can be applied to single letters, as in: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} title = {Te{X}niques and tips}, \end{verbatim} \end{quote} If your document design specification requires a different style of capitalisation, you should acquire a bibliography style that doesn't enforce \BibTeX{}'s default rules. It is definitely \emph{not} a good idea to enclose an entire title in braces, as in \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} title = {{TeXniques and tips}}, \end{verbatim} \end{quote} though that does ensure that the capitalisation is not changed. Your \BibTeX{} database should be a general-purpose thing, not something tuned to the requirements of a particular document, or to the way you are thinking today. There's more on the subject in the % beware line wrap \Qref*{\BibTeX{} documentation}{Q-BibTeXing}. \Question[Q-bibaccent]{Accents in bibliographies} \BibTeX{} not only has a tendency (by default) to mess about with the % line wrap \Qref*{case of letters in your bibliography}{Q-capbibtex}, also makes a hash of accent commands: \begin{htmlversion} ``\texttt{ma\~nana}'' comes out as ``ma nana'' (!). The solution is similar: enclose the troublesome sequence in braces, as ``|{|\texttt{\~n}|}|'', in this example. \end{htmlversion} \htmlignore ``|ma\~nana|'' comes out as ``ma nana'' (!). The solution is similar: enclose the troublesome sequence in braces, as ``|{\~n}|'', in this example. \endhtmlignore \Question[Q-bibstrtl]{`String too long' in \BibTeX{}} The \BibTeX{} diagnostic ``Warning--you've exceeded 1000, the |global-string-size|, for entry |foo|'' usually arises from a very large abstract or annotation included in the database. The diagnostic usually arises because of an infelicity in the coding of \File{abstract.bst}, or styles derived from it. (One doesn't ordinarily output annotations in other styles.) The solution is to make a copy of the style file (or get a clean copy from \acro{CTAN}~--- \CTANref{abstract-bst}), and rename it (e.g., on a long file-name system to \File{abstract-long.bst}). Now edit it: find function |output.nonnull| and \begin{itemize} \item change its first line (line 60 in the version on \acro{CTAN}) from |"{ 's :="| to |"{ swap$"|, and \item delete its last line, which just says |"s"| (line 84 in the version on \acro{CTAN}). \end{itemize} Finally, change your \csx{bibliographystyle} command to refer to the name of the new file. This technique applies equally to any bibliography style: the same change can be made to any similar |output.nonnull| function. %is not one that you can hope %to avoid by altering the \BibTeX{} style in a simple way~--- \BibTeX{} %itself needs recompiling to increase its limit on string sizes (which is %often not practical, and is never desirable). You must therefore %address the problem by changing your bibliography database. If you're reluctant to make this sort of change, the only way forward is to take the entry out of the database, so that you don't encounter \BibTeX{}'s limit, but you may need to retain the entry because it will be included in the typeset document. In such cases, put the body of the entry in a separate file: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} @article{long.boring, author = "Fred Verbose", ... abstract = "{\input{abstracts/long.tex}}" } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} In this way, you arrange that all \BibTeX{} has to deal with is the file name, though it will tell \TeX{} (when appropriate) to include all the long text. \Question[Q-manyauthor]{\BibTeX{} doesn't understand lists of names} \BibTeX{} has a strict syntax for lists of authors' (or editors') names in the \BibTeX{} data file; if you write the list of names in a ``natural''-seeming way, the chances are you will confuse \BibTeX{}, and the output produced will be quite different from what you had hoped. Names should be expressed in one of the forms \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} First Last Last, First Last, Suffix, First \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and lists of names should be separated with ``\texttt{and}''. For example: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} AUTHOR = {Fred Q. Bloggs, John P. Doe \& Robin Fairbairns} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} falls foul of two of the above rules: a syntactically significant comma appears in an incorrect place, and `\csx{\&}' is being used as a name separator. The output of the above might be something like: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} John P. Doe \& Robin Fairbairns Fred Q. Bloggs \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} John P. Doe \& Robin Fairbairns Fred Q. Bloggs \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} because ``John P. Doe \& Robin Fairbairns'' has become the `first name', while ``Fred Q. Bloggs'' has become the `last name' of a single person. The example should have been written: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} AUTHOR = {Fred Q. Bloggs and John P. Doe and Robin Fairbairns} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} AUTHOR = {Fred Q. Bloggs and John P. Doe and Robin Fairbairns} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} Some bibliography styles implement clever acrobatics with very long author lists. You can force truncation by using the pseudo-name ``|others|'', which will usually translate to something like ``\emph{et al}'' in the typeset output. So, if Mr.~Bloggs wanted to distract attention from his co-authors, he would write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} AUTHOR = {Fred Q. Bloggs and others} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \Question[Q-citeURL]{\acro{URL}s in \BibTeX{} bibliographies} There is no citation type for \acro{URL}s, \emph{per se}, in the standard \BibTeX{} styles, though Oren Patashnik (the author of \BibTeX{}) is believed to beconsidering developing one such for use with the long-awaited \BibTeX{} version~1.0. The actual information that need be available in a citation of an \acro{URL} is discussed at some length in the publicly available on-line \begin{narrowversion} extracts of \acro{ISO}~690--2, available via \URL{http://www.nlc-bnc.ca/iso/tc46sc9/standard/690-2e.htm}; % checked 2004-01-15 \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \href{http://www.nlc-bnc.ca/iso/tc46sc9/standard/690-2e.htm}{extracts of \acro{ISO}\nobreakspace690--2}; \end{wideversion} the techniques below do \emph{not} satisfy all the requirements of \acro{ISO}~690--2, but they offer a solution that is at least available to users of today's tools. Until the new version of \BibTeX{} arrives, the simplest technique is to use the \texttt{howpublished} field of the standard styles' \texttt{@misc} function. Of course, the strictures about \Qref*{typesetting \acro{URL}s}{Q-setURL} still apply, so the entry will look like: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} @misc{..., ..., howpublished = "\url{http://...}" } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} A possible alternative approach is to use \BibTeX{} styles other than the standard ones, that already have \acro{URL} entry types. Pre-eminent are the \Package{natbib} styles (\Package{plainnat}, \Package{unsrtnat} and \Package{abbrevnat}). These styles are extensions of the standard styles, principally for use with \Package{natbib} itself, but they've acquired \acro{URL}s and other ``modern'' entries along the way. The same author's \Package{custom-bib} is also capable of generating styles that honour \acro{URL} entries. Another candidate is the \Package{harvard} package (if its citation styles are otherwise satisfactory for you). \Package{Harvard} bibliography styles all include a ``|url|'' field in their specification; however, the typesetting offered is somewhat feeble (though it does recognise and use \ProgName{LaTeX2HTML} macros if they are available, to create hyperlinks). You can also acquire new \BibTeX{} styles by use of Norman Gray's \Package{urlbst} system, which is based on a \ProgName{Perl} script that edits an existing \BibTeX{} style file to produce a new style. The new style thus generated has a |webpage| entry type, and also offers support for |url| and |lastchecked| fields in the other entry types. The \ProgName{Perl} script comes with a set of converted versions of the standard bibliography styles. Documentation is distributed as \LaTeX{} source. Another possibility is that some conventionally-published paper, technical report (or even book) is also available on the Web. In such cases, a useful technique is something like: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} @techreport{..., ..., note = "Also available as \url{http://...}" } \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} @techreport{..., ..., note = "Also available as \url{http://...}" } \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} There is good reason to use the \Package{url} or \Package{hyperref} packages in this context: \BibTeX{} has a habit of splitting lines it considers excessively long, and if there are no space characters for it to use as `natural' breakpoints, \BibTeX{} will insert a comment (`\texttt{\textpercent}') character~\dots{}\@ which is an acceptable character in an \acro{URL}. Any current version of the \Package{url} or \Package{hyperref} package detects this ``\texttt{\textpercent}--end-of-line'' structure in its argument, and removes it. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[custom-bib \nothtml{\rmfamily}bundle]\CTANref{custom-bib} \item[harvard.sty]\CTANref{harvard} \item[hyperref.sty]\CTANref{hyperref} \item[natbib \nothtml{\rmfamily}styles]\CTANref{natbib} \item[url.sty]\CTANref{url} \item[urlbst]\CTANref{urlbst} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-bibplain]{Using \BibTeX{} with Plain \TeX{}} The file \File{btxmac.tex} (which is part of the \Eplain{} system) contains macros and documentation for using \BibTeX{} with Plain \TeX{}, either directly or with \Qref*{\Eplain{}}{Q-eplain}. See \Qref[question]{the use of \BibTeX{}}{Q-BibTeXing} for more information about \BibTeX{} itself. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[btxmac.tex]\CTANref{btxmactex} \item[eplain \nothtml{\rmfamily}system]\CTANref{eplain} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-makebib]{Reconstructing \texttt{.bib} files} Perhaps you've lost the \texttt{.bib} file you generated your document from, or have been sent a document without one. Or even, you've realised the error of building a substantial document without the benefit of \BibTeX{}\dots{} The \ProgName{Perl} script, \Package{tex2bib} makes a reasonable job of regenerating |.bib| files from \environment{thebibliography} environments, provided that the original (whether automatically or manually generated) doesn't deviate too far from the ``standard'' styles. You are well-advised to check the output of the script. While it will not usually destroy information, it can quite reasonably mislabel it. Documentation of the script is to be found in the file \File{tex2bib.readme} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[tex2bib]\CTANref{tex2bib} \item[tex2bib.readme]\CTANref{tex2bib-doc} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-bibprefixsort]{\BibTeX{} sorting and name prefixes} \BibTeX{} recognises a bewildering array of name prefixes (mostly those deriving from European language names); it ignores the prefixes when sorting the bibliography~--- you want ``Ludwig van Beethoven'' sorted under ``Beethoven'', not under ``van''. (Lamport made a witty deliberate mistake with Beethoven's name, in the first edition of his \LaTeX{} manual.) However, a recurring issue is the desire to quote Lord Rayleigh's publications (``Lord'' isn't an acceptable prefix), or names from languages that weren't considered when \BibTeX{} was designed such as ``al-Wakil'' (transcribed from the Arabic). What's needed is a separate ``sort key'', but \BibTeX{} only allows such a thing in citations of items that have no author or editor. The solution is to embed the sort key in the author's name, but to prevent it from being typeset. Patashnik recommends a command \csx{noopsort} (no-output-sortkey), which is defined and used as follows: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} @PREAMBLE{ {\providecommand{\noopsort}[1]{}} } ... @ARTICLE{Rayleigh1, AUTHOR = "{\noopsort{Rayleigh}}{Lord Rayleigh}", ... \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} @PREAMBLE{ {\providecommand{\noopsort}[1]{}} } ... @ARTICLE{Rayleigh1, AUTHOR = "\noopsort{Rayleigh}{Lord Rayleigh}", ... \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} \Question[Q-bibtranscinit]{Transcribed initials in \BibTeX{}} If your bibliographic style uses initials~+ surname, you may encounter a problem with some transcribed names (for example, Russian ones). Consider the following example from the real world: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} @article{epifanov1997, author = {Epifanov, S. Yu. and Vigasin, A. A.}, title = ... } \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} @article{epifanov1997, author = {Epifanov, S. Yu. and Vigasin, A. A.}, title = ... } \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} Note that the ``Yu'' is the initial, not a complete name. However, \BibTeX{}'s algorithms will leave you with a citation~--- slightly depending on the bibliographic style~--- that reads: ``S. Y. Epifanov and A. A. Vigasin, \dots{}''. instead of the intended ``S. Yu. Epifanov and A. A. Vigasin, \dots{}''. One solution is to replace each affected initial by a command that prints the correct combination. To keep your bibliography portable, you need to add that command to your bibliography with the \texttt{@preamble} directive: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} @preamble{ {\providecommand{\BIBYu}{Yu} } } @article{epifanov1997, author = {Epifanov, S. {\BIBYu}. and Vigasin, A. A.}, title = ... } \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} @preamble{ {\providecommand{\BIBYu}{Yu} } } @article{epifanov1997, author = {Epifanov, S. {\BIBYu}. and Vigasin, A. A.}, title = ... } \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} If you have many such commands, you may want to put them in a separate file and \csx{input} that \LaTeX{} file in a \texttt{@preamble} directive. An alternative is to make the transcription look like an accent, from \BibTeX{}'s point of view. For this we need a control sequence that does nothing: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} @article{epifanov1997, author = {Epifanov, S. {\relax Yu}. and Vigasin, A. A.}, title = ... } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Like the solution by generating extra commands, this involves tedious extra typing; which of the two techniques is preferable for a given bibliography will be determined by the names in it. \subsection{Creating citations} \Question[Q-usebibtex]{``Normal'' use of \BibTeX{} from \LaTeX{}} To create a bibliography for your document, you need to perform a sequence of steps, some of which seem a bit odd. If you choose to use \BibTeX{}, the sequence is: First: you need a \BibTeX{} bibliography file (a |.bib| file)~--- see \nothtml{``creating a \BibTeX{} file'' (\Qref[question]{}{Q-buildbib}).} \begin{htmlversion} ``\Qref[question]{creating a \BibTeX{} file}{Q-buildbib}''. \end{htmlversion} Second: you must write your \LaTeX{} document to include a declaration of the `style' of bibliography, citations, and a reference to the bibliography file mentioned in the step 1. So we may have a \LaTeX{} file containing: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \bibliographystyle{plain} ... Pooh is heroic~\cite{Milne:1926}. ... Alice struggles~\cite{Carroll:1865}. ... \bibliography{mybooks} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Note: we have bibliography style \Package{plain}, above, which is nearly the simplest of the lot: a sample text, showing the sorts of style choices available, can be found on Ken Turner's web site: \URL{http://www.cs.stir.ac.uk/~kjt/software/latex/showbst.html} Third: you must process the file. \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} latex myfile \end{verbatim} \end{quote} As \LaTeX{} processes the file, the \csx{bibliographystyle} command writes a note of the style to the |.aux| file; each \csx{cite} command writes a note of the citation to the |.aux| file, and the \csx{bibliography} command writes a note of which |.bib| file is to be used, to the |.aux| file. Note that, at this stage, \LaTeX{} isn't ``resolving'' any of the citations: at every \csx{cite} command, \LaTeX{} will warn you of the undefined citation, and when the document finishes, there will be a further warning of undefined references. %Some bibliography styles are designed to work with particular %packages... Fourth: you must run \BibTeX{}: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} bibtex myfile \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Don't try to tell \BibTeX{} anything but the file name: say \texttt{bibtex myfile.aux} (because you know it's going to read the |.aux| file) and \BibTeX{} will blindly attempt to process \texttt{myfile.aux.aux}. \BibTeX{} will scan the |.aux| file; it will find which bibliography style it needs to use, and will ``compile'' that style; it will note the citations; it will find which bibliography files it needs, and will run through them matching citations to entries in the bibliography; and finally it will sort the entries that have been cited (if the bibliography style specifies that they should be sorted), and outputs the resulting details to a |.bbl| file. Fifth: you run \LaTeX{} again. It warns, again, that each citation is (still) undefined, but when it gets to the \csx{bibliography} command, it finds a |.bbl| file, and reads it. As it encounters each \csx{bibitem} command in the file, it notes a definition of the citation. Sixth: you run \LaTeX{} yet again. This time, it finds values for all the citations, in its |.aux| file. Other things being equal, you're done\dots{} until you change the file. If, while editing, you change any of the citations, or add new ones, you need to go through the process above from steps 3 (first run of \LaTeX{}) to 6, again, before the document is once again stable. These four mandatory runs of \LaTeX{} make processing a document with a bibliography even more tiresome than the normal two runs required to resolve labels. To summarise: processing to resolve citations requires: \LaTeX{}; \BibTeX{}; \LaTeX{}; \LaTeX{}. \Question[Q-chapbib]{Separate bibliographies per chapter?} A separate bibliography for each `chapter' of a document can be provided with the package \Package{chapterbib} (which comes with a bunch of other good bibliographic things). The package allows you a different bibliography for each \csx{include}d file (i.e., despite the package's name, the availability of bibliographies is related to the component source files of the document rather than to the chapters that logically structure the document). The package \Package{bibunits} ties bibliographies to logical units within the document: the package will deal with chapters and sections (as defined by \LaTeX{} itself) and also defines a \environment{bibunit} environment so that users can select their own structuring. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[chapterbib.sty]\CTANref{cite} \item[bibunits.sty]\CTANref{bibunits} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-multbib]{Multiple bibliographies?} If you're thinking of multiple bibliographies tied to some part of your document (such as the chapters within the document), please see \Qref[question]{bibliographies per chapter}{Q-chapbib}. For more than one bibliography, there are three options. The \Package{multibbl} package offers a very simple interface: you use a command \csx{newbibliography} to define a bibliography ``tag''. The package redefines the other bibliography commands so that each time you use any one of them, you give it the tag for the bibliography where you want the citations to appear. The \csx{bibliography} command itself also takes a further extra argument that says what title to use for the resulting section or chapter (i.e., it patches \nothtml{\csx{refname} and \csx{bibname}~---} \Qref{\csx{refname} and \csx{bibname}}{Q-fixnam}\nothtml{~---} in a \Package{babel}-safe way). So one might write: \begin{narrowversion} \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{multibbl} \newbibliography{bk} \bibliographystyle{bk}{alpha} \newbibliography{art} \bibliographystyle{art}{plain} ... \cite[pp.~23--25]{bk}{milne:pooh-corner} ... \cite{art}{einstein:1905} ... \bibliography{bk}{book-bib}% {References to books} \bibliography{art}{art-bib}% {References to articles} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{multibbl} \newbibliography{bk} \bibliographystyle{bk}{alpha} \newbibliography{art} \bibliographystyle{art}{plain} ... \cite[pp.~23--25]{bk}{milne:pooh-corner} ... \cite{art}{einstein:1905} ... \bibliography{bk}{book-bib}{References to books} \bibliography{art}{art-bib}{References to articles} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \end{wideversion} (Note that the optional argument of \csx{cite} appears \emph{before} the new tag argument, and that the \csx{bibliography} commands may list more than one \texttt{.bib} file~--- indeed all \csx{bibliography} commands may list the same set of files.) The \csx{bibliography} data goes into files whose names are \meta{tag-name}\emph{.aux}, so you will need to run \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} bibtex bk bibtex art \end{verbatim} \end{quote} after the first run of \LaTeX{}, to get the citations in the correct place. The \Package{multibib} package allows you to define a series of ``additional topics'', each of which comes with its own series of bibliography commands. So one might write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{multibib} \newcites{bk,art}% {References from books,% References from articles} \bibliographystylebk{alpha} \bibliographystyleart{plain} ... \citebk[pp.~23--25]{milne:pooh-corner} ... \citeart{einstein:1905} ... \bibliographybk{book-bib} \bibliographyart{art-bib} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Again, as for \Package{multibbl}, any \csx{bibliography...} command may scan any list of \texttt{.bib} files. \BibTeX{} processing with \Package{multibib} is much like that with \Package{multibbl}; with the above example, one needs: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} bibtex bk bibtex art \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Note that, unlike \Package{multibbl}, \Package{multibib} allows a simple, unmodified bibliography (as well as the ``topic'' ones). The \Package{bibtopic} package allows you separately to cite several different bibliographies. At the appropriate place in your document, you put a sequence of \environment{btSect} environments (each of which specifies a bibliography database to scan) to typeset the separate bibliographies. Thus, one might have a file \File{diss.tex} containing: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{bibtopic} \bibliographystyle{alpha} ... \cite[pp.~23--25]{milne:pooh-corner} ... \cite{einstein:1905} ... \begin{btSect}{book-bib} \section{References from books} \btPrintCited \end{btSect} \begin{btSect}[plain]{art-bib} \section{References from articles} \btPrintCited \end{btSect} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Note the different way of specifying a bibliographystyle: if you want a different style for a particular bibliography, you may give it as an optional argument to the \environment{btSect} environment. Processing with \BibTeX{}, in this case, uses \texttt{.aux} files whose names are derived from the name of the base document. So in this example you need to say: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} bibtex diss1 bibtex diss2 \end{verbatim} \end{quote} There is also a command \csx{btPrintNotCited}, which gives the rest of the content of the database (if nothing has been cited from the database, this is equivalent to \LaTeX{} standard \cmdinvoke{nocite}{*}). However, the \emph{real} difference from \Package{miltibbl} and \Package{mltibib} is that selection of what appears in each bibliography section is determined in \Package{bibtopic} by what's in the \texttt{.bib} files. An entirely different approach is taken by the \Package{splitbib} package. You provide a \environment{category} environment, in the preamble of your document, for each category you want a separate citation list for. In each environment, you list the \csx{cite} keys that you want listed in each category. The \csx{bibliography} command (or, more precisely, the \environment{thebibliograph} environment it uses) will sort the keys as requested. (Keys not mentioned in a \environment{category} appear in a ``misc'' category created in the sorting process.) A code example appears in the package documentation (a \acro{PDF} file in the \acro{CTAN} directory, \begin{htmlversion} which you can browse to, from the link, below). \end{htmlversion} \htmlignore see the file list, below). \endhtmlignore \begin{ctanrefs} \item[bibtopic.sty]\CTANref{bibtopic} \item[multibbl.sty]\CTANref{multibbl} \item[multibib.sty]\CTANref{multibib} \item[splitbib.sty]\CTANref{splitbib} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-bibinline]{Putting bibliography entries in text} This is a common requirement for journals and other publications in the humanities. Sometimes the requirement is for the entry to appear in the running text of the document, while other styles require that the entry appear in a footnote. Options for entries in running text are \begin{itemize} \item The package \Package{bibentry}, which puts slight restrictions on the format of entry that your \texttt{.bst} file generates, but is otherwise undemanding of the bibliography style. \item The package \Package{inlinebib}, which requires that you use its \File{inlinebib.bst} \item The package \Package{jurabib}, which was originally targetted at German law documents, and has comprehensive facilities for the manipulation of citations. The package comes with four bibliography styles that you may use: \File{jurabib.bst}, \File{jhuman.bst} and two Chicago-like ones. \end{itemize} Options for entries in footnotes are \begin{itemize} \item The package \Package{footbib}, and \item The package \Package{jurabib}, again. \end{itemize} Note that \Package{jurabib} does the job using \LaTeX{}'s standard footnotes, whereas \Package{footbib} creates its own sequence of footnotes. Therefore, in a document which has other footnotes, it's best to use \Package{jurabib}, to avoid confusion of footnotes and foot-citations. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[bibentry.sty]\emph{Distributed with} \CTANref{natbib} \item[footbib.sty]\CTANref{footbib} \item[inlinebib.sty]\CTANref{inlinebib} \item[jurabib.sty]\CTANref{jurabib} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-citesort]{Sorting and compressing citations} If you give \LaTeX{} \cmdinvoke{cite}{fred,joe,harry,min}, its default commands could give something like ``[2,6,4,3]''; this looks awful. One can of course get the things in order by rearranging the keys in the \csx{cite} command, but who wants to do that sort of thing for no more improvement than ``[2,3,4,6]''? The \Package{cite} package sorts the numbers and detects consecutive sequences, so creating ``[2--4,6]''. The \Package{natbib} package, with the \texttt{numbers} and \texttt{sort\&compress} options, will do the same when working with its own numeric bibliography styles (\File{plainnat.bst} and \File{unsrtnat.bst}). If you might need to make hyperreferences to your citations, \Package{cite} isn't adequate. If you add the \Package{hypernat} package: \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[...]{hyperref} \usepackage[numbers,sort&compress]{natbib} \usepackage{hypernat} ... \bibliographystyle{plainnat} \end{verbatim} the \Package{natbib} and \Package{hyperref} packages will interwork. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[cite.sty]\CTANref{cite} \item[hypernat.sty]\CTANref{hypernat} \item[hyperref.sty]\CTANref{hyperref} \item[plainnat.bst]Distributed with \CTANref{natbib} \item[unsrtnat.bst]Distributed with \CTANref{natbib} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-mcite]{Multiple citations} A convention sometimes used in physics journals is to ``collapse'' a group of related citations into a single entry in the bibliography. \BibTeX{}, by default, can't cope with this arrangement, but the \Package{mcite} package deals with the problem. The package overloads the \csx{cite} command to recognise a ``\texttt{*}'' at the start of a key, so that citations of the form \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \cite{paper1,*paper2} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} appear in the document as a single citation, and appear arranged appropriately in the bibliography itself. You're not limited to collapsing just two references. You can mix ``collapsed'' references with ``ordinary'' ones, as in \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \cite{paper0,paper1,*paper2,paper3} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Which will appear in the document as 3~citations ``[4,7,11]'' (say)~--- citation `4' will refer to paper~0, `7' will refer to a combined entry for paper~1 and paper~2, and `11' will refer to paper~3. You need to make a small change to the bibliography style (\texttt{.bst}) file you use; the \Package{mcite} package documentation tells you how to do that. Unfortunately, the \Class{revtex} system doesn't play with \Package{mcite}. As a result, for that (primarily physics-targeted system) you need to play silly games like: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \cite{paper0,paper1,paper3} \nocite{paper2} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and then edit the \texttt{.bbl} file to merge the two citations, to achieve the effects of \Package{mcite}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[mcite.sty]\CTANref{mcite} \item[revtex \nothtml{\rmfamily}bundle]\CTANref{revtex} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-backref]{References from the bibliography to the citation} A link (or at least a page reference), from the bibliography to the citing command, is often useful in large documents. Two packages support this requirement, \Package{backref} and \Package{citeref}. \Package{Backref} is part of the \Package{hyperref} bundle, and supports hyperlinks back to the citing command. \Package{Citeref} is the older, and seems to rely on rather simpler (and therefore possibly more stable) code. Neither collapses lists of pages (``\texttt{5, 6, 7}'' comes out as such, rather than as ``\texttt{5--7}''), but neither package repeats the reference to a page that holds multiple citations. (The failure to collapse lists is of course forgiveable in the case of the \Package{hyperref}-related \Package{backref}, since the concept of multiple hyperlinks from the same anchor is less than appealing.) \begin{ctanrefs} \item[backref.sty]Distributed with \CTANref{hyperref} \item[citeref.sty]\CTANref{citeref} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-sortbib]{Sorting lists of citations} \BibTeX{} has a sorting function, and most \BibTeX{} styles sort the citation list they produce; most people find this desirable. However, it is perfectly possible to write a \environment{thebibliography} environment that \emph{looks} as if it came from \BibTeX{}, and many people do so (in order to save time in the short term). The problem arises when \environment{thebibliography}-writers decide their citations need to be sorted. A common misapprehension is to insert \cmdinvoke{bibliographystyle}{alpha} (or similar) and expect the typeset output to be sorted in some magical way. \BibTeX{} doesn't work that way!~--- if you write \environment{thebibliography}, you get to sort its contents. \BibTeX{} will only sort the contents of a \environment{thebibliography} environment when it creates it, to be inserted from a |.bbl| file by a \csx{bibliography} command. \Question[Q-compactbib]{Reducing spacing in the bibliography} Bibliographies are, in fact, implemented as lists, so all the confusion about \Qref*{reducing list item spacing}{Q-complist} also applies to bibliographies. If the \Package{natbib} package `works' for you (it may not if you are using some special-purpose bibliography style), the solution is relatively simple~--- add \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{natbib} \setlength{\bibsep}{0.0pt} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} to the preamble of your document. Otherwise, one is into unseemly hacking of something or other. The \Package{mdwlist} package actually does the job, but it doesn't work here, because it makes a different-named list, while the name ``\environment{thebibliography}'' is built into \LaTeX{} and \BibTeX{}. Therefore, we need to % ! line break \Qref*{patch the underlying macro}{Q-patch}: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \let\oldbibliography\thebibliography \renewcommand{\thebibliography}[1]{% \oldbibliography{#1}% \setlength{\itemsep}{0pt}% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \Package{savetrees} package performs such a patch, among a plethora of space-saving measures: you can, in principle, suppress all its other actions, and have it provide you a compressed bibliography \emph{only}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[mdwlist.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{mdwtools} \item[natbib.sty]\CTANref{natbib} \item[savetrees.sty]\CTANref{savetrees} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-bibtocorder]{Table of contents rearranges ``\Package{unsrt}'' ordering} If you're using the \Package{unsrt} bibliography style, you're expecting that your bibliography will \emph{not} be sorted, but that the entries will appear in the order that they first appeared in your document. However, if you're unfortunate enough to need a citation in a section title, and you also have a table of contents, the citations that now appear in the table of contents will upset the ``natural'' ordering produced by the \Package{unsrt} style. Similarly, if you have citations in captions, and have a list of figures (or tables). There's a pretty simple ``manual'' method for dealing with the problem~--- when you have the document stable: \begin{enumerate} \item Delete the \texttt{.aux} file, and any of \texttt{.toc}, \texttt{.lof}, \texttt{.lot} files. \item Run \LaTeX{}. \item Run \BibTeX{} for the last time. \item Run \LaTeX{} often enough that things are stable again. \end{enumerate} Which is indeed simple, but it's going to get tedious when you've found errors in your ``stable'' version, often enough. The package \Package{notoccite} avoids the kerfuffle, and suppresses citations while in the table of contents, or lists of figures, tables (or other floating things: the code is quite general). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[notoccite.sty]\CTANref{notoccite} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-i18nbib]{Non-english bibliographies} Like so much of early \AllTeX{} software, \BibTeX{}'s assumptions were firmly rooted in what its author knew well, viz., academic papers in English (particularly those with a mathematical bent). \BibTeX{}'s standard styles all address exactly that problem, leaving the user who writes in another language (or who deal with citations in the style of other disciplines than maths) to strike out into contributed software. For the user whose language is not English, there are several alternatives. The simplest is to provide translations of \BibTeX{} styles into the required language: the solitary \Package{finplain.bst} does that for Finnish; others one can find are for Danish (\Package{dk-bib}), French (\Package{bib-fr}), German (\Package{bibgerm}), Norwegian (\Package{norbib}) and Swedish (\Package{swebib}) bundles (of which the \Package{bib-fr} set is the most extensive). The \Package{spain} style implements a traditional Spanish citation style. These static approaches solve the problem, for the languages that have been covered by them. Unfortunately, with such an approach, a lot of work is needed for every language involved. Two routes to a solution of the ``general'' problem are available~--- that offered by \Package{babelbib}, and the % ! line break \Qref*{\Package{custom-bib} mechanism for generating styles}{Q-custbib}. \Package{Babelbib} (which is a development of the ideas of the \Package{bibgerm} package) co-operates with \Package{babel} to control the language of presentation of citations (potentially at the level of individual items). The package has a built-in set of languages it `knows about', but the documentation includes instructions on defining commands for other languages. \Package{Babelbib} comes with its own set of bibliography styles, which could be a restriction if there wasn't also a link from \Package{custom-bib}. The \Package{makebst} menu of \Package{custom-bib} allows you to choose a language for the \BibTeX{} style you're generating (there are 14 languages to choose; it looks as if \Package{spain.bst}, mentioned above, was generated this way). If, however, you opt not to specify a language, you are asked whether you want the style to interact with \Package{babelbib}; if you do so, you're getting the best of both worlds~--- formatting freedom from \Package{custom-bib} and linguistic freedom via the extensibility of \Package{babelbib} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[babelbib.sty]\CTANref{babelbib} \item[bib-fr \nothtml{\rmfamily\upshape}bundle]\CTANref{bib-fr} \item[bibgerm \nothtml{\rmfamily\upshape}bundle]\CTANref{bibgerm} \item[custom-bib \nothtml{\rmfamily\upshape}bundle]\CTANref{custom-bib} \item[finplain.bst]\CTANref{finplain} \item[norbib \nothtml{\rmfamily\upshape}bundle]\CTANref{norbib} \item[spain]\CTANref{spain} \item[swebib \nothtml{\rmfamily\upshape}bundle]\CTANref{swebib} \end{ctanrefs} \subsection{Manipulating whole bibliographies} \Question[Q-nocite*]{Listing all your \BibTeX{} entries} \LaTeX{} and \BibTeX{} co-operate to offer special treatment of this requirement. The command \cmdinvoke{nocite}{*} is specially treated, and causes \BibTeX{} to generate bibliography entries for every entry in each \texttt{.bib} file listed in your \csx{bibliography} statement, so that after a \LaTeX{}--\BibTeX{}--\LaTeX{} sequence, you have a document with the whole thing listed. Note that \LaTeX{} \emph{doesn't} produce % beware line breaks ``\texttt{Citation ... undefined}'' or ``\texttt{There were undefined references}'' warnings in respect of \cmdinvoke{nocite}{*}. This isn't a problem if you're running \LaTeX{} ``by hand'' (you \emph{know} exactly how many times you have to run things), but the lack might confuse automatic processors that scan the log file to determine whether another run is necessary. \Question[Q-htmlbib]{Making \acro{HTML} of your Bibliography} A neat solution is offered by the \Package{noTeX} bibliography style. This style produces a \texttt{.bbl} file which is in fact a series of \acro{HTML} `\texttt{P}' elements of class \texttt{noTeX}, and which may therefore be included in an \acro{HTML} file. Provision is made for customising your bibliography so that its content when processed by \Package{noTeX} is different from that presented when it is processed in the ordinary way by \AllTeX{}. A thorough solution is offered by \Package{bib2xhtml}; using it, you make use of one of its modified versions of many common \BibTeX{} styles, and post-process the output so produced using a \ProgName{perl} script. A more conventional translator is the \ProgName{awk} script \ProgName{bbl2html}, which translates the \texttt{.bbl} file you've generated: a sample of the script's output may be viewed on the web, at \URL{http://rikblok.cjb.net/lib/refs.html} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[bbl2html.awk]\CTANref{bbl2html} \item[bib2xhtml]\CTANref{bib2xhtml} \item[noTeX.bst]\CTANref{noTeX} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Adjusting the typesetting} \subsection{Alternative document classes} \Question[Q-replstdcls]{Replacing the standard classes} People are forever concocting classes that replace the standard ones: the present author produced an \Class{ukart} class that used the \Package{sober} package, and a few British-specific things (such as appear in the \Package{babel} package's British-english specialisation) in the 1980s, which is still occasionally used. Similar public efforts were available well back in the days of \LaTeXo{}: a notable example, whose pleasing designs seem not to have changed much over all that time, is the \Class{ntgclass} bundle. Each of the standard classes is replaced by a selection of classes, named in Dutch, sometimes with a single numeric digit attached. So we have classes \Class{artikel2}, \Class{rapport1}, \Class{boek3} and \Class{brief}. These classes are moderately well documented in English. The \Class{KOMA-script} bundle (classes named \Class{scr...}) are a strong current contender. They are actively supported, are comprehensive in their coverage of significant typesetting issues, produce good-looking output and are well documented in both English and German (\Package{scrguien} in the distribution for English, \Package{scrguide} for German). The other comparable class is \Class{memoir}. This aims to replace \Class{book} and \Class{report} classes directly, and (like \Class{KOMA-script}) is comprehensive in its coverage of small issues. \Class{Memoir}'s documentation (\Package{memman}) is very highly spoken of, and its lengthy introductory section is regularly recommended as a tutorial on typesetting. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA-script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}NTGclass bundle]\CTANref{ntgclass} \item[sober.sty]\CTANref{sober} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-slidecls]{Producing slides} Lamport's original \LaTeX{} had a separate program (Sli\TeX{}) for producing slides; it dates from the age when colour effects were produced by printing separate slides in different-coloured inks, and overlaying them, and was just about acceptable back then. When \LaTeXe{} came along, the reason Sli\TeX{} had to be a separate program went away, and its functionality was supplied by the \Class{slides} class. While this makes life a little easier for system administrators, it does nothing for the inferior functionality of the class: no-one ``who knows'' uses \Class{slides} nowadays. The `classic' alternatives have been \Class{seminar} and \Class{foils} (originally known as Foil\TeX{}). Both were originally designed to produce output on acetate foils, though subsequent work has provided environments in which they can be used with screen projectors (see below). The advent of MicroSoft \ProgName{PowerPoint} (feeble though early versions of it were) has created a demand for ``dynamic'' slides~--- images that develop their content in a more elaborate fashion than by merely replacing one foil with the next in the way that was the norm when \Class{slides}, \Class{foils} and \Class{seminar} were designed. The \Class{prosper} class builds on \Class{seminar} to provide dynamic effects and the like; it retains the ability to provide \acro{PDF} for a projected presentation, or to print foils for a foil-based presentation. The add-on package \Package{ppr-prv} adds ``preview'' facilities (that which is commonly called ``hand-out printing''). The \Package{HA-prosper} package, which you load with \Class{prosper}, mends a few bugs, and adds several facilities and slide design styles. \Class{Beamer} is a relatively easy-to-learn, yet powerful, class that (as its name implies) was designed for use with projection displays. It needs the \Package{pgf} package (for graphics support), which in turn requires \Package{xcolor}; while this adds to the tedium of installing \Class{beamer} ``from scratch'', both are good additions to a modern \LaTeX{} installation. \Class{Beamer} has reasonable facilities for producing printed copies of slides. \ProgName{Ppower4} (commonly known as \ProgName{pp4}) is a \ProgName{Java}-based support program that will postprocess \acro{PDF}, to `animate' the file at places you've marked with commands from one of the \ProgName{pp4} packages. The commands don't work on \acro{PDF} that has come from \ProgName{dvips} output; they work with \acro{PDF} generated by \PDFLaTeX{}, V\TeX{} \LaTeX{}, or \ProgName{dvipdfm} running on \LaTeX{} output. \Package{Pdfscreen} and \Package{texpower} are add-on pakages that permit dynamic effects in documents formatted in ``more modest'' classes; \Package{pdfscreen} will even allow you to plug ``presentation effects'' into an \Class{article}-class document. % ifmslide %\noindent ifmslide: a few slides extolling virtues in \File{doc/ifmman.pdf} A more detailed examination of the alternatives (including examples of code using many of them) may be found at Michael Wiedmann's fine \URL{http://www.miwie.org/presentations/presentations.html} % \begin{ctanrefs} \item[beamer.cls]Download all of \CTANref{beamer} \item[foils.cls]\CTANref{foiltex} \item[HA-prosper.sty]\CTANref{ha-prosper} %\item[ifmslide.sty]\CTANref{ifmslide} \item[seminar.cls]\CTANref{seminar} \item[pgf.sty]\CTANref{pgf} \item[pp4]\CTANref{ppower4} \item[ppr-prv.sty]\CTANref{ppr-prv} \item[prosper.cls]\CTANref{prosper} \item[texpower]\CTANref{texpower} \item[xcolor.sty]\CTANref{xcolor} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-thesis]{Formatting a thesis in \LaTeX{}} Thesis styles are usually very specific to your University, so it's usually not profitable to ask around for a package outside your own University. Since many Universities (in their eccentric way) still require double-spacing, you may care to refer to \Qref[question]{the relevant question}{Q-linespace}. If you want to write your own, a good place to start is the University of California style, but it's not worth going to a lot of trouble. (If officials won't allow standard typographic conventions, you won't be able to produce an \ae{}sthetically pleasing document anyway!) \begin{ctanrefs} \item[UC thesis style]\CTANref{ucthesis} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-journalpaper]{Setting papers for journals} Publishers of journals have a wide range of requirements for the presentation of papers, and while many publishers do accept electronic submissions in \AllTeX{}, they don't often submit recommended macros to public archives. Nevertheless, there are considerable numbers of macros of one sort or another available on \acro{CTAN}; searching for your journal name in the CTAN catalogue (see % ! line wrap \Qref[question]{searching \acro{CTAN}}{Q-findfiles}) may well turn up what you're seeking. Failing that, you may be well advised to contact the prospective publisher of your paper; many publishers have macros on their own web sites, or otherwise available only upon application. Check that the publisher is offering you macros suitable to an environment you can use: a few still have no macros for current \LaTeX{}, for example, claiming that \LaTeXo{} is good enough\dots{} Some publishers rekey anything sent them anyway, so that it doesn't really matter what macros you use. Others merely encourage you to use as few extensions of a standard package as possible, so that they will find it easy to transform your paper to their own internal form. \Question[Q-multidoc]{A `report' from lots of `article's} This is a requirement, for example, if one is preparing the proceedings of a conference whose papers were submitted in \LaTeX{}. The nearest things to canned solutions are Peter Wilson's \Class{combine} and Federico Garcia's \Class{subfiles} classes. \Class{Combine} defines the means to `\csx{import}' entire documents, and provides means of specifying significant features of the layout of the document, as well as a global table of contents, and so on. An auxiliary package, \Package{combinet}, allows use of the \csx{title}s and \csx{author}s (etc.\@) of the \csx{import}ed documents to appear in the global table of contents. \Class{Subfiles} is used in the component files of a multi-file project, and the corresponding \Package{subfiles} is used in the master file; arrangements may be made so that the component files will be typeset using different page format, etc., parameters than those used when they are typeset as a part of the main file. A more `raw' toolkit is offered by Matt Swift's \Package{includex} and \Package{moredefs} packages, both part of the \Package{frankenstein} bundle) offer a possible way forward. \Package{Includex} enables you to `\csx{includedoc}' complete articles (in the way that you `\csx{include}' chapter files in an ordinary report). It doesn't do the whole job for you, though. You need to analyse the package use of the individual papers, and ensure that a consistent set is loaded in the preamble of the main report. A completely different approach is to use the \Package{pdfpages} package, and to include articles submitted in \acro{PDF} format into a a \acro{PDF} document produced by \PDFLaTeX{}. The package defines an \csx{includepdf} command, which takes arguments similar to those of the \csx{includegraphics} command. With keywords in the optional argument of the command, you can specify which pages you want to be included from the file named, and various details of the layout of the included pages. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[combine.cls]\CTANref{combine} \item[combinet.sty]\CTANref{combine} \item[includex.sty]Distributed in the ``unsupported'' part of \CTANref{frankenstein} \item[moredefs.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{frankenstein} \item[pdfpages.sty]\CTANref{pdfpages} \item[subfiles.cls, etc.]\CTANref{subfiles} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-cv]{\emph{Curriculum Vitae} (R\'esum\'e)} Andrej Brodnik's class, \Class{vita}, offers a framework for producing a \emph{curriculum vitae}. The class may be customised both for subject (example class option files support both computer scientists and singers), and for language (both the options provided are available for both English and Slovene). Extensions may be written by creating new class option files, or by using macros defined in the class to define new entry types, etc. Didier Verna's class, \Class{curve}, is based on a model in which the \acro{CV} is made of a set of \emph{rubrics} (each one dealing with a major item that you want to discuss, such as `education', `work experience', etc). The class's documentation is supported by a couple of example files, and an emacs mode is provided. The European Commission has recommended a format for % ! line break \emph{curricula vitarum} within Europe, and Nicola Vitacolonna has developed a class \Class{europecv} to produce it. While (by his own admission) the class doesn't solve all problems, it seems well-thought out and supports many EU languages (it omits Dutch and Greek, and all the languages of the 2004 accessions; instructions for creating new language options are, however, there for the energetic). The alternative to using a separate class is to impose a package on one of the standard classes. An example, Axel Reichert's \Package{currvita} package, has been recommended to the \acro{FAQ} team. Its output certainly looks good. There is also a \LaTeXo{} package \Package{resume}, which comes with little but advice \emph{against} trying to use it. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[currvita.sty]\CTANref{currvita} \item[curve.cls]\CTANref{curve} \item[europecv.cls]\CTANref{europecv} \item[resume.sty]\CTANref{resume} \item[vita.cls]\CTANref{vita} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-letterclass]{Letters and the like} \LaTeX{} itself provides a \Class{letter} document class, which is widely disliked; the present author long since gave up trying with it. If you nevertheless want to try it, but are irritated by its way of vertically-shifting a single-page letter, try the following hack: \begin{verbatim} \makeatletter \let\@texttop\relax \makeatother \end{verbatim} in the preamble of your file. Doing-it-yourself is a common strategy; Knuth (for use with plain \TeX{}, in the \TeX{}book), and Kopka and Daly (in their Guide to \LaTeX{}) offer worked examples. Nevertheless, there \emph{are} contributed alternatives~--- in fact there are an awfully large number of them: the following list, of necessity, makes but a small selection. The largest, most comprehensive, class is \Class{newlfm}; the |lfm| part of the name implies that the class can create letters, faxes and memoranda. The documentation is voluminous, and the package seems very flexible. Axel Kielhorn's \Class{akletter} class is the only other one, recommended for inclusion in this \acro{FAQ}, whose documentation is available in English. The \Class{dinbrief} class, while recommended, is only documented in German. There are letter classes in each of the excellent \Class{KOMA-script} (\Class{scrlttr2}: documentation is available in English) and \Package{ntgclass} (\Class{brief}: documentation in Dutch only) bundles. While these are probably good (since the bundles themselves inspire trust) they've not been specifically recommended by any users. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[akletter.cls]\CTANref{akletter} \item[brief.cls]Distributed as part of \CTANref{ntgclass} \item[dinbrief.cls]\CTANref{dinbrief} \item[newlfm.cls]\CTANref{newlfm} \item[scrlttr2.cls]Distributed as part of \CTANref{koma-script} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-extsizes]{Other ``document font'' sizes?} The \LaTeX{} standard classes have a concept of a (base) ``document font'' size; this size is the basis on which other font sizes (those from \csx{tiny} to \csx{Huge}) are determined. The classes are designed on the assumption that they won't be used with sizes other than the set that \LaTeX{} offers by default (10--12pt), but people regularly find they need other sizes. The proper response to such a requirement is to produce a new design for the document, but many people don't fancy doing that. A simple solution is to use the \Package{extsizes} bundle. This bundle offers ``extended'' versions of the article, report, book and letter classes, at sizes of 8, 9, 14, 17 and 20pt as well as the standard 10--12pt. Since little has been done to these classes other than to adjust font sizes and things directly related to them, they may not be optimal~--- but they're certainly practical. More satisfactory are the \emph{\acro{KOMA}-script} classes, which are designed to work properly with the class option files that come with \Package{extsizes}, and the \Class{memoir} class that has its own options for document font sizes 9pt, 14pt and 17pt. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[extsizes bundle]\CTANref{extsizes} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \end{ctanrefs} \subsection{Document structure} \Question[Q-titlsty]{The style of document titles} The \Package{titling} package provides a number of facilities that permit manipulation of the appearance of a \csx{maketitle} command, the \csx{thanks} commands within it, and so on. The package also defines a \environment{titlingpage} environment, that offers something in between the standard classes' \pkgoption{titlepage} option and the \environment{titlepage} environment, and is itself somewhat configurable. The memoir class includes all the functionality of the \Package{titling} package, while the \Class{KOMA-script} classes have their own range of different titling styles. Finally, the indefatigable Vincent Zoonekynd supplies examples of how to program alternative % don't let this \href suffer a line-break \href{http://zoonek.free.fr/LaTeX/LaTeX_samples_title/0.html}{title styles}. The web page is not useful to users unless they are willing to do their own \LaTeX{} programming. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[titling.sty]\CTANref{titling} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-secthead]{The style of section headings} Suppose that the editor of your favourite journal has specified that section headings must be centred, in small capitals, and subsection headings ragged right in italic, but that you don't want to get involved in the sort of programming described in section 2.2 of \emph{The \LaTeX{} Companion} \begin{narrowversion} % really non-hyper (\Qref{}{Q-books}; the programming itself is discussed in \Qref[question]{}{Q-atsigns}). \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} % really hyper (see \Qref{\TeX{}-related books}{Q-books}; the \Qref{programming}{Q-atsigns} itself is discussed elsewhere in this \acro{FAQ}). \end{wideversion} The following hack will probably satisfy your editor. Define yourself new commands \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\ssection}[1]{% \section[#1]{\centering\sc #1}} \newcommand{\ssubsection}[1]{% \subsection[#1]{\raggedright\it #1}} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and then use \csx{ssection} and \csx{ssubsection} in place of \csx{section} and \csx{subsection}. This isn't perfect: section numbers remain in bold, and starred forms need a separate redefinition. The package \Package{sectsty} provides an easy-to-use set of tools to do this job, while the package \Package{titlesec} has a structured approach based on redefinition of the sectioning and chapter commands themselves. \Package{Titlesec}'s approach allows it to offer far more radical adjustment: its options provide (in effect) a toolbox for designing your own sectioning commands' output. The \Package{fncychap} package provides a nice collection of customised chapter heading designs. The \Package{anonchap} package provides a simple means of typesetting chapter headings ``like section headings'' (i.e., without the ``Chapter'' part of the heading); the \Package{tocbibind} package provides the same commands, in pursuit of another end. Unfortunately, \Package{fncychap} is not attuned to the existence of front- and backmatter in \Class{book} class documents. The \Class{memoir} class includes facilities that match \Package{sectsty} and \Package{titlesec}, as well as a bundle of chapter heading styles (including an \Package{anonchap}-equivalent). The \Class{KOMA-script} classes also have sets of tools that provide equivalent functionality, notably formatting specifications \csx{partformat}, \csx{chapterformat}, \csx{sectionformat}, \dots{}, as well as several useful overall formatting specifications defined in class options. Finally, the indefatigable Vincent Zoonekynd supplies examples of how to program alternative % don't let these \href suffer line-breaks \href{http://zoonek.free.fr/LaTeX/LaTeX_samples_chapter/0.html}{chapter heading styles} and \href{http://zoonek.free.fr/LaTeX/LaTeX_samples_section/0.html}{section heading styles}. The web pages are not useful to users unless they are willing to do their own \LaTeX{} programming. The documentation of \Package{fncychap} is distributed as a separate \PS{} file. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[anonchap.sty]\CTANref{anonchap} \item[fncychap.sty]\CTANref{fncychap} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[sectsty.sty]\CTANref{sectsty} \item[titlesec.sty]\CTANref{titlesec} \item[tocbibind.sty]\CTANref{tocbibind} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-appendix]{Appendixes} \LaTeX{} provides an exceedingly simple mechanism for appendixes: the command \csx{appendix} switches the document from generating sections (in \Class{article} class) or chapters (in \Class{report} or \Class{book} classes) to producing appendixes. Section or chapter numbering is restarted and the representation of the counter switches to alphabetic. So: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \section{My inspiration} ... \section{Developing the inspiration} ... \appendix \section{How I became inspired} ... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} would be typeset (in an \Class{article} document) something like: \begin{quote} \textbf{1~~My inspiration} \dots{} \textbf{2~~Developing the inspiration} \dots{} \textbf{A~~How I became inspired} \dots{} \end{quote} which is quite enough for many ordinary purposes. Note that, once you've switched to typesetting appendixes, \LaTeX{} provides you with no way back~--- once you've had an appendix, you can no longer have an ``ordinary'' \csx{section} or \csx{chapter}. The \Package{appendix} provides several ways of elaborating on this simple setup. Straightforward use of the package allows you to have a separate heading, both in the body of the document and the table of contents; this would be achieved by \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{appendix} ... \appendix \appendixpage \addappheadtotoc \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \csx{appendixpage} command adds a separate title ``Appendices'' above the first appendix, and \csx{addappheadtotoc} adds a similar title to the table of contents. These simple modifications cover many people's needs about appendixes. The package also provides an \environment{appendices} environment, which provides for fancier use. The environment is best controlled by package options; the above example would be achieved by \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[toc,page]{appendix} ... \begin{appendices} ... \end{appendices} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The great thing that the \environment{appendices} environment gives you, is that once the environment ends, you can carry on with sections or chapters as before~--- numbering isn't affected by the intervening appendixes. The package provides another alternative way of setting appendixes, as inferior divisions in the document. The \environment{subappendices} environment allows you to put separate appendixes for a particular section, coded as \csx{subsection}s, or for a particular chapter, coded as \csx{section}s. So one might write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{appendix} ... \section{My inspiration} ... \begin{subappendices} \subsection{How I became inspired} ... \end{subappendices} \section{Developing the inspiration} ... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Which will produce output something like: \begin{quote} \textbf{1~~My inspiration} \dots{} \textbf{1.A~~How I became inspired} \dots{} \textbf{2~~Developing the inspiration} \dots{} \end{quote} There are many other merry things one may do with the package; the user is referred to the package documentation for further details. The \Class{memoir} class includes the facilities of the \Package{appendix} package. The \Class{KOMA-script} classes offer a \csx{appendixprefix} command for manipulating the appearance of appendixes. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[appendix.sty]\CTANref{appendix} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-secindent]{Indent after section headings} \LaTeX{} implements a style that doesn't indent the first paragraph after a section heading. There are coherent reasons for this, but not everyone likes it. The \Package{indentfirst} package suppresses the mechanism, so that the first paragraph is indented. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[indentfirst.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-subsubsub]{How to create a \csx{subsubsubsection}} \LaTeX{}'s set of ``sections'' stops at the level of \csx{subsubsection}. This reflects a design decision by Lamport~--- for, after all, who can reasonably want a section with such huge strings of numbers in front of it? In fact, \LaTeX{} standard classes \emph{do} define ``sectioning'' levels lower than \csx{subsubsection}, but they don't format them like sections (they're not numbered, and the text is run-in after the heading). These deeply inferior section commands are \csx{paragraph} and \csx{subparagraph}; you can (if you \emph{must}) arrange that these two commands produce numbered headings, so that you can use them as \csx{subsubsubsection}s and lower. The \Package{titlesec} allows you to adjust the definitions of the sectioning macros, and it may be used to transform a \csx{paragraph}'s typesetting so that it looks like that of a \csx{section}. If you want to program the change yourself, you'll find that the commands (\csx{section} all the way down to \csx{subparagraph}) are defined in terms of the internal \csx{@startsection} command, which takes 6~arguments. Before attempting this sort of work, you are well advised to read the \LaTeX{} sources (\File{ltsect.dtx} in the \LaTeX{} distribution) and the source of the standard packages (\File{classes.dtx}). The \Qref*{\LaTeX{} Companion}{Q-books} discusses use of \csx{@startsection} for this sort of thing. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\LaTeX{} source]\CTANref{latex} \item[titlesec.sty]\CTANref{titlesec} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-captsty]{The style of captions} Changes to the style of captions may be made by redefining the commands that produce the caption. So, for example, \csx{fnum@figure} (which produces the float number for figure floats) may be redefined, in a package of your own, or between \Qref*{\csx{makeatletter}--\csx{makeatother}}{Q-atsigns}: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand{\fnum@figure}{\textbf{Fig.~\thefigure}} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand{\fnum@figure}% {\textbf{Fig.~\thefigure}} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} which will cause the number to be typeset in bold face. (Note that the original definition used \nothtml{\csx{figurename}~--- }% \Qref{\csx{figurename}}{Q-fixnam}.) More elaborate changes can be made by patching the \csx{caption} command, but since there are packages to do the job, such changes (which can get rather tricky) aren't recommended for ordinary users. The \Package{float} package provides some control of the appearance of captions, though it's principally designed for the creation of non-standard floats. The \Package{caption} and \Package{ccaption} (note the double ``\emph{c}'') packages provide a range of different formatting options. \Package{ccaption} also provides `continuation' captions and captions that can be placed outside of float environments. The (very simple) \Package{capt-of} package also allows captions outside a float environment. Note that care is needed when doing things that assume the sequence of floats (as in continuation captions), or potentially mix non-floating captions with floating ones. The \Class{memoir} class includes the facilities of the \Package{ccaption} package; the \Class{KOMA-script} classes also provide a wide range of caption-formatting commands. The documentation of \Package{caption} is available by processing a file \File{manual.tex}, which is created when you unpack \File{caption.dtx} Note that the previously-recommended package \Package{caption2} has now been overtaken again by \Package{caption}; however, \Package{caption2} remains available for use in older documents. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[caption.sty]\CTANref{caption} \item[capt-of.sty]\CTANref{capt-of} \item[ccaption.sty]\CTANref{ccaption} \item[float.sty]\CTANref{float} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-fancyhdr]{Alternative head- and footlines in \LaTeX{}} The standard \LaTeX{} document classes define a small set of `page styles' which (in effect) specify head- and footlines for your document. The set defined is very restricted, but \LaTeX{} is capable of much more; people occasionally set about employing \LaTeX{} facilities to do the job, but that's quite unnecessary~--- Piet van Oostrum has already done the work. The \Package{fancyhdr} package provides simple mechanisms for defining pretty much every head- or footline variation you could want; the directory also contains some documentation and one or two smaller packages. \Package{Fancyhdr} also deals with the tedious behaviour of the standard styles with \Qref*{initial pages}{Q-ps@empty}, by enabling you to define different page styles for initial and for body pages. While \Package{fancyhdr} will work with \Class{KOMA-script} classes, an alternative package, \Package{scrpage2}, eases integration with the classes. \Package{Scrpage2} may also be used as a \Package{fancyhdr} replacement, providing similar facilities. The \Class{KOMA-script} classes themselves permit some modest redefinition of head- and footlines, without the use of the extra package. \Class{Memoir} also contains the functionality of \Package{fancyhdr}, and has several predefined styles. Documentation of \Package{fancyhdr} is distributed with the package, in a separate file; documentation of \Package{scrpage2} is integrated with the \File{scrgui*} documentation files that are distributed with the \Class{KOMA-script} classes. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fancyhdr.sty]\CTANref{fancyhdr} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[scrpage2.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{koma-script} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-widefigs]{Wide figures in two-column documents} Floating figures and tables ordinarily come out the same width as the page, but in two-column documents they're restricted to the width of the column. This is sometimes not good enough; so there are alternative versions of the float environments~--- in two-column documents, |figure*| provides a floating page-wide figure (and |table*| a page-wide table) which will do the necessary. The ``|*|''ed float environments can only appear at the top of a page, or on a whole page~--- |h| or |b| float placement directives are simply ignored. Unfortunately, page-wide equations can only be accommodated inside float environments. You should include them in |figure| environments, or use the \Package{float} or \Package{ccaption}package to define a new float type. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ccaption.sty]\CTANref{ccaption} \item[float.sty]\CTANref{float} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-onecolabs]{1-column abstract in 2-column document} One often requires that the abstract of a paper should appear across the entire page, even in a two-column paper. The required trick is: \begin{verbatim} \documentclass[twocolumn]{article} ... \begin{document} ... % \author, etc \twocolumn[ \begin{@twocolumnfalse} \maketitle \begin{abstract} ... \end{abstract} \end{@twocolumnfalse} ] \end{verbatim} Unfortunately, with the above \csx{thanks} won't work in the \csx{author} list. If you need such specially-numbered footnotes, you can make them like this: \begin{verbatim} \title{Demonstration} \author{Me, You\thanks{}} \twocolumn[ ... as above ... ] { \renewcommand{\thefootnote}% {\fnsymbol{footnote}} \footnotetext[1]{Thanks for nothing} } \end{verbatim} and so on. As an alternative, among other facilities the \Package{abstract} package provides a \csx{saythanks} command and a \environment{onecolabstract} environment which remove the need to fiddle with the \csx{thanks} and footnoting. They can be used like this: \begin{verbatim} \twocolumn[ \maketitle % full width title \begin{onecolabstract} % full width abstract ... text \end{onecolabstract} ] \saythanks % typeset any \thanks \end{verbatim} The \Class{memoir} class offers all the facilities of \Package{abstract}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[abstract.sty]\CTANref{abstract} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-reallyblank]{Really blank pages between chapters} \Class{Book} (by default) and \Class{report} (with \pkgoption{openright} class option) ensure that each chapter starts on a right-hand (recto) page; they do this by inserting a \csx{cleardoublepage} command between chapters (rather than a mere \csx{clearpage}). The empty page thus created gets to have a normal running header, which some people don't like. The (excellent) \Package{fancyhdr} manual covers this issue, basically advising the creation of a command \csx{clearemptydoublepage}: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \let\origdoublepage\cleardoublepage \newcommand{\clearemptydoublepage}{% \clearpage {\pagestyle{empty}\origdoublepage}% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The ``obvious'' thing is then to use this command to replace \csx{cleardoublepage} in a patched version of the \csx{chapter} command. (Make a package of your own containing a copy of the command out of the class.) This isn't particularly difficult, but you can instead simply subvert \csx{cleardoublepage} (which isn't often used elsewhere): \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \let\cleardoublepage\clearemptydoublepage \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Note: this command works because \csx{clearemptydoublepage} uses a copy of \csx{cleardoublepage}: instructions on macro programming % beware line break \Qref*[question]{patching techniques}{Q-patch} explain the problem and why this is a solution. Note that the \emph{\acro{KOMA}-Script} replacements for the \Class{book} amd \Class{report} classes (\Class{scrbook} and \Class{scrreprt} offers class options \pkgoption{cleardoubleempty}, \pkgoption{cleardoubleplain} and \pkgoption{cleardoublestandard} (using the running page style, as normal) that control the appearance of these empty pages. The classes also offer do-it-yourself commands \csx{cleardoubleempty} (etc.\@). The \Class{memoir} class (and the \Package{nextpage} package) provide commands \csx{cleartooddpage} and \csx{cleartoevenpage}, which both take an optional argument (the first, with no argument, being an equivalent of \csx{cleardoublepage}). One can achieve `special' effects by putting commands in the optional argument: the \csx{clearemptydoublepage} we're after would be achieved by \csx{cleartooddpage[}\cmdinvoke{thispagestyle}{empty}\texttt{]}. The commands will also serve if you want the surreal effect of ``This page intentionally left blank'' in the centre of an otherwise empty page. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fancyhdr]\CTANref{fancyhdr} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[nextpage.sty]\CTANref{nextpage} \item[scrbook.cls, scrrept.cls]Part of \CTANref{koma-script} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-balance]{Balancing columns at the end of a document} The \Package{twocolumn} option of the standard classes causes \LaTeX{} to set the text of a document in two columns. However, the last page of the document typically ends up with columns of different lengths~--- such columns are said to be ``unbalanced''. Many (most?) people don't like unbalanced columns. The simplest solution to the problem is to use the \Package{multicol} package in place of the \Package{twocolumn} option, as \Package{multicol} balances the columns on the final page by default. However, the use of \Package{multicol} does come at a cost: its special output routine disallows the use of in-column floats, though it does still permit full-width (e.g., \environment{figure*} environment) floats. As a result, there is a constant push for a means of balancing columns at the end of a \Package{twocolumn} document. Of course, the job can be done manually: \csx{pagebreak} inserted at the appropriate place on the last page can often produce the right effect, but this seldom appeals, and if the last page is made up of automatically-generated text (for example, bibliography or index) inserting the command will be difficult. The \Package{flushend} package offers a solution to this problem. It's a somewhat dangerous piece of macro code, which patches one of the most intricate parts of the \LaTeX{} kernel without deploying any of the safeguards discussed in \Qref[question]{patching commands}{Q-patch}. The package only changes the behaviour at end document (its \csx{flushend} command is enabled by default), and one other command permits adjustment of the final balance; other packages in the bundle provide means for insertion of full width material in two-column documents. The \Package{balance} package also patches the output routine (somewhat more carefully than \Package{flushend}). The user should be aware that any of these packages are liable to become confused in the presence of floats: if problems arise, manual adjustment of the floats in the document is likely to be necessary. It is this difficulty (what's required in any instance can't really be expressed in current \LaTeX{}) that led the author of \Package{multicol} to suppress single-column-wide floats. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[balance.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{preprint} \item[flushend.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{sttools} \item[multicol.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-runheadtoobig]{My section title is too wide for the page header} By default, \LaTeX{} sectioning commands make the chapter or section title available for use by page headers and the like. Page headers operate in a rather constrained area, and it's common for titles too be too big to fit: the \LaTeX{} sectioning commands therefore take an optional argument: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \section[short title]{full title} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} If the \meta{short title} is present, it is used both for the table of contents and for the page heading: the usual answer to people who complain about the size of the title that's gone in to the running head, is to suggest that they the optional argument. However, using the same text for the table of contents as for the running head may also be unsatisfactory: if your chapter titles are seriously long (like those of a Victorian novel), a valid and rational scheme is to have a shortened table of contents entry, and a really terse entry in the running head. One of the problems is the tendency of page headings to be set in capitals; so why not set headings as written for ``ordinary'' reading? It's not possible to do so with unmodified \LaTeX{}, but the \Package{fancyhdr} package provides a command \csx{nouppercase} for use in its header (and footer) lines to suppress \LaTeX{}'s uppercasing tendencies. Classes in the \Class{KOMA-script} bundle don't uppercase in the first place. In fact, the sectioning commands use `mark' commands to pass information to the page headers. For example, \csx{chapter} uses \csx{chaptermark}, \csx{section} uses \csx{sectionmark}, and so on. With this knowledge, one can achieve a three-layer structure for chapters: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \chapter[middling version]{verbose version} \chaptermark{terse version} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which should supply the needs of every taste. Chapters, however, have it easy: hardly any book design puts a page header on a chapter start page. In the case of sections, one has typically to take account of the nature of the \csx{*mark} commands: the thing that goes in the heading is the first mark on the page (or, failing any mark, the last mark on any previous page). As a result the recipe for sections is more tiresome: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \section[middling version]{verbose version% \sectionmark{terse version}} \sectionmark{terse version} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (the first \csx{sectionmark} deals with the header of the page the \csx{section} command falls on, and the second deal with subsequent pages; note that here, you need the optional argument to \csx{section}, even if ``\emph{middling version}'' is in fact the same text as ``\emph{long version''}.) A similar arrangement is necessary even for chapters if the class you're using is odd enough that it puts a page header on a chapter's opening page. Note that the \Package{titlesec} package manages the running heads in a completely different fashion; users of that package should refer to the documentation. The \Class{memoir} class avoids all the silliness by providing an extra optional argument for chapter and sectioning commands, for example: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \section[middling version][terse version]% {verbose version} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \section[middling version][terse version]{verbose version} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} As a result, it is always possible for users of \Class{memoir} to tailor the header text to fit, with very little trouble. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fancyhdr.sty]\CTANref{fancyhdr} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[titlesec.sty]\CTANref{titlesec} \end{ctanrefs} \nothtml{\begingroup\boldmath} \Question[Q-nofm]{Page numbering ``\meta{n} of \meta{m}''} \nothtml{\afterquestion} Finding the page number of the last page of a document, from within the document, is somewhat tricky. The \Package{lastpage} package is therefore supplied to make life easy for us all; it defines a label \texttt{LastPage} whose number is \emph{right} (after sufficiently many passes through \LaTeX{}, of course). The \Class{memoir} class also defines a ``last page'' label. The documentation of the \Package{fancyhdr} package spells out exactly how one might actually use this information to produce page numbering as suggested in the question. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}fancyhdr documentation]\CTANref{fancyhdr} \item[lastpage.sty]\CTANref{lastpage} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-pagebychap]{Page numbering by chapter} When I was a young man, a common arrangement for loose bound technical manuals is to number pages by chapter. (It's quite a good scheme, in those situations: even if your corrections add a whole page to the chapter, the most you have to redistribute is that chapter.) The problem, at first sight, seems pretty much the same as that in another answer on \nothtml{running numbers within a chapter (}% % beware line break \Qref[question]{running numbers within a chapter}{Q-running-nos}\nothtml{)}, and the basic technique is indeed pretty similar. However, tidying-up loose ends, making sure the page number gets reset to the correct value at the start of each chapter, and so on, is slightly more challenging. This is why the \Package{chappg} package was written: it does the obvious things, and more. Users have been known to ask for running page numbers within a section, but this really doesn't make sense: you need to run page numbers within document objects that always start on a fresh page. Documentation of \Package{chappg} is to be found in the package file. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[chappg.sty]\CTANref{chappg} \end{ctanrefs} \subsection{Page layout} \Question[Q-papersize]{Printer paper sizes} Paper sizes can be a pain: they're a forgotten backwater, because there's no \acro{DVI} command to specify the paper size of the document. One usually finds American ``letter'' paper size being used, by default, in macro packages (such as \Class{plain} and \LaTeX{}); but distributions provide configuration files for \acro{DVI} drivers (and since most distributions originate in Europe, the drivers usually default to \acro{ISO} ``A4'' paper size). This is (of course) pretty unsatisfactory. Users may change the paper size their document is designed for, pretty easily (and once off), but they have to ensure that every run of \ProgName{xdvi}, \ProgName{dvips}, or whatever, is given the correct override for using anything non-`standard'. Of course, the default paper size for \acro{DVI} drivers may be changed by a distribution management command, but this still doesn't provide for people using the ``wrong'' sort of paper for some reason. An interestingly different issue arises for users of \PDFTeX{}~--- the \acro{PDF} format \emph{does} have the means of expressing paper size, but much of the core software predates \PDFTeX{}, so not even \PDFLaTeX{} sets the correct values into \csx{pdfpagewidth} and \csx{pdfpageheight}. The \acro{DVI} drivers \ProgName{dvips} and \ProgName{dvipdfm} define \csx{special} commands for the document to specify its own paper size; so in those cases, as in the case of \PDFTeX{} and V\TeX{}, the paper size can be programmed by the document. Users who wish to, may of course consult the manuals of the various programs to write the necessary code. The \Package{geometry} package (whose main business is defining typeset page areas), also takes notice of the paper size the document is going to print to, and can issue the commands necessary to ensure the correct size is used. If \Package{geometry} is used when a document is being processed by either \PDFLaTeX{} or V\TeX{}, it will set the necessary dimensions as a matter of course. If the document is being processed by \LaTeX{} on a \TeX{} or \eTeX{} engine, there are two package options (\pkgoption{dvipdfm} and \pkgoption{dvips}) which instruct \Package{geometry} which \csx{special} commands to use. (Note that the options are ignored if you are using either \PDFLaTeX{} or V\TeX{}.) So, the resolution of the problem is to add \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[dvixxx,...]{geometry} \end{verbatim} (where \pkgoption{dvixxx} is your current favourite \acro{DVI} driver), and the document will run correctly with any of \LaTeX{} (whether or not run on V\TeX{}) or \PDFLaTeX{}. Give the \Package{typearea} package the \pkgoption{pagesize} and it will do the same job, for \PDFLaTeX{} output and \PS{} output from \LaTeX{} via \ProgName{dvips}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[geometry.sty]\CTANref{geometry} \item[typearea.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{koma-script} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-changemargin]{Changing the margins in \LaTeX{}} Changing the layout of a document's text on the page involves several subtleties not often realised by the beginner. There are interactions between fundamental \TeX{} constraints, constraints related to the design of \LaTeX{}, and good typesetting and design practice, that mean that any change must be very carefully considered, both to ensure that it ``works'' and to ensure that the result is pleasing to the eye. Lamport's warning to beginners in his section on `Customizing the Style'~--- ``don't do it''~--- needs to be taken seriously. One-inch margins on A4 paper are fine for 10- or 12-pitch typewriters, but not for 10pt (or even 11pt or 12pt) type because readers find such wide, dense, lines difficult to read: there should ideally be no more than 75 characters per line (though the constraints change for two-column text). The `ultimate' tool for adjusting the dimensions and position of the printed material on the page is the \Package{geometry} package; a very wide range of adjustments of the layout may be relatively straightforwardly programmed, and package documentation is good and comprehensive. Somewhat simpler to use is the \Package{vmargin} package, which has a canned set of paper sizes (a superset of that provided in \LaTeXe{}), provision for custom paper, margin adjustments and provision for two-sided printing. \LaTeX{} controls the page layout with a number of parameters, which allow you to change the distance from the edges of a page to the left and top edges of your typeset text, the width and height of the text, and the placement of other text on the page. However, they are somewhat complex, and it is easy to get their interrelationships wrong when redefining the page layout. The layout package defines a \csx{layout} command which draws a diagram of your existing page layout, with the dimensions (but not their interrelationships) shown. This \acro{FAQ} recommends that you use a package to establish consistent settings of the parameters: the interrelationships are taken care of in the established packages, without you needing to think about them. If you're still eager to ``do it yourself'', start by familiarising yourself with LaTeX's page layout parameters. For example, see section C.5.3 of the \LaTeX{} manual (pp.~181-182), or corresponding sections in many of the other good \LaTeX{} manuals (see \Qref[question]{\LaTeX{} books}{Q-books}). The text height and width, \csx{textheight} and \csx{textwidth}, require more care than you might expect: the height should be set to fit an integral number of text lines, and the width should be constrained by the number of characters per line, as mentioned above. Margins are controlled by three parameters. The pair \csx{oddsidemargin} and \csx{evensidemargin} are so-called because it is conventionally taken that odd-numbered pages appear on the right-hand side of a two-page spread (`recto') and even-numbered pages on the left-hand side (`verso'). Both parameters refer to the left-hand margin; the right-hand margin is specified by implication, from the size of \csx{textwidth} and the width of the paper. The ``origin'' (the zero position) on the page is one inch from the top of the paper and one inch from the left side; positive horizontal measurements extend right across the page, and positive vertical measurements extend down the page. Thus, the parameters \csx{evensidemargin}, \csx{oddsidemargin} and \csx{topmargin}, should be set to be 1~inch less than the true margin; for margins closer to the left and top edges of the page than 1 inch, the margin parameters must be set to negative values. Another surprise is that you cannot change the width or height of the text within the document, simply by modifying the text size parameters. The simple rule is that the parameters should only be changed in the preamble of the document, i.e., before the \cmdinvoke{begin}{document} statement. To adjust text width within a document we define an environment: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newenvironment{changemargin}[2]{% \begin{list}{}{% \setlength{\topsep}{0pt}% \setlength{\leftmargin}{#1}% \setlength{\rightmargin}{#2}% \setlength{\listparindent}{\parindent}% \setlength{\itemindent}{\parindent}% \setlength{\parsep}{\parskip}% }% \item[]}{\end{list}} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} This environment takes two arguments, and will indent the left and right margins, respectively, by the parameters' values. Negative values will cause the margins to be narrowed, so \cmdinvoke{begin}{changemargin}{-1cm}{-1cm} narrows the left and right margins by 1cm. The \Package{chngpage} package provides ready-built commands to do the above; it includes provision for changing the shifts applied to your text according to whether you're on an odd or an even page of a two-sided document. The package's documentation (in the file itself) suggests a strategy for changing text dimensions between pages~--- as mentioned above, changing the text dimensions within the body of a page may lead to unpredictable results. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[chngpage.sty]\CTANref{chngpage} \item[geometry.sty]\CTANref{geometry} \item[layout.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[vmargin.sty]\CTANref{vmargin} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-nopageno]{How to get rid of page numbers} The package \Package{nopageno} will suppress page numbers in a whole document. To suppress page numbers from a single page, use \cmdinvoke{thispagestyle}{empty} somewhere within the text of the page. (Note that \csx{maketitle} and \csx{chapter} both use \csx{thispagestyle} internally, so you need to call it after you've called them.) To suppress page numbers from a sequence of pages, you may use \cmdinvoke{pagestyle}{empty} at the start of the sequence, and restore the original page style at the end. Unfortunately, you still have to use \csx{thispagestyle} after any \csx{maketitle} or \csx{chapter} command. In the \Class{memoir} class, the troublesome commands (\csx{maketitle}, \csx{chapter}, etc.\@) invoke their own page style (\environment{title}, \environment{chapter}, etc.\@), which you may redefine using the class's own techniques to be equivalent to ``\environment{empty}''. The \Class{KOMA-script} classes have commands that contain the page style to be used, so one might say: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand*{\titlepagestyle}{empty} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} An alternative (in all classes) is to use the rather delightful \cmdinvoke{pagenumbering}{gobble}; this has the simple effect that any attempt to print a page number produces nothing, so there's no issue about preventing any part of \LaTeX{} from printing the number. However, the \csx{pagenumbering} command does have the side effect that it resets the page number (to 1), which may be undesirable. The \Package{scrpage2} package separates out the representation from the resetting; so one can say \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand*{\pagemark}{} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} to have the same effect as the \texttt{gobble} trick, without resetting the page number. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[nopageno]\CTANref{nopageno} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[scrpage2.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{koma-script} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-ps@empty]{\psatempty{} on first page in \LaTeX{}} If you use \cmdinvoke{pagestyle}{empty}, but the first page is numbered anyway, you are probably using the \csx{maketitle} command too. The behaviour is not a bug but a feature. The standard \LaTeX{} classes are written so that initial pages (pages containing a \csx{maketitle}, \csx{part}, or \csx{chapter}) have a different page style from the rest of the document; to achieve this, the commands internally issue \cmdinvoke{thispagestyle}{plain}. This is usually not acceptable behaviour if the surrounding page style is `empty'. Possible workarounds include: \begin{itemize} \item Put \csx{thispagestyle{empty}} immediately after the \csx{maketitle} command, with no blank line between them. \item Use the \Package{fancyhdr} or \Package{scrpage2} packages, which allow you to customise the style for initial pages independently of that for body pages. For example, use \Package{fancyhdr} commands: \begin{verbatim} \fancypagestyle{plain}{% \fancyhf{}% \renewcommand{\headrulewidth}{0pt}% \renewcommand{\footrulewidth}{0pt}% } \end{verbatim} and the ``\texttt{empty}'' page style (invoked by \csx{chapter} commands and title pages) will have no header or footer. \item If you are using either the \Class{memoir} class or a \Class{KOMA-script} class, use the techniques outlined for them in ``\Qref*[question]{no page numbers}{Q-nopageno}''. \end{itemize} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fancyhdr.sty]\CTANref{fancyhdr} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[nopageno.sty]\CTANref{nopageno} \item[scrpage2.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{koma-script} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-crop]{How to create crop marks} If you're printing something that's eventually to be reproduced in significant quantities, and bound, it's conventional to print on paper larger than your target product, and to place ``crop marks'' outside the printed area. These crop marks are available to the production house, for lining up reproduction and trimming machines. You can save yourself the (considerable) trouble of programming these marks for yourself by using the package \Package{crop}, which has facilities to satisfy any conceivable production house. Users of the \Class{memoir} class don't need the package, since \Class{memoir} has its own facilities for programming crop marks. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[crop.sty]\CTANref{crop} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-watermark]{`Watermarks' on every page} It's often useful to place some text (such as `DRAFT') in the background of every page of a document. For \LaTeX{} users, this can be achieved with the \Package{draftcopy} package. This can deal with many types of \acro{DVI} processors (in the same way that the graphics package does) and knows translations for the word `DRAFT' into a wide range of languages (though you can choose your own word, too). More elaborate watermarks may be achieved using the \Package{eso-pic} package, which in turn uses the package \Package{everyshi}, part of Martin Schr\"oder's \Package{ms} bundle. \Package{Eso-pic} attaches a \environment{picture} environment to every page as it is shipped out; you can put things into that environment. The package provides commands for placing things at certain useful points (like ``text upper left'' or ``text centre'') in the picture, but you're at liberty to do what you like. The \Package{wallpaper} package builds, as above, on \Package{eso-pic}. Apart from the single-image backdrops described above (``wallpapers'', of course, to this package), the package provides facilities for tiling images. All its commands come in pairs: on for ``general'' use, and one applying to the current page only. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[draftcopy.sty]\CTANref{draftcopy} \item[eso-pic.sty]\CTANref{eso-pic} \item[everyshi.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{ms} \item[wallpaper.sty]\CTANref{wallpaper} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-landscape]{Typesetting things in landscape orientation} It's often necessary to typeset part of a document in landscape orientation; to achieve this, one needs not only to change the page dimensions, but also to instruct the output device to print the strange page differently. There are two ``ordinary'' mechanisms for doing two slight variations of landscape typesetting: \begin{itemize} \item If you have a single floating object that is wider than it is deep, and will only fit on the page in landscape orientation, use the \Package{rotating} package; this defines |sidewaysfigure| and \environment{sidewaystable} environments which create floats that occupy a whole page. \item If you have a long sequence of things that need to be typeset in landscape (perhaps a code listing, a wide \environment{tabbing} environment, or a huge table typeset using \Package{longtable} or \Package{supertabular}), use the \Package{lscape} package (or \Package{pdflscape} if you're generating \acro{PDF} output, whether using \PDFLaTeX{} or \ProgName{dvips} and generating \acro{PDF} from that). Both packages define an environment \environment{landscape}, which clears the current page and restarts typesetting in landscape orientation (and clears the page at the end of the environment before returning to portrait orientation). \end{itemize} No currently available package makes direct provision for typesetting in both portrait and landscape orientation on the same page (it's not the sort of thing that \TeX{} is well set-up to do). If such behaviour was an absolute necessity, one would use the techniques described in % beware line-wrap \Qref[question]{"flowing text around figures"}{Q-textflow}, and would rotate the landscape portion using the rotation facilities of the \Package{graphics} package. (Returning from landscape to portrait orientation would be somewhat easier: the portrait part of the page would be a bottom float at the end of the landscape section, with its content rotated.) To set an entire document in landscape orientation, one might use \Package{lscape} around the whole document. A better option is the \pkgoption{landscape} option of the \Package{geometry} package; if you also give it \pkgoption{dvips} or \pkgoption{pdftex} option, \Package{geometry} also emits the rotation instructions to cause the output to be properly oriented. The \Class{memoir} class has the same facilities, in this respect, as does \Package{geometry}. A word of warning: most current \TeX{} previewers do not honour rotation requests in |.dvi| files (the exception is %% (the exceptions are the %% \begin{htmlversion} %% (\Qref{commercial}{Q-commercial}) \YandY{} previewer %% \ProgName{dviwindo}, %% \end{htmlversion} %% \htmlignore %% (commercial) \YandY{} previewer \ProgName{dviwindo} %% (\Qref{}{Q-commercial}), %% \endhtmlignore %% and the fp\TeX{} previewer Win\acro{DVI}). If your previewer is not capable of rotation, your best bet is to convert your output to \PS{} or to \acro{PDF}, and to view these `final' forms with an appropriate viewer. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[geometry.sty]\CTANref{geometry} \item[graphics.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{graphics} \item[longtable.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[lscape.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{graphics} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[pdflscape.sty]Distributed with Heiko Oberdiek's packages \CTANref{oberdiek} \item[rotating.sty]\CTANref{rotating} \item[supertabular.sty]\CTANref{supertabular} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-abspos]{Putting things at fixed positions on the page} \TeX{}'s model of the world is (broadly speaking) that the author writes text, and \TeX{} and its macros decide how it all fits on the page. This is not good news for the author who has, from whatever source, a requirement that certain things go in exactly the right place on the page. There \emph{are} places on the page, from which things may be hung, and two \LaTeX{} packages allow you position things relative to such points, thus providing a means of absolute positioning. The \Package{textpos} package aids the construction of pages from ``blobs'', dotted around over the page (as in a poster); you give it the location, and it places your typeset box accordingly. The \Package{eso-pic} defines a ``shipout picture'' that covers the page. The user may add \environment{picture}-mode commands to this picture, which of course can include box placements as well as the other rather stilted commands of \environment{picture}-mode. (\Package{Eso-pic} requires the services of \Package{everyshi}, which must therefore also be available.) % % Fortunately, in the \LaTeX{} world at least, there \emph{is} a fixed % point on every page, to whit the page header. The package % \Package{textpos} latches bits of typesetting to locations you % specify, by fixing them to the page header, and thereby solves the % problem. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[eso-pic.sty]\CTANref{eso-pic} \item[everyshi.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{ms} \item[textpos.sty]\CTANref{textpos} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-nopagebrk]{Preventing page breaks between lines} One commonly requires that a block of typeset material be kept on the same page; it turns out to be surprisingly tricky to arrange this. \LaTeX{} provides a \environment{samepage} environment which claims it does this sort of thing for you. It proceeds by setting infinite penalties for all sorts of page-break situations; but in many situations where you want to prevent a page break, \environment{samepage} doesn't help. If you're trying to keep running text together, you need to end the paragraph inside the environment (see \Qref[question]{preserving paragraph parameters}{Q-paraparam}). Also, if the things you are trying to keep together insert their own pagebreak hints, \environment{samepage} has no power over them: a good exaple is list items~--- they suggest page breaks between them. Even if \environment{samepage} \emph{does} work, it's likely to leave stuff jutting out at the bottom of the page. A convenient trick is to set all the relevant stuff in a \csx{parbox} (or a \environment{minipage} if it contains things like verbatim text that may not be in the argument of a \csx{parbox}). The resulting box certainly \emph{won't} break between pages, but that's not to say that it will actually do what you want it to do: again, the box may be left jutting out at the bottom of the page. Why do neither of these obvious things work? Because \TeX{} can't really distinguish between infinitely awful things. \environment{Samepage} will make any possible break point ``infinitely bad'' and boxes don't even offer the option of breaks, but if the alternative is the leave an infinitely bad few centimetres of blank paper at the bottom of the page, \TeX{} will take the line of least resistance and do nothing. This problem still arises even if you have \csx{raggedbottom} in effect: \TeX{} doesn't notice the value of \emph{that} until it starts actually shipping a page out. One approach is to set: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \raggedbottom \addtolength{\topskip}{0pt plus 10pt} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \texttt{10pt} offers a hint to the output routine that the column is stretchable; this will cause \TeX{} to be more tolerant of the need to stretch while building the page. If you're doing this as a temporary measure, cancel the change to \csx{topskip} by: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \addtolength{\topskip}{0pt plus-10pt} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} as well as resetting \csx{flushbottom}. (Note that the \texttt{10pt} never actually shows up, because it is overwhelmed when the page is shipped out by the stretchability introduced by \csx{raggedbottom}; however, it could well have an effect if \csx{flushbottom} was in effect.) An alternative (which derives from a suggestion by Knuth in the \TeX{}book) is the package \Package{needspace} or the \Class{memoir}, which both define a command \csx{needspace} whose argument tells it what space is needed. If the space isn't available, the current page is cleared, and the matter that needs to be kept together will be inserted on the new page. For example, if 4~lines of text need to be kept together, the sequence \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \par \needspace{4\baselineskip} % the stuff that must stay together % now stuff we don't mind about \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Yet another trick by Knuth is useful if you have a sequence of small blocks of text that need, individually, to be kept on their own page. Insert the command \csx{filbreak} before each small block, and the effect is achieved. The technique can be used in the case of sequences of \LaTeX{}-style sections, by incorporating \csx{filbreak} into the definition of a command (as in % beware line break \Qref[question]{patching commands}{Q-patch}). A simple and effective patch would be: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \let\oldsubsubsection=\subsubsection \renewcommand{\subsubsection}{% \filbreak \oldsubsubsection } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} While the trick works for consecutive sequences of blocks, it's slightly tricky to get out of such sequences unless the sequence is interrupted by a forced page break (such as \csx{clearpage}, which may be introduced by a \csx{chapter} command, or the end of the document). If the sequence is not interrupted, the last block is likely to be forced onto a new page, regardless of whether it actually needs it. If one is willing to accept that not everything can be accomplished totally automatically, the way to go is to typeset the document and to check for things that have the potential to give trouble. In such a scenario (which has Knuth's authority behind it, if one is to believe the rather few words he says on the subject in the \TeX{}book) one can decide, case by case, how to deal with problems at the last proof-reading stage. The alternatives are to insert \csx{clearpage} commands as necessary, or to use \csx{enlargethispage}. Supposing you have a line or two that stray: issue the command \cmdinvoke{enlargethispage}{2\csx{baselineskip}} and two lines are added to the page you're typesetting. It depends on the document whether this looks impossibly awful or entirely acceptable, but the command remains a useful item in the armoury. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[needspace.sty]\CTANref{needspace} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-parallel]{Parallel setting of text} It's commonly necessary to present text in two languages `together' on a page, or on a two-page spread. For this to be satisfactory, one usually needs some sort of alignment between the two texts. The \Package{parallel} package satisfies the need, permitting typesetting in two columns (not necessarily of the same width) on one page, or on the two opposing pages of a two-page spread. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ledpar.sty]Distributed with \CTANref{ledmac} \item[parallel.sty]\CTANref{parallel} \item[parcolumns.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{sauerj} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-epigraph]{Typesetting epigraphs} Epigraphs are those neat quotations that authors put at the start of chapters (or even at the end of chapters: Knuth puts things at the ends of chapters of the \TeX{}book). Typesetting them is a bit of a fiddle, but not impossible to do for yourself. However, the \Package{epigraph} package will do the job for you, even in situations where it's particularly nasty to get right. The package defines an \csx{epigraph} command, for creating a single epigraph (as at the top of a chapter): \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \chapter{The Social Life of Rabbits} \epigraph{Oh! My ears and whiskers!}% {Lewis Carroll} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and an epigraphs environment, for entering more than one epigraph consecutively, in a sort of list introduced by \csx{qitem} commands: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{epigraphs} \qitem{What I tell you three times is true}% {Lewis Carroll} \qitem{Oh listen do, I'm telling you!}% {A.A. Milne} \end{epigraphs} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \csx{epigraphhead} command enables you to place your epigraph \emph{above} a chapter header: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \setlength{\unitlength}{1pt} ... \chapter{The Social Life of Rabbits} \epigraphhead[]{% \epigraph{Oh! My ears and whiskers!}% {Lewis Carroll}% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \meta{distance} says how far above the chapter heading the epigraph is to go; it's expressed in terms of the \csx{unitlength} that's used in the \environment{picture} environment; the package's author recommends \texttt{70pt}. The package also offers various tricks for adjusting the layout of chapter header (necessary if you've found a hugely long quotation for an \csx{epigraphhead}), for patching the bibliography, for patching \csx{part} pages, and so on. (Some of these suggested patches lead you through writing your own package\dots{}) The \Class{memoir} class offers all the facilities of the \Package{epigraph} package. The \Class{Koma-script} classes have commands \csx{setchapterpreamble} and \csx{dictum} to provide these facilities. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[epigraph.sty]\CTANref{epigraph} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-outszwrng]{\AllTeX{} \acro{PDF} output prints at wrong size} Having got everything \emph{else} right, you should be aware that the problem may have nothing to do with \AllTeX{} and everything to do with the program you use for printing. A regular cause for such problems lies with Acrobat Reader, which by default enables its option to scale pages to fit on the printable area of the paper. Since a printer can rarely print right to the edge, this means that pdf-files will be shrunk by some (small) factor (even if the pdf-file is formatted for A4, and your paper size is set to A4 as well). Correcting this silliness is not very hard, but the exact details depend on the version of Acrobat Reader (or "Adobe Reader" from version 6.0 onwards) you have installed: \begin{itemize} \item Mac OS X, Adobe Reader 6:\\ in the print dialogue, on the ``copies \& pages'' pane, you'll find a popup menu titled ``Page Scaling''. Make sure that the menu reads ``None''. \item Windows, Adobe Reader 6:\\ in the print dialogue, select ``None'' from the drop-down list ``Page Scaling''. \item Windows, Linux Acrobat (Reader) 5.0:\\ In the print dialog, make sure the ``Shrink oversized pages to fit'' checkbox is unchecked. It may also be useful to uncheck the ``Expand small pages to fit paper size'' checkbox as well. \end{itemize} \subsection{Spacing of characters and lines} \Question[Q-linespace]{Double-spaced documents in \LaTeX{}} A quick and easy way of getting inter-line space for copy-editing is to change \csx{baselinestretch}~--- \cmdinvoke{linestretch}{1.2} (or, equivalently \cmdinvoke{renewcommand}{\csx{baselinestretch}}{1.2}) may be adequate. Note that \csx{baselinestretch} changes don't take effect until you select a new font, so make the change in the preamble before any font is selected. Don't try changing \csx{baselineskip}: its value is reset at any size-changing command so that results will be inconsistent. For preference (and certainly for a production document, such as a dissertation or an article submission), use a line-spacing package. The only one currently supported is \Package{setspace} (do \emph{not} be tempted by \Package{doublespace}~--- its performance under current \LaTeX{} is at best problematical). \Package{Setspace} switches off double-spacing at places where even the most die-hard official would doubt its utility (footnotes, figure captions, and so on); it's very difficult to do this consistently if you're manipulating \csx{baselinestretch} yourself. Of course, the real solution (other than for private copy editing) is \emph{not} to use double-spacing at all. Universities, in particular, have no excuse for specifying double-spacing in submitted dissertations: \LaTeX{} is a typesetting system, not a typewriter-substitute, and can (properly used) make single-spaced text even more easily readable than double-spaced typewritten text. If you have any influence on your university's system (for example, through your dissertation supervisor), it may be worth attempting to get the rules changed (at least to permit a ``well-designed book'' format). Double-spaced submissions are also commonly required when submitting papers to conferences or journals. Fortunately (judging by the questions from users in this author's department), this demand is becoming less common. Documentation of \Package{setspace} appears as \TeX{} comments in the package file itself. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[setspace.sty]\CTANref{setspace} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-letterspace]{Changing the space between letters} A common technique in advertising copy (and other text whose actual content need not actually be \emph{read}) is to alter the space between the letters (otherwise known as the tracking). As a general rule, this is a very bad idea: it detracts from legibility, which is contrary to the principles of typesetting (any respectable font you might be using should already have optimum tracking built into it). The great type designer, Eric Gill, is credited with saying ``he who would letterspace lower-case text, would steal sheep''. (The attribution is probably apocryphal: others are also credited with the remark. Stealing sheep was, in the 19th century, a capital offence in Britain.) As the remark suggests, though, letterspacing of upper-case text is less awful a crime; the technique used also to be used for emphasis of text set in Fraktur (or similar) fonts. Straightforward macros (usable, in principle, with any \TeX{} macro package) may be found in \Package{letterspacing} (which is the name of the |.tex| file; it also appears as the \Package{letterspace} package in some distributions). %%% the package has a serious bug in it, so suppress mention pro tem %The \Package{tracking} package has similar facilities. A more comprehensive solution is to be found in the \Package{soul} package (which is optimised for use with \LaTeX{}, but also works with Plain \TeX{}). Soul also permits hyphenation of letterspaced text; Gill's view of such an activity is not (even apocryphally) recorded. (Spacing-out forms part of the name of \Package{soul}; the other half is described in \Qref[question]{another question}{Q-underline}.) \begin{ctanrefs} \item[letterspacing.tex]\CTANref{letterspacing} \item[soul.sty]\CTANref{soul} %\item[tracking.sty]\CTANref{tracking} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-ragright]{Setting text ragged right} The trick with typesetting ragged right is to be sure you've told the \TeX{} engine ``make this paragraph ragged, but never \emph{too} ragged''. The \LaTeX{} \csx{raggedright} command (and the corresponding \environment{flushleft} environment) has a tendency to miss the ``never'' part, and will often create ridiculously short lines, for some minor benefit later in the paragraph. The Plain \TeX{} version of the command doesn't suffer this failing, but is rather conservative: it is loath to create too large a gap at the end of the line, but in some circumstances (such as where % beware line break \nothtml{hyphenation is suppressed }% \Qref{hyphenation is suppressed}{Q-hyphoff}) painfully large gaps may sometimes be required. Martin Schr\"oder's \Package{ragged2e} package offers the best of both worlds: it provides raggedness which is built on the Plain \TeX{} model, but which is easily configurable. It defines easily-remembered command (e.g., \csx{RaggedRight}) and environment (e.g., \environment{FlushLeft}) names that are simply capitalised transformations of the \LaTeX{} kernel originals. The documentation discusses the issues and explains the signficance of the various parameters of \Package{ragged2e}'s operation. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ragged2e.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{ms} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-flushboth]{Cancelling \csx{ragged} commands} \LaTeX{} provides commands \csx{raggedright} and \csx{raggedleft}, but none to cancel their effect. The \csx{centering} command is implemented in the same way as the \csx{ragged*} commands, and suffers in the same way. The following code (to be inserted in a package of your own, or as \nothtml{internal \LaTeX{} code~---}% beware line break \Qref{internal \LaTeX{} code}{Q-atsigns}) defines a command that restores flush justification at both margins: \begin{verbatim} \def\flushboth{% \let\\\@normalcr \@rightskip\z@skip \rightskip\@rightskip \leftskip\z@skip \parindent 1.5em\relax} \end{verbatim} There's a problem with the setting of \csx{parindent} in the code: it's necessary because both the \csx{ragged} commands set \csx{parindent} to zero, but the setting isn't a constant of nature: documents using a standard \LaTeX{} class with \pkgoption{twocolumn} option will have |1.0em| by default, and there's no knowing what you (or some other class) will have done. If you are using Martin Schr\"oder's \Package{ragged2e} package, it is worth updating to the latest release (January 2003), which has a \csx{justifying} command to match its % ! line break \Qref*{versions of the \LaTeX{} `ragged' commands}{Q-ragright}. The package also provides a \environment{justify} environment, which permits areas of justified text in a larger area which is ragged. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ragged2e.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{ms} \end{ctanrefs} % this package hasn't materialised, for some reason i don't now % remember... %% Donald Arseneau's \Package{flushboth} package provides this code, and %% preserves a sensible value for \csx{parindent} (at begin document). %% This still doesn't protect it against any change you might make to %% \csx{parindent} within the body of your document. %% \begin{ctanrefs} %% \item[flushboth.sty]\CTANref{flushboth} %% \end{ctanrefs} \subsection{Typesetting specialities} \Question[Q-verbfile]{Including a file verbatim in \LaTeX{}} A good way is to use Rainer Sch\"opf's \Package{verbatim} package, which provides a command |\verbatiminput| that takes a file name as argument: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{verbatim} ... \verbatiminput{verb.txt} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Another way is to use the \environment{alltt} environment, which requires the \Package{alltt} package. The environment interprets its contents `mostly' verbatim, but executes any \AllTeX{} commands it finds: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{alltt} ... \begin{alltt} \input{verb.txt} \end{alltt} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} of course, this is little use for inputting \AllTeX{} source code\dots{} The \Package{moreverb} package extends the \Package{verbatim} package, providing a \environment{listing} environment and a \csx{listinginput} command, which line-number the text of the file. The package also has a \csx{verbatimtabinput} command, that honours \acro{TAB} characters in the input (the package's \environment{listing} environment and the \csx{listinginput} command also both honour \acro{TAB}). The \Package{sverb} package provides verbatim input (without recourse to the facilities of the \Package{verbatim} package): \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{sverb} ... \verbinput{verb.txt} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \Package{fancyvrb} package offers configurable implementations of everything \Package{verbatim}, \Package{sverb} and \Package{moreverb} have, and more besides. It is nowadays the package of choice for the discerning typesetter of verbatim text, but its wealth of facilities makes it a complex beast and study of the documentation is strongly advised. The \Class{memoir} class includes the relevant functionality of the \Package{verbatim} and \Package{moreverb} packages. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[alltt.sty]Part of the \LaTeX{} distribution. \item[fancyvrb.sty]\CTANref{fancyvrb} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[moreverb.sty]\CTANref{moreverb} \item[sverb.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{mdwtools} \item[verbatim.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-linenos]{Including line numbers in typeset output} For general numbering of lines, there are two packages for use with \LaTeX{}, \Package{lineno} (which permits labels attached to individual lines of typeset output) and \Package{numline}. Both of these packages play fast and loose with the \LaTeX{} output routine, which can cause problems: the user should beware\dots{} If the requirement is for numbering verbatim text, \Package{moreverb}, \Class{memoir} or \Package{fancyvrb} (see % beware line break \Qref[question]{including files verbatim}{Q-verbfile}) may be used. One common use of line numbers is in critical editions of texts, and for this the \Package{edmac} package offers comprehensive support; \Package{ledmac} is a \LaTeX{} port of \Package{edmac}. The \Package{vruler} package sidesteps many of the problems associated with line-numbering, by offering (as its name suggests) a rule that numbers positions on the page. The effect is good, applied to even-looking text, but is poor in texts that involve breaks such as interpolated mathematics or figures. Documentation of the package, in the package itself, is pretty tough going, though there is an example (also inside the package file). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[edmac]\CTANref{edmac} \item[fancyvrb.sty]\CTANref{fancyvrb} \item[ledmac.sty]\CTANref{ledmac} \item[lineno.sty]\CTANref{lineno} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[moreverb.sty]\CTANref{moreverb} \item[numline.sty]\CTANref{numline} \item[vruler.sty]\CTANref{vruler} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-codelist]{Code listings in \LaTeX{}} `Pretty' code listings are sometimes considered worthwhile by the ``ordinary'' programmer, but they have a serious place in the typesetting of dissertations by computer science and other students who are expected to write programs. Simple verbatim listings of programs are commonly useful, as well. \begin{wideversion} % really hyper \Qref{Verbatim listings}{Q-verbfile} are dealt with elsewhere, \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} Verbatim listings are dealt with elsewhere (\Qref{}{Q-verbfile}), \end{narrowversion} as is the problem of % ! line break \Qref*{typesetting algorithm specifications}{Q-algorithms}. The \Package{listings} package is widely regarded as the best bet for formatted output (it is capable of parsing program source, within the package itself), but there are several well-established packages that rely on a pre-compiler of some sort. You may use \Package{listings} to typeset snippets that you include within your source: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{listings} \lstset{language=C} ... \begin{document} \begin{lstlisting} #include int main(int argc, char ** argv) { printf("Hello world!\n"); return 0; } \end{lstlisting} \end{document} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} or you can have it typeset whole files: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{listings} \lstset{language=C} ... \begin{document} \lstinputlisting{main.c} \end{document} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} These very simple examples may be decorated in a huge variety of ways, and of course there are other languages in the package's vocabulary than just \ProgName{C}\dots{} Most people, advising others on \AllTeX{} lists, seem to regard \Package{listings} as the be-all and end-all on this topic. But there \emph{are} alternatives, which may be worth considering, in some situations. \ProgName{Highlight} is attractive if you need more than one output format for your program: as well as \AllTeX{} output, \ProgName{highlight} will produce (\acro{X})\acro{HTML}, \acro{RTF} and \acro{XSL}-\acro{FO} representations of your program listing. Documentation is available on the % ! line break \href{http://www.andre-simon.de/}{\ProgName{highlight} project site}. The \ProgName{lgrind} system is another well-established pre-compiler, with all the facilities one might need and a wide repertoire of languages; it is derived from the very long-established \ProgName{tgrind}, whose output is based on plain \TeX{} The \ProgName{tiny_c2l} system is more recent: users are encouraged to generate their own driver files for languages it doesn't already deal with. The \ProgName{C++2LaTeX} system comes with strong recommendations for use with \acro{C} and \acro{C}++. An extremely simple system is \ProgName{c2latex}, for which you write \LaTeX{} source in your \acro{C} program comments. The program then converts your program into a \LaTeX{} document for processing. The program (implicitly) claims to be ``self-documenting''. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[c2latex]\CTANref{c2latex} \item[C++2LaTeX]\CTANref{c++2latex} \item[highlight]\CTANref{highlight} \item[lgrind]\CTANref{lgrind} \item[listings.sty]\CTANref{listings} \item[tgrind]\CTANref{tgrind} \item[tiny\_c2l]\CTANref{tiny_c2l} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-algorithms]{Typesetting pseudocode in \LaTeX{}} There is no consensus on the `right' way to typeset pseudocode. Consequently, there are a variety of \LaTeX{} packages to choose from for producing \ae{}sthetically pleasing pseudocode listings. Pseudocode differs from actual program listings in that it lacks strict syntax and semantics. Also, because pseudocode is supposed to be a clear expression of an algorithm it may need to incorporate mathematical notation, figures, tables, and other \LaTeX{} features that do not appear in conventional programming languages. \begin{wideversion} % hyper? \Qref{Typesetting program listings}{Q-codelist} is described elsewhere. \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} % non-hyper Typesetting program listings is described elsewhere (\Qref{}{Q-codelist}). \end{narrowversion} You can certainly create your own environment for typesetting pseudocode using, for example, the \environment{tabbing} or \environment{list} environments~--- it's not difficult, but it may prove boring. So it's worth trying the following packages, all designed specifically for typesetting pseudocode. The \Package{algorithms} bundle (which contains packages \Package{algorithm} and \Package{algorithmic}, both of which are needed for ordinary use) has a simple interface and produces fairly nice output. It provides primitives for statements, which can contain arbitrary \LaTeX{} commands, comments, and a set of iterative and conditional constructs. These primitives can easily be redefined to produce different text in the output. However, there is no support for adding new primitives. Typesetting the pseudocode itself is performed in \Package{algorithmic}; the \Package{algorithms} package uses the facilities of the the \Package{float} package to number algorithms sequentially, enable algorithms to float like figures or tables, and support including a List of Algorithms in a document's front matter. Packages in the \Package{algorithmicx} bundle are similiar both in concept and output form to \Package{algorithmic} but additionally provide support for adding new keywords and altering the formatting. It provides the \Package{algpseudocode} package which is (almost) a drop-in replacement for \Package{algorithmic}. Another package in the bundle, \Package{algpascal}, uses Pascal-like keywords, indents differently from \Package{algpseudocode}, and puts command arguments in maths mode instead of text mode. There is no floating environment but \Package{algorithmicx}, like \Package{algorithmic}, is compatible with the \Package{algorithm} package. The \Package{alg} package, like \Package{algorithms}, offers a floating algorithm environment with all of the ensuing niceties. \Package{alg}, however, can caption its floats in a variety of (natural) languages. In addition, \Package{alg} unlike \Package{algorithms}, makes it easy to add new constructs. The \Package{newalg} package has a somewhat similar interface to \Package{algorithms}, but its output is designed to mimic the rather pleasant typesetting used in the book ``\emph{Introduction to Algorithms}'' by Corman, Leiserson, Rivest and Stein. Unfortunately, \Package{newalg} does not support a floating environment or any customisation of the output. ``\emph{Bona fide}'' use of the style of ``Introduction to Algorithms'' may be achieved with Cormen's own \Package{clrscode}: this is the package as used in the second edition of the book. Similarly, the style of % ! line break ``\emph{Combinatorial Algorithms: Generation, Enumeration and Search}'' is supported by the \Package{pseudocode} package, written by the authors of the book. It has the common `Pascal-like' style, and has some interesting constructs for what one thinks of as Pascal blocks. The \Package{algorithm2e} is of very long standing, and is widely used and recommended. It loads the \Package{float} package to provide the option of floating algorithm descriptions, but you can always use the ``\texttt{H}'' option of \Package{float} to have the algorithm appear ``where you write it''. The usage of the \Package{program} package is a little different from that of the other packages. It typesets programs in maths mode instead of text mode; and linebreaks are significant. \Package{program} lacks a floating environment but does number algorithms like \Package{alg} and \Package{algorithms}. Customisation and extension are not supported. Documentation of the \Package{program} package (such as it is) appears in a file \File{program.msg} in the distribution. None of the above are perfect. The factors that should influence your choice of package include the output style you prefer, how much you need to extend or modify the set of keywords, and whether you require algorithms to float like figures and tables. %% %% Documentation availability: %% \begin{description} %% \item[\Package{algorithms} bundle] is provided in \File{algorithms.ps} %% (also available as LaTeX{} source). The documentation speaks as if %% the two packages of the bundle were indeed one, called %% \Package{algorithms}. %% \item[\Package{program} package] (such as it is) appears in a file %% \File{program.msg}. %% \item[\Package{clrscode} package] is to be found in %% \File{clrscode.pdf} in the distribution. %% \item[\Package{algorithm2e} package] is to be found in %% \File{algorithm2e.tex} in the distribution (it needs the package %% itself when you process it). %% \end{description} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[algorithm2e.sty]\CTANref{algorithm2e} \item[algorithmicx\nothtml{\rmfamily} bundle]\CTANref{algorithmicx} \item[algorithms\nothtml{\rmfamily} bundle]\CTANref{algorithms} \item[alg.sty]\CTANref{alg} \item[clrscode.sty]\CTANref{clrscode} \item[float.sty]\CTANref{float} \item[newalg.sty]\CTANref{newalg} \item[program.sty]\CTANref{program} \item[pseudocode.sty]\CTANref{pseudocode} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-makeindex]{Generating an index in \AllTeX{}} Making an index is not trivial; what to index, and how to index it, is difficult to decide, and uniform implementation is difficult to achieve. You will need to mark all items to be indexed in your text (typically with \csx{index} commands). It is not practical to sort a large index within \TeX{}, so a post-processing program is used to sort the output of one \TeX{} run, to be included into the document at the next run. The following programs are available: \begin{description} \item[makeindex] Comes with most distributions~--- a good workhorse, but is not well-arranged to deal with other sort orders than the canonical \acro{ASCII} ordering. The \Package{makeindex} documentation is a good source of information on how to create your own index. \Package{Makeindex} can be used with some \TeX{} macro packages other than \LaTeX{}, such as \nothtml{\Eplain\ (}% \Qref{Eplain}{Q-eplain}\nothtml{)}, and \TeX{} (whose macros can be used independently with Plain \TeX{}). \item[idxtex] for \LaTeX{} under \acro{VMS}, which comes with a glossary-maker called \Package{glotex}. \item[texindex] A witty little shell/\ProgName{sed}-script-based utility for \LaTeX{} under Unix. The \Qref*{Texinfo}{Q-texinfo} system also uses a program \ProgName{texindex}, whose source is to be found in the \ProgName{texinfo} distribution. The \Package{ltxindex} package provides macros to allow \LaTeX{} users to use \emph{this} \ProgName{texindex}. \item[xindy] arose from frustration at the difficulty of making a multi-language version of \ProgName{makeindex}. It is designed to be a successor to \ProgName{makeindex}, by a team that included the then-current maintainer of \ProgName{makeindex}. It successfully addresses many of \ProgName{makeindex}'s shortcomings, including difficulties with collation order in different languages, and it is highly flexible. Sadly, its take-up is proving rather slow. \end{description} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[idxtex]\CTANref{glo+idxtex} \item[ltxindex.sty]\CTANref{ltxindex} \item[makeindex]\CTANref{makeindex} \item[makeindex (Macintosh)]\CTANref{macmakeindex} \item[texindex \nothtml{\upshape\rmfamily}(the script)]\CTANref{texindex} \item[texindex \nothtml{\upshape\rmfamily}(the program)]Distributed with \CTANref{texinfo} \item[texsis (system)]\CTANref{texsis} \item[texsis (makeindex support)]\CTANref{texsis-index} \item[xindy]\CTANref{xindy} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-setURL]{Typesetting \acro{URL}s} \acro{URL}s tend to be very long, and contain characters that would naturally prevent them being hyphenated even if they weren't typically set in \csx{ttfamily}, verbatim. Therefore, without special treatment, they often produce wildly overfull \csx{hbox}es, and their typeset representation is awful. There are three packages that help solve this problem: \begin{itemize} \item The \Package{path} package, which defines a \csx{path} command. The command defines each potential break character as a \csx{discretionary}, and offers the user the opportunity of specifying a personal list of potential break characters. Its chief disadvantage is fragility in \LaTeX{} moving arguments. The % beware line breaks \Qref*{\Eplain{} macros}{Q-eplain}~--- define a similar \csx{path} command. \Package{Path}, though it works in simple situations, makes no attempt to work with \LaTeX{} (it is irremediably fragile). Despite its long and honourable history, it is no longer recommended for \LaTeX{} use. \item The \Package{url} package, which defines an \csx{url} command (among others, including its own \csx{path} command). The command gives each potential break character a maths-mode `personality', and then sets the \acro{URL} itself (in the user's choice of font) in maths mode. It can produce (\LaTeX{}-style) `robust' commands % beware line break within paren (\htmlonly{see }\Qref{use of \csx{protect}}{Q-protect}) for use within moving arguments. Note that, because the operation is conducted in maths mode, spaces within the \acro{URL} argument are ignored unless special steps are taken. It is possible to use the \Package{url} package in Plain \TeX{}, with the assistance of the \Package{miniltx} package (which was originally developed for using the \LaTeX{} graphics package in Plain \TeX{}). A small patch is also necessary: the required sequence is therefore: \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \input miniltx \expandafter\def\expandafter\+% \expandafter{\+} \input url.sty \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \input miniltx \expandafter\def\expandafter\+\expandafter{\+} \input url.sty \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \item The \Package{hyperref} package, which uses the typesetting code of \Package{url}, in a context where the typeset text forms the anchor of a link. \end{itemize} The author of this answer prefers the (rather newer) \Package{url} package (directly or indirectly); both \Package{path} and \Package{url} work well with Plain \TeX{} (though of course, the fancy \LaTeX{} facilities of \Package{url} don't have much place there). (\Package{hyperref} isn't available in a version for use with Plain \TeX{}.) Documentation of both \Package{path} and \Package{url} is in the package files. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[hyperref.sty]\CTANref{hyperref} \item[miniltx.tex]Distributed as part of \CTANref{graphics-plain} \item[path.sty]\CTANref{path} \item[url.sty]\CTANref{url} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-music]{Typesetting music in \TeX{}} In the early days, a simple music package called \Package{mutex} was written by Angelika Schofer and Andrea Steinbach, which demonstrated that music typesetting was possible; the package was very limited, and is no longer available. Daniel Taupin took up the baton, and developed Music\TeX{}, which allows the typesetting of polyphonic and other multiple-stave music; Music\TeX{} remains available, but is most definitely no longer recommended. Music\TeX{} has been superseded by its successor MusiX\TeX{}, which is a three-pass system (with a processor program that computes values for the element spacing in the music), and achieves finer control than is possible in the unmodified \TeX{}-based mechanism that Music\TeX{} uses. Daniel Taupin's is the only version of MusiX\TeX{} currently being developed (the original author, Andreas Egler, had an alternative version, but he is now working on a different package altogether). Input to Musix\TeX{} is extremely tricky stuff, and Don Simons' preprocessor \ProgName{pmx} is the preferred method of creating input for Taupin's version. \ProgName{Pmx} greatly eases use of Musix\TeX{}, but it doesn't support the full range of Musix\TeX{}'s facilities directly; however, it does allow in-line Musix\TeX{} code in \ProgName{pmx} sources. Dirk Laurie's \ProgName{M-Tx} allows preparation of music with lyrics; it operates ``on top of'' \ProgName{pmx} Another simple notation is supported by \ProgName{abc2mtex}; this is a package designed to notate tunes stored in an \acro{ASCII} format (|abc| notation). It was designed primarily for folk and traditional tunes of Western European origin (such as Irish, English and Scottish) which can be written on one stave in standard classical notation, and creates input intended for Music\TeX{}. However, it should be extendable to many other types of music. Digital music fans can typeset notation for their efforts by using \ProgName{midi2tex}, which translates MIDI data files into Music\TeX{} source code. There is a mailing list (\Email{TeX-music@icking-music-archive.org}) for discussion of typesetting music in \TeX{}. To subscribe, use \URL{http://icking-music-archive.org/mailman/listinfo/tex-music/} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[abc2mtex]\CTANref{abc2mtex} \item[M-Tx]\CTANref{mtx} \item[midi2tex]\CTANref{midi2tex} \item[musictex]\CTANref{musictex} \item[musixtex \nothtml{\rmfamily}(Taupin's version)]\CTANref{musixtex-taupin} \item[musixtex \nothtml{\rmfamily}(Egler's version)]\CTANref{musixtex-egler} \item[pmx]\CTANref{pmx} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-parskip]{Zero paragraph indent} The conventional way of typesetting running text has no separation between paragraphs, and the first line of each paragraph in a block of text indented. In contrast, one common convention for typewritten text was to have no indentation of paragraphs; such a style is often required for ``brutalist'' publications such as technical manuals, and in styles that hanker after typewritten manuscripts, such as officially-specified dissertation formats. Anyone can see, after no more than a moment's thought, that if the paragraph indent is zero, the paragraphs must be separated by blank space: otherwise it is sometimes going to be impossible to see the breaks between paragraphs. The simple-minded approach to zero paragraph indentation is thus: \begin{verbatim} \setlength{\parindent}{0pt} \setlength{\parskip}{\baselineskip} \end{verbatim} and in the very simplest text, it's a fine solution. However, the non-zero \csx{parskip} interferes with lists and the like, and the result looks pretty awful. The \Package{parskip} package patches things up to look reasonable; it's not perfect, but it deals with most problems. The Netherlands Users' Group's set of classes includes an \Class{article} equivalent (\Class{artikel3}) and a \Class{report} equivalent (\Class{rapport3}) whose design incorporates zero paragraph indent and non-zero paragraph skip. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\acro{NTG} classes]\CTANref{ntgclass} \item[parskip.sty]\CTANref{parskip} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-dropping]{Big letters at the start of a paragraph} A common style of typesetting, now seldom seen except in newspapers, is to start a paragraph (in books, usually the first of a chapter) with its first letter set large enough to span several lines. This style is known as ``dropped capitals'', or (in French) \latexhtml{``lettrines''}{«lettrines»}, and \TeX{}'s primitive facilities for hanging indentation make its (simple) implementation pretty straightforward. The \Package{dropping} package does the job simply, but has a curious attitude to the calculation of the size of the font to be used for the big letters. Examples appear in the package documentation, so before you process the |.dtx|, the package itself must already be installed. Unfortunately, \Package{dropping} has an intimate relation to the set of device drivers available in an early version of the \LaTeX{} graphics package, and it cannot be trusted to work with recent offerings like \PDFTeX{}, V\TeX{} or \acro{DVI}pdfm. On such occasions, the more recent \Package{lettrine} package is more likely to succeed. It has a well-constructed array of options, and the examples (a pretty impressive set) come as a separate file in the distribution (also available in \PS{}, so that they can be viewed without installing the package itself). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[dropping]\CTANref{dropping} \item[lettrine]\CTANref{lettrine} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-dec_comma]{The comma as a decimal separator} If you use a comma in maths mode, you get a small space after it; this space is inappropriate if the comma is being used as a decimal separator. An easy solution to this problem, in maths mode, is to type \texttt{3}\marg{,}\texttt{14} instead of typing \texttt{3,14}. However, if your language's typographic rules require the comma as a decimal separator, such usage can rapidly become extremely tiresome. There are two packages that can help relieve the tedium: \Package{icomma} and \Package{ziffer}. \Package{Icomma} ensures that there will be no extra space after a comma, unless you type a space after it (as in \texttt{f(x, y)}, for instance), in which case the usual small space after the comma appears. \Package{Ziffer} is specifically targeted at the needs of those typesetting German, but covers the present need, as well as providing the double-minus sign used in German (and other languages) for the empty `cents' part of an amount of currency. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[icomma.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{was} \item[ziffer.sty]\CTANref{ziffer} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-breakbox]{Breaking boxes of text} \AllTeX{} boxes may not be broken, in ordinary usage: once you've typeset something into a box, it will stay there, and the box will jut out beyond the side or the bottom of the page if it doesn't fit in the typeset area. If you want a substantial portion of your text to be framed (or coloured), the restriction starts to seem a real imposition. Fortunately, there are ways around the problem. The \Package{framed} package provides \environment{framed} and \environment{shaded} environments; both put their content into something which looks like a framed (or coloured) box, but which breaks as necessary at page end. The environments ``lose'' footnotes, marginpars and head-line entries, and will not work with \Package{multicol} or other column-balancing macros. The \Class{memoir} class includes the functionality of the \Package{framed} package. The \Package{boites} package provides a \environment{breakbox} environment; examples of its use may be found in the distribution, and the package's \File{README} file contains terse documentation. The environments may be nested, and may appear inside \environment{multicols} environments; however, floats, footnotes and marginpars will be lost. For Plain \TeX{} users, the facilities of the \Package{backgrnd} package may be useful; this package subverts the output routine to provide vertical bars to mark text, and the macros are clearly marked to show where coloured backgrounds may be introduced (this requires \Package{shade}, which is distributed as tex macros and device-independent \MF{} for the shading). The author of \Package{backgrnd} claims that the package works with \LaTeXo{}, but there are reasons to suspect that it may be unstable working with current \LaTeX{}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[backgrnd.tex]\CTANref{backgrnd} \item[boites.sty]\CTANref{boites} \item[framed.sty]\CTANref{framed} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[shade.tex]\CTANref{shade} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-overstrike]{Overstriking characters} This may be used, for example, to indicate text deleted in the course of editing. Both the \Package{ulem} and the \Package{soul} packages provide the necessary facilities. Overstriking for % beware line break \Qref*{cancellation in maths expressions}{Q-cancellation} is achieved by a different mechanism. Documentation of \Package{ulem} is in the package file. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[soul.sty]\CTANref{soul} \item[ulem.sty]\CTANref{ulem} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-upquot]{Realistic quotes for verbatim listings} The \texttt{cmtt} font has ``curly'' quotes\nothtml{ (\texttt{`thus'})}, which are pleasing on the eye, but don't really tally with what one sees on a modern % beware line break \ProgName{xterm}\nothtml{ (which look like \texttt{\char18 this\char13})}. The appearance of these quotes is critical in program listings, particularly in those of Unix-like shell scripts. The \Package{upquote} package modifies the behaviour of the \environment{verbatim} environment so that the output is a clearer representation of what the user must type. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[upquote.sty]\CTANref{upquote} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-time]{Printing the time} \TeX{} has a primitive register that contains ``the number of minutes since midnight''; with this knowledge it's a moderately simple programming job to print the time (one that no self-respecting Plain~\TeX{} user would bother with anyone else's code for). However, \LaTeX{} provides no primitive for ``time'', so the non-programming \LaTeX{} user needs help. Two packages are available, both providing ranges of ways of printing the date, as well as of the time: this question will concentrate on the time-printing capabilities, and interested users can investigate the documentation for details about dates. The \Package{datetime} package defines two time-printing functions: \csx{xxivtime} (for 24-hour time), \csx{ampmtime} (for 12-hour time) and \csx{oclock} (for time-as-words, albeit a slightly eccentric set of words). The \Package{scrtime} package (part of the compendious \Class{KOMA-Script} bundle) takes a package option (\pkgoption{12h} or \pkgoption{24h}) to specify how times are to be printed. The command \csx{thistime} then prints the time appropriately (though there's no \emph{am} or \emph{pm} in \pkgoption{12h} mode). The \csx{thistime} command also takes an optional argument, the character to separate the hours and minutes: the default is of course \texttt{:}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[datetime.sty]\CTANref{datetime} \item[scrtime.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{koma-script} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-the-commands]{Redefining counters' \csx{the-}commands} Whenever you request a new \LaTeX{} counter, \LaTeX{} creates a bunch of behind-the-scenes commands, as well as definining the counter itself. Among other things, \cmdinvoke*{newcounter}{fred} creates a command \csx{the}\texttt{\emph{fred}}, which expands to ``the value of \texttt{\emph{fred}}'' when you're typesetting. The definition of \csx{the}\texttt{\emph{fred}} should express the value of the counter: it is almost always always a mistake to use the command to produce anything else. The value may reasonably be expressed as an arabic, a roman or a greek number, as an alphabetic expression, or even as a sequence (or pattern of) symbols. If you need a decision process on whether to re-define \csx{the}\texttt{\emph{fred}}, consider what might happen when you do so. So, for example, if you want your section numbers to be terminated by a period, you could make \csx{thesection} expand with a terminating period. However, such a change to \csx{thesection} makes the definition of \csx{thesubsection} look distinctly odd: you are going to find yourself redefining things left, right and centre. Rather, use the standard techniques for % beware line break \Qref*{adjusting the presentation of section numbers}{Q-seccntfmt}. Or, suppose you want the page number to appear at the bottom of each page surrounded by dashes (``|-|{}|-~nnn~-|{}|-|''). Would you want to achieve this by redefining \csx{thepage}, given the likely appearance of the table of contents with the dashes attached every page number, or of the modified \csx{pageref} references. In this case, the modification is best done by redefining the page style itself, perhaps \Qref*{package \Package{fancyhdr}}{Q-fancyhdr}. \subsection{Tables of contents and indexes} \Question[Q-tocloft]{The format of the Table of Contents, etc.} The formats of entries in the table of contents (\acro{TOC}) are controlled by a number of internal commands (discussed in section~2.3 of \Qref*{\emph{The \LaTeX{} Companion}}{Q-books}. The commands \csx{@pnumwidth}, \csx{@tocrmarg} and \csx{@dotsep} control the space for page numbers, the indentation of the right-hand margin, and the seperation of the dots in the dotted leaders, respectively. The series of commands named \csx{l@\emph{xxx}}, where \texttt{\emph{xxx}} is the name of a sectional heading (such as \texttt{chapter} or \texttt{section}, \dots{}\@) control the layout of the corresponding heading, including the space for section numbers. All these internal commands may be individually redefined to give the effect that you want. Alternatively, the package \Package{tocloft} provides a set of user-level commands that may be used to change the \acro{TOC} formatting. Since exactly the same mechanisms are used for the List of Figures and List of Tables, the layout of these sections may be controlled in the same way. The \Class{KOMA-Script} classes provides an optional variant structure for the table of contents, and calculates the space needed for the numbers automatically. The \Class{memoir} includes the functionality of \Package{tocloft}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[tocloft.sty]\CTANref{tocloft} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-secnumdep]{Unnumbered sections in the Table of Contents} The way the relevant parts of sectioning commands work is exemplified by the way the \csx{chapter} command uses the counter \texttt{secnumdepth} (described in Appendix~C of the \LaTeX{} manual): \begin{enumerate} \item put something in the \texttt{.aux} file, which will appear in the \texttt{.toc}; \htmlignore \item if \ensuremath{\texttt{secnumdepth} \geq 0}, \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \item if the \texttt{secnumdepth} counter is greater than or equal to zero, \end{htmlversion} increase the counter for the chapter and write it out. \item write the chapter title. \end{enumerate} Other sectioning commands are similar, but with other values used in the test. So a simple way to get headings of funny `sections' such as prefaces in the table of contents is to use the counter: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \setcounter{secnumdepth}{-1} \chapter{Preface} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Unfortunately, you have to set \texttt{secnumdepth} back to its usual value (which is~2 in the standard styles) before you do any `section' which you want to be numbered. Similar settings are made, automatically, in the \LaTeX{} book class by the \csx{frontmatter} and \csx{backmatter} commands. The value of the counter \texttt{tocdepth} controls which headings will be finally printed in the table of contents. This normally has to be set in the preamble and is a constant for the document. The package \Package{tocvsec2} package provides a convenient interface to allow you to change the \texttt{secnumdepth} and/or the \texttt{tocdepth} counter values at any point in the body of the document; this provides convenient independent controls over the sectional numbering and the table of contents. The package \Package{abstract} (see % line break! \Qref[question]{one-column abstracts}{Q-onecolabs}) includes an option to add the \texttt{abstract} to the table of contents, while the package \Package{tocbibind} has options to include the table of contents itself, the \texttt{bibliography}, \texttt{index}, etc., to the table of contents. The \Class{KOMA-Script} classes have commands \csx{addchap} and \csx{addsec}, which work like \csx{chapter} and \csx{section} but aren't numbered. The \Class{memoir} class incorporates the facilities of all three of the \Package{abstract}, \Package{tocbibind} and \Package{tocvsec2} packages. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[abstract.sty]\CTANref{abstract} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[tocbibind.sty]\CTANref{tocbibind} \item[tocvsec2.sty]\CTANref{tocvsec2} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-tocbibind]{Bibliography, index, etc., in \acro{TOC}} The standard \LaTeX{} classes (and many others) use \csx{section*} or \csx{chapter*} for auto-generated parts of the document (the tables of contents, lists of figures and tables, the bibliography and the index). As a result, these items aren't numbered (which most people don't mind), and (more importantly) they don't appear in the table of contents. The correct solution (as always) is to have a class of your own that formats your document according to your requirements. The macro to do the job (\csx{addcontentsline}) is fairly simple, but there is always an issue of ensuring that the contents entry quotes the correct page. Supposing that our the document is chapter-based (class \Class{report} or \Class{book}, for example), the text: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \bibliography{frooble} \addcontentsline{toc}{chapter}{Bibliography} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} will produce the \emph{wrong} answer if the bibliography is more than one page long. Instead, one should say: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \cleardoublepage \addcontentsline{toc}{chapter}{Bibliography} \bibliography{frooble} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (Note that \csx{cleardoublepage} does the right thing, even if your document is single-sided~--- in that case, it's a synonym for \csx{clearpage}). Ensuring that the entry refers to the right place is trickier still in a \csx{section}-based class. The common solution, therefore, is to use the \Package{tocbibind} package, which provides many facilities to control the way these entries appear in the table of contents. Classes of the \Class{KOMA-script} bundle provide this functionality as a set of class options; the \Class{memoir} class includes \Package{tocbibind} itself. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[tocbibind.sty]\CTANref{tocbibind} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-minitoc]{Table of contents, etc., per chapter} The common style, of a ``small'' table of contents for each part, chapter, or even section, is supported by the \Package{minitoc} package. The package also supports mini-lists of tables and figures; but, as the documentation observes, mini-bibliographies are a different problem~--- see \Qref[question]{bibliographies per chapter}{Q-chapbib}. The package's basic scheme is to generate a little |.aux| file for each chapter, and to process that within the chapter. Simple usage would be: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{minitoc} ... \begin{document} ... \tableofcontents \dominitoc \listoffigures \dominilof ... \chapter{blah blah} \minitoc \mtcskip \minilof ... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} though a lot of elaborations are possible (for example, you don't need a \csx{minitoc} for every chapter). \Package{Babel} doesn't know about \Package{minitoc}, but \Package{minitoc} makes provision for other document languages than English~--- a wide variety is available. However, current versions of the \Package{hyperref} package will treat \csx{minitoc} tables in the same way as ``real'' tables of contents. The documentation is pretty extensive and readable: process the file \File{minitoc.tex} in the distribution \begin{ctanrefs} \item[babel.sty]\CTANref{babel} \item[hyperref.sty]\CTANref{hyperref} \item[minitoc.sty]\CTANref{minitoc} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-multind]{Multiple indexes} \LaTeX{}'s standard indexing capabilities (those provided by the \Package{makeidx} package) only provide for one index in your document; even quite modest documents can be improved by indexes for separate topics. The \Package{multind} package provides simple and straightforward multiple indexing. You tag each \csx{makeindex}, \csx{index} and \csx{printindex} command with a file name, and indexing commands are written to (or read from) the name with the appropriate (\texttt{.idx} or \texttt{.ind}) extension appended. The \csx{printindex} command is modified from the \LaTeX{} standard so that it doesn't create its own chapter or section heading; you therefore decide what names (or sectioning level, even) to use for the indexes, and \Qref*{\csx{indexname}}{Q-fixnam} is completely ignored. To create a ``general'' and an ``authors'' index, one might write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{multind} \makeindex{general} \makeindex{authors} ... \index{authors}{Robin Fairbairns} ... \index{general}{FAQs} ... \printindex{general}{General index} \printindex{authors}{Author index} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} To complete the job, run \LaTeX{} on your file enough times that labels, etc., are stable, and then execute the commands \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} makeindex general makeindex authors \end{verbatim} \end{quote} before running \LaTeX{} again. Note that the names of the index files to process are not necessarily related to the name of the \LaTeX{} file you're processing, at all. (There's no documentation that comes with the package: what you see above is as good as you will get\dots{}) The \Package{index} package provides a comprehensive set of indexing facilities, including a \csx{newindex} command that allows the definition of new styles of index. \csx{newindex} takes a `tag' (for use in indexing commands), replacements for the \texttt{.idx} and \texttt{.ind} file extensions, and a title for the index when it's finally printed; it can also change the item that's being indexed against (for example, one might have an index of artists referenced by the figure number where their work is shown). Using \Package{index}, to create an author index together with a ``normal'' index, one would start with preamble commands: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{index} \makeindex \newindex{aut}{adx}{and}{Name Index} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which load the package, define a ``main'' (original-style) index, and then define an author index. Then, in the body of the document, we might find commands like: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \index[aut]{Robin Fairbairns} ... \index{FAQs} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Which place an entry in the author index, and then one in the main index. At the end of the document, we have two commands: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \printindex \printindex[aut] \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Which will print the main index and then the author index. Supposing this lot to be in \File{myfile.tex}, after enough runs through \LaTeX{} that labels are stable, execute the following commands (Unix-style shell commands shown here, but the principle is the same whatever system you're using): \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} makeindex myfile makeindex myfile.adx -o myfile.and \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and rerun \LaTeX{}. The \ProgName{makeindex} commands process \File{myfile.idx} to \File{myfile.ind} (the default action), and then \File{myfile.adx} to \File{myfile.and}, the two files needed as input by the two \csx{printindex} commands in \File{myfile.tex}. The \Package{splitidx} package can operate in the same way as the others: load the package with the \pkgoption{split} option, and declare each index with a \csx{newindex} command: \begin{quote} \cmdinvoke{newindex}[\meta{index name}]{\meta{shortcut}} \end{quote} and \Package{splitidx} will generate a file \csx{jobname}\texttt{.\meta{shortcut}} to receive index entries generated by commands like \cmdinvoke{sindex}[\meta{shortcut}]{\meta{item}}. As with the other packages, this method is limited by \TeX{}'s total number of output files. However, \Package{splitindex} also comes with a small executable \ProgName{splitindex} (available for a variety of operating systems); if you use this auxiliary program (and don't use \pkgoption{split}), there's no limit to the number of indexes. Apart from this trick, \Package{splitidx} supports the same sorts of things as does \Package{index}. An example of use appears in the documentation. The \Class{memoir} class has its own multiple-index functionality (as well as index layout options, which other packages delegate to the index style used by \ProgName{makeindex}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[index.sty]\CTANref{index} \item[makeidx.sty]Part of the \LaTeX{} distribution \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[multind.sty]\CTANref{multind} \item[splitidx.sty \bgroup\nothtml{\normalfont}and \egroup splitindex]% \CTANref{splitindex} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \subsection{Labels and references} \Question[Q-nameref]{Referring to things by their name} \LaTeX{}'s labelling mechanism is designed for the impersonal world of the academic publication, in which everything has a number: an extension is necessary if we are to record the \emph{name} of things we've labelled. The two packages available extend the \LaTeX{} sectioning commands to provide reference by the name of the section. The \Package{titleref} package is a simple extension which provides the command \csx{titleref}; it is a stand-alone package~--- don't use it in a document in which you also need to use \Package{hyperref}. The \Package{byname} package is part of the \Package{smartref} bundle and works well with \Package{smartref}, and works (to an extent) with \Package{hyperref}, but the links it defines are not hyperlinks. The \Class{memoir} class incorporates the functionality of \Package{titleref}, but doesn't work with \Package{byname} (though a search of \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex} on \URL{groups.google.com} will find a patch to \Package{byname} to remedy the problem). The \Package{hyperref} bundle includes a package \Package{nameref}, which will work standing alone (i.e., without \Package{hyperref}: of course, in this mode its references are not hyperlinked). If you load \Package{hyperref} itself, \Package{nameref} is automatically loaded. \Class{Memoir} requires the \Package{memhfixc} when running with \Package{hyperref}; however, following the sequence \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \documentclass[...]{memoir} ... \usepackage[...]{hyperref} \usepackage{memhfixc} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \Package{nameref} commands may be used in a \Class{memoir} document. Each of the name-reference packages defines a reference command with the same name as the package: \csx{titleref}, \csx{byname} and \csx{nameref}. The \Package{nameref} package also defines a command \csx{byshortnameref}, which uses the optional `short' title argument to the chapter and section commands. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[byname.sty]Distributed with \CTANref{smartref} \item[hyperref.sty]\CTANref{hyperref} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[nameref.sty]Distributed with \CTANref{hyperref} \item[smartref.sty]\CTANref{smartref} \item[titleref.sty]\CTANref{titleref} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-extref]{Referring to labels in other documents} When producing a set of inter-related documents, you'll often want to refer to labels in another document of the set; but \LaTeX{}, of its own accord, doesn't permit this. So the package \Package{xr} was written: if you say \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{xr} \externaldocument{volume1} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} will load all the references from \File{volume1} into your present document. But what if the documents both have a section labelled ``\environment{introduction}'' (likely enough, after all)? The package provides a means to transform all the imported labels, so you don't have to change label names in either document. For example: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{xr} \externaldocument[V1-]{volume1} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} loads the references from \File{volume1}, but prefixes every one with the string \texttt{V1-}. So you would refer to the introduction to volume~1 as: \begin{narrowversion} \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{xr} \externaldocument[V1-]{volume1} ... ... the introduction to volume1 (\ref{V1-introduction})... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{xr} \externaldocument[V1-]{volume1} ... ... the introduction to volume1 (\ref{V1-introduction})... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \end{wideversion} To have the facilities of \Package{xr} working with \Package{hyperref}, you need \Package{xr-hyper}. For simple hyper-cross-referencing (i.e., to a local \acro{PDF} file you've just compiled), write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{xr-hyper} \usepackage{hyperref} \externaldocument[V1-]{volume1} ... ... the \nameref{V1-introduction})... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and the name reference will appear as an active link to the ``introduction'' chapter of \File{volume1.pdf}. To link to a \acro{PDF} document on the Web, for which you happen to have the .aux file, write: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{xr-hyper} \usepackage{hyperref} \externaldocument[V1-]{volume1}[http://mybook.com/volume1.pdf] ... ... the \nameref{V1-introduction})... \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{xr-hyper} \usepackage{hyperref} \externaldocument[V1-]{volume1}% [http://mybook.com/volume1.pdf] ... ... the \nameref{V1-introduction})... \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[xr.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[xr-hyper.sty]Distributed with \CTANref{hyperref} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{How do I do\dots{}?} \subsection{Mathematics} \Question[Q-proof]{Proof environment} It has long been thought impossible to make a \environment{proof} environment which automatically includes an `end-of-proof' symbol. Some proofs end in displayed maths; others do not. If the input file contains % beware line break \texttt{...\csx{]} }\cmdinvoke{end}{proof} then \LaTeX{} finishes off the displayed maths and gets ready for a new line before it reads any instructions connected with ending the proof, so the code is very tricky. You \emph{can} insert the symbol by hand, but the \Package{ntheorem} package now solves the problem for \LaTeX{} users: it does indeed provide an automatic way of signalling the end of a proof. The \AMSLaTeX{} package \Package{amsthm} also provides a \environment{proof} environment that does the job; though you need to insert a \csx{qedhere} command if the proof ends with a displayed equation: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{proof} text... \begin{equation*} maths... \tag*{\qedhere} \end{equation*} \end{proof} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \cmdinvoke{tag*}{\csx{qedhere}} construction may be used in any of \AMSLaTeX{}'s numbering environments. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[amsthm.sty]Distributed as part of the \AMSLaTeX{} bundle \CTANref{amslatex} \item[ntheorem]\CTANref{ntheorem} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-theoremfmt]{Roman theorems} If you want to take advantage of the powerful \csx{newtheorem} command without the constraint that the contents of the theorem is in a sloped font (for example, to use it to create remarks, examples, proofs, \dots{}) then you can use the \AMSLaTeX{} \Package{amsthm} package (which now supersedes the \Package{theorem} package previously recommended in these answers). Alternatively, the following sets up an environment \environment{remark} whose content is in roman. \begin{verbatim} \newtheorem{preremark}{Remark} \newenvironment{remark}% {\begin{preremark}\upshape}{\end{preremark}} \end{verbatim} The \Package{ntheorem} package provides roman theorems directly. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[amsthm.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{amslatex} \item[ntheorem.sty]\CTANref{ntheorem} \item[theorem.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-newfunction]{Defining a new log-like function in \LaTeX{}} Use the \csx{mathop} command, as in: \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\diag}{\mathop{\mathrm{diag}}} \end{verbatim} Subscripts and superscripts on \csx{diag} will be placed as they are on \csx{lim}. If you want your subscripts and superscripts always placed to the right, do: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\diag}% {\mathop{\mathrm{diag}}\nolimits} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\diag}{\mathop{\mathrm{diag}}\nolimits} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} \AMSLaTeX{} (in its \Package{amsopn} package) provides a command \csx{DeclareMathOperator} that takes does the same job as the first definition above. To create our original \csx{diag} command, one would say: \begin{verbatim} \DeclareMathOperator{\diag}{diag} \end{verbatim} \csx{DeclareMathOperator*} declares the operator always to have its sub- and superscripts in the % ! line break ``\Qref*{\csx{limits} position}{Q-limits}''. (It should be noted that ``log-like'' was reportedly a \emph{joke} on Lamport's part; it is of course clear what was meant.) \begin{ctanrefs} \item[amsopn.sty]In the \AMSLaTeX{} distribution \CTANref{amslatex} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-braket]{Set specifications and Dirac brackets} One of the few glaring omissions from \TeX{}'s mathematical typesetting capabilities is a means of setting separators in the middle of mathematical expressions. \TeX{} provides primitives called \csx{left} and \csx{right}, which can be used to modify brackets (of whatever sort) around a mathematical expression, as in: % beware line wrap |\left( \right)|~--- the size of the parentheses is matched to the vertical extent of the expression. However, in all sorts of mathematical enterprises one may find oneself needing a \csx{middle} command, to be used in expressions like \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \left\{ x \in \mathbb{N} \middle| x \mbox{ even} \right\} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \left\{ x\in \mathbb{N} \middle| x \mbox{ even} \right\} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} to specify the set of even natural numbers. The % ! line break \Qref*{\eTeX{} system}{Q-NTS} defines just such a command, but users of Knuth's original need some support. Donald Arseneau's \Package{braket} package provides commands for set specifications (as above) and for Dirac brackets (and bras and kets). The package uses the \eTeX{} built-in command if it finds itself running under \eTeX{}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[braket.sty]\CTANref{braket} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-cancellation]{Cancelling terms in maths expressions} A technique used when explaining the behaviour of expressions or equations (often for pedagogical purposes). The \Package{cancel} package provides several variants of cancellation marks (``|\|'', ``|/|'' and ``|X|''), and a means of cancelling `to' a particular value. Documentation of \Package{cancel} is in the package file. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[cancel.sty]\CTANref{cancel} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-mathsize]{Adjusting maths font sizes} In Plain~\TeX{}, when you introduce a new font size you must also declare what size fonts are to be used in mathematics with it. This is done by declaring \csx{textfont}, \csx{scriptfont} and \csx{scriptscriptfont} for the maths families you're using; all such things are described in chapter~17 of the % line wrap! \Qref*{\TeX{}book}{Q-books} and in other books and \Qref*{tutorials}{Q-tutorials} that discuss Plain~\TeX{} in sufficient detail. In \LaTeX{}, of course, all this stuff is automated: there is a scheme that, for each (text) font size, determines what maths font sizes are to be used. The scheme first checks a set of ``known'' text sizes, for each of which maths sizes are declared in advance. If the text size isn't ``known'', the script- and scriptscriptfont sizes are calculated as fixed ratios of the tex font size. (The values used are \csx{defaultscriptratio}\ensuremath{=}0.7, and \csx{defaultscriptscriptratio}\ensuremath{=}0.5.) The fixed-ratio formula is capable of producing inconvenient results (particularly if you are using fonts which \LaTeX{} believes are only available in a fixed set of sizes). You may also want to replace \LaTeX{}'s ideas altogether, for example by setting maths noticeably larger or smaller than its surrounding text. For this purpose, the \LaTeX{} command \cmdinvoke{DeclareMathSizes}{\meta{tfs}}{\meta{ts}}{\meta{ss}}{\meta{sss}} may be used (this is the same command that \LaTeX{} itself uses to define its own set of sizes). This establishes (or re-establishes) the maths font sizes to be used when the surrounding text font size is \texttt{\meta{tfs}}; (\texttt{\meta{ts}} being the size used for \csx{textfont}, \texttt{\meta{ss}} for \csx{scriptfont} and \texttt{\meta{sss}} for \csx{scriptscriptfont}). For example, you might want to use a font with a smaller body height than Computer Modern, but still prefer \acro{CM} math to any of the alternatives. In this case, you might use: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \DeclareMathSizes{10}{9}{7}{5} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} to get 9pt maths when the surrounding body text is (nominal) 10pt. \csx{DeclareMathSizes} may only be used in the preamble of the document: only one association is available for each text font size for the whole document. The default settings are specified in \File{fontdef.dtx} in the latex distribution, and are compiled into \File{fontmath.ltx}; the arguments to the command are just numbers (`\texttt{pt}' is assumed), but some of them are written using \Qref*{\LaTeX{} abbreviations}{Q-ltxabbrv} for standard font sizes. Beware simply copying (parts of) the \LaTeX{} definitions~--- since they contain those internal abbreviations, they need to be treated as \Qref{internal commands}{Q-atsigns}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fontdef.dtx]\CTANref{fontdef} \item[fontmath.ltx]\CTANref{fontmath} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-mathlips]{Ellipses} \keywords{\csx{dots} \csx{cdots} \csx{vdots} \csx{ddots}} Ellipses are commonly required, and \LaTeX{} natively supplies a fair range (\csx{dots}, \csx{cdots}, \csx{vdots} and \csx{ddots}). By using the \Package{graphics} package, one can change the slope of the \csx{ddots} command, as in \begin{verbatim} $ ... \reflectbox{$\ddots$} ... $ \end{verbatim} While this works, it is not a recommended way of achieving the desired result (see below). Moreover, \LaTeX{}'s range is not adequate to everyone's requirements, and at least three packages provide extensions to the set. The \AMSLaTeX{} bundle provides a range of ``semantically-named'' ellipses, for use in different situations: \csx{dotsb} for use between pairs of binary operators, \csx{dotsc} for use between pairs of commas, and so on. The \Package{yhmath} package defines an \csx{adots} command, which is the analogue of \csx{ddots}, sloping forwards rather than backwards. The \Package{yhmath} package comes with a rather interesting font that extends the standard \Package{cmex}; details are in the documentation. The disadvantage of this setup is, that although \csx{adots} is merely a macro, the package tries to load its own font and produces a ``missing font'' substitution warning message if you haven't installed the font. The \Package{mathdots} package (besides fixing up the behaviour of \AllTeX{} \csx{ddots} and \csx{vdots} when the font size changes) provides an ``inverse diagonal'' ellipsis \csx{iddots} (doing the same job as \Package{yhmath}'s \csx{adots}, but better). Documentation of \Package{yhmath} appears, processed, in the distribution (thus saving you the bother of installing the package before being able to read the documentation). Documentation of \Package{mathdots} appears at the end the package file itself. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[amslatex]\CTANref{amslatex} \item[graphics.sty]Part of the \CTANref{graphics} bundle \item[mathdots.sty]\CTANref{mathdots} \item[yhmath \nothtml{\rmfamily}(fonts)]\CTANref{yhmath-fonts} \item[yhmath \nothtml{\rmfamily}(macros)]\CTANref{yhmath-macros} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-limits]{Sub- and superscript positioning for operators} The commonest hand-written style for expressions is to place the limit expressions on operators such as \csx{sum} and \csx{int} physically above and below the operator. In \AllTeX{}, we write these limit expressions using sub- and superscripts applied to the operator, but they don't always appear in the ``handwritten'' way in \TeX{}'s output. The reason is, that when an expression appears in non-display maths, in running text (and is therefore in \TeX{} \csx{textstyle}), placing the limits thus could lead to ragged line spacing (and hence difficult-to-read text). It is therefore common (in \csx{textstyle}) to place the limits as one would sub- and superscripts of variables. This is not universally satisfactory, so the primitive \csx{limits} is provided: \begin{verbatim} $\sum\limits_{n=1}^{m} ...$ \end{verbatim} which will place the limits right above and below the symbol (and be blowed to the typography\dots{}). Contrariwise, you may wish to change the arrangement of the limits when in \csx{displaystyle}. For this purpose, there's a corresponding \csx{nolimits}: \begin{verbatim} \[\sum\nolimits_{n=1}^{m} ...\] \end{verbatim} which will place the limits as they would be in \csx{textstyle}. (Note that the macro \csx{int} normally has \csx{nolimits} built in to its definition. There is an example in the \TeX{}book to show how odd \csx{int}\csx{limits} looks when typeset.) \Question[Q-mathstext]{Text inside maths} When we type maths in \AllTeX{}, the letters from which we make up ordinary text assume a special significance: they all become single-letter variable names. The letters appear in italics, but it's not the same sort of italics that you see when you're typing ordinary text: a run of maths letters (for example ``here'') looks oddly ``lumpy'' when compared with the word written in italic text. The difference is that the italic text is kerned to make the letters fit well together, whereas the maths is set to look as if you're multiplying \emph{h} by \emph{e} by \emph{r} by \emph{e}. The other way things are odd in \TeX{} maths typing is that spaces are ignored: at best we can write single words in this oddly lumpy font. So, if we're going to have good-looking text in amongst maths we're writing, we have to take special precautions. If you're using \LaTeX{}, the following should help. The simplest is to use \csx{mbox} or \csx{textrm}: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} $e = mc^2 \mbox{here we go again}$ \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The problem is that, with either, the size of the text remains firmly at the surrounding text size, so that \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} $z = a_{\mbox{other end}}$ \end{verbatim} \end{quote} looks quite painfully wrong. The other simple technique, \csx{textrm}, is more promising: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} $z = a_{\textrm{other end}}$ \end{verbatim} \end{quote} is definitely right. However, the surrounding text may not be in your roman font; if you care about matching text, you need to choose between \csx{textrm}, \csx{textsf}, and so on. (The maths-mode instance of your roman font (\csx{mathrm}) gets the size right, but since it's intended for use in maths, its spaces get ignored~--- use \csx{mathrm} for upright roman alphabetic variable names, but not otherwise.) You can correct these problems with size selectors in the text, as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} $z = a_{\mbox{\scriptsize other end}}$ \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which works if your surrounding text is at default document size, but gives you the wrong size otherwise. These short cuts are (just about) \acro{OK} for the ``occasional'' mathematician, but serious mathematics calls for a technique that relieves the typist of the sort of thought required. As usual, the \AMSLaTeX{} system provides what's necessary~--- the \csx{text} command. The command is actually provided by the \Package{amstext} package, but the ``global'' \Package{amsmath} package loads it, so anyone using \AMSLaTeX{} proper has the command available, so even joke mathematicians can write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{amsmath} ... $z = a_{\text{other end}}$ \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and the text will be at the right size, and in the same font as surrounding text. \AMSLaTeX{} also makes provision for interpolated comments in the middle of one of its multi-line display structures, through the \csx{intertext} command. For example: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \begin{align} A_1&=N_0(\lambda;\Omega')- \phi(\lambda;\Omega'),\\ A_2&=\phi(\lambda;\Omega')- \phi(\lambda;\Omega),\\ \intertext{and} A_3&=\mathcal{N}(\lambda;\omega). \end{align} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \begin{align} A_1&=N_0(\lambda;\Omega')-\phi(\lambda;\Omega'),\\ A_2&=\phi(\lambda;\Omega')-\phi(\lambda;\Omega),\\ \intertext{and} A_3&=\mathcal{N}(\lambda;\omega). \end{align} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} places the text ``and'' on a separate line before the last line of the display. If the interjected text is short, or the equations themselves are light-weight, you may find that \csx{intertext} leaves too much space. Slightly more modest is the \csx{shortintertext} command from the \Package{mathtools} package: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{align} a =& b \shortintertext{or} c =& b \end{align} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} To have the text on the same line as the second equation, one can use the the \environment{flalign} environment (from \Package{amsmath}) with lots of dummy equations (represented by the double \texttt{\&} signs): \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{flalign} && a =& b && \\ \text{or} && c =& b && \end{flalign} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Comprehensive documentation of \AMSLaTeX{} is to be found in \File{amsldoc}, in the distribution; it is also available on the web at \URL{ftp://ftp.ams.org/pub/tex/doc/amsmath/amsldoc.pdf} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[amsldoc.tex]Distributed as part of \AMSLaTeX{} \CTANref{amslatex} \item[amsmath.sty]Distributed as part of \AMSLaTeX{} \CTANref{amslatex} \item[amstext.sty]Distributed as part of \AMSLaTeX{} \CTANref{amslatex} \item[mathtools.sty]Distributed as part of the \Package{mh} bundle \CTANref{mh} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-reuseq]{Re-using an equation} To repeat an existing equation, one wants not only to have the same mathematics in it, one also wants to re-use the original label it had. The \Package{amsmath} package comes to our help, here: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{amsmath} ... \begin{equation} a=b \label{eq1} \end{equation} ... Remember that \begin{equation} a=b \tag{\ref{eq1}} \end{equation} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Here, the second instance of \ensuremath{a=b} will be typeset with a copy, made by the \csx{tag} command, of the label of the first instance. Comprehensive documentation of \AMSLaTeX{} is to be found in \File{amsldoc}, in the distribution; it is also available on the web at \URL{ftp://ftp.ams.org/pub/tex/doc/amsmath/amsldoc.pdf} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[amsldoc.tex]Distributed as part of \AMSLaTeX{} \CTANref{amslatex} \item[amsmath.sty]Distributed as part of \AMSLaTeX{} \CTANref{amslatex} \end{ctanrefs} \subsection{Lists} \Question[Q-enumerate]{Fancy enumeration lists} The \Package{enumerate} package allows you to control the display of the enumeration counter. The package adds an optional parameter to the \environment{enumerate} environment, which is used to specify the layout of the labels. The layout parameter contains an enumeration type (`\texttt{1}' for arabic numerals, `\texttt{a}' or `\texttt{A}' for alphabetic enumeration, and `\texttt{i}' or `\texttt{I}' for Roman numberals), and things to act as decoration of the enumeration. So, for example \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{enumerate} ... \begin{enumerate}[(a)] \item ... ... \end{enumerate} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} starts a list whose labels run (a), (b), (c), \dots{}; while \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{enumerate} ... \begin{enumerate}[I/] \item ... ... \end{enumerate} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} starts a list whose labels run I/, II/, III/, \dots{} The \Package{paralist} package, whose primary purpose is % beware line break \Qref*{compaction of lists}{Q-complist}, provides the same facilities for its \environment{enumerate}-like environments. If you need non-stereotyped designs, the \Package{enumitem} package gives you most of the flexibility you might want to design your own. The silly roman example above could be achieved by: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{enumitem} ... \begin{enumerate}[label=\Roman{*}/] \item ... ... \end{enumerate} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Note that the `\texttt{*}' in the key value stands for the list counter at this level. You can also manipulate the format of references to list item labels: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{enumitem} ... \begin{enumerate}[label=\Roman{*}/, ref=(\roman{*})] \item ... ... \end{enumerate} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{enumitem} ... \begin{enumerate}[label=\Roman{*}/, ref=(\roman{*})] \item ... ... \end{enumerate} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} to make references to the list items format appear as (i), (ii), (iii), etc. The \Class{memoir} class includes functions that match those in the \Package{enumerate} package, and has similar functionality for \environment{itemize} lists. %% It is possible (if not particularly convenient) to do the same thing %% yourself. Suppose you want your top-level \environment{enumerate}s to %% be labelled I/, II/, III/, \dots{}, then give these commands: %% \begin{verbatim} %% \renewcommand{\theenumi}{\Roman{enumi}} %% \renewcommand{\labelenumi}{\theenumi/} %% \end{verbatim} %% The possible styles of numbering are given in Section~6.3 of Lamport's %% book (see \Qref[question]{\TeX{}-related books}{Q-books}). Both %% \csx{theenumi} and \csx{labelenumi} must be changed, since %% \csx{theenumi} is used in cross-references to the list. %% %% For lower level \environment{enumerate}s, replace |enumi| by |enumii|, %% |enumiii| or |enumiv|, according to the level. If your label is much %% larger than the default, you should also change \csx{leftmargini}, %% \csx{leftmarginii}, \emph{etc}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[enumerate.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[enumitem.sty]\CTANref{enumitem} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[paralist.sty]\CTANref{paralist} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-complist]{How to reduce list spacing} \Qref*{Lamport's book}{Q-books} lists various parameters for the layout of list (things like \csx{topsep}, \csx{itemsep} and \csx{parsep}), but fails to mention that they're set automatically within the list itself. It works by each list executes a command \csx{@list}\texttt{\meta{depth}} (the depth appearing as a lower-case roman numeral); what's more, \csx{@listi} is usually reset when the font size is changed. As a result, it's rather tricky for the user to control list spacing; of course, the real answer is to use a document class designed with more modest list spacing, but we all know such things are hard to come by. The \Class{memoir} class wasn't designed for more compact lists \emph{per se}, but offers the user control over the list spacing. There are packages that provide some control of list spacing, but they seldom address the separation from surrounding text (defined by \csx{topsep}). The \Package{expdlist} package, among its many controls of the appearance of \environment{description} lists, offers a compaction parameter (see the documentation); the \Package{mdwlist} package offers a \csx{makecompactlist} command for users' own list definitions, and uses it to define compact lists \environment{itemize*}, \environment{enumerate*} and \environment{description*}. In fact, you can write lists such as these commands define pretty straightforwardly~--- for example: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newenvironment{itemize*}% {\begin{itemize}% \setlength{\itemsep}{0pt}% \setlength{\parskip}{0pt}}% {\end{itemize}} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \Package{paralist} package provides several approaches to list compaction: \begin{itemize} \item its \environment{asparaenum} environment formats each item as if it were a paragraph introduced by the enumeration label (which saves space if the item texts are long); \item its \environment{compactenum} environment is the same sort of compact list as is provided in \Package{expdlist} and \Package{mdwlist}; and \item its \environment{inparaenum} environment produces a list ``in the paragraph'', i.e., with no line break between items, which is a great space-saver if the list item texts are short. \end{itemize} The package will manipulate its \environment{enumerate} environment labels just like the \Qref*{\Package{enumerate} package}{Q-enumerate} does. \Package{Paralist} also provides \environment{itemize} equivalents (\environment{asparaitem}, etc.), and \environment{description} equivalents (\environment{asparadesc}, etc.). The ultimate in compaction (of every sort) is offered by the \Package{savetrees} package; compaction of lists is included. The package's prime purpose is to save space at every touch and turn: don't use it if you're under any design constraint whatever! The \Package{expdlist}, \Package{mdwlist} and \Package{paralist} packages all offer other facilities for list configuration: you should probably not try the ``do-it-yourself'' approaches outlined below if you need one of the packages for some other list configuration purpose. For ultimate flexibility (including manipulation of \csx{topsep}), the \Package{enumitem} package permits adjustment of list parameters using a ``\emph{key}\latexhtml{\ensuremath{=}}{=}\meta{value}'' format; so for example, one might write \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{enumitem} ... \begin{enumerate}[topsep=0pt, partopsep=0pt] \item ... ... \end{enumerate} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} to suppress all spacing above and below your list. \Package{Enumitem} also permits manipulation of the label format in a more ``basic'' manner than the \Qref*{\Package{enumerate} package}{Q-enumerate} does. %% If you want to adjust \csx{topsep}, the most sensible approach (at %% present) is to define your list `from first principles' using the %% \csx{list} command; its invocation is %% % beware line break %% \cmdinvoke{list}{\meta{item stuff}}{\meta{list stuff}}; the %% \texttt{\meta{list stuff}} is executed \emph{after} the %% \csx{@list}\texttt{\meta{depth}}, and can therefore be used to adjust %% all the parameters, including \csx{topsep}. %% %% An alternative is to redefine \csx{@list}\texttt{\meta{depth}} (and the %% size-changing commands that alter \csx{@listi}), but this is not %% recommended unless you're building your own class or package, in which %% case one hopes you're capable of analysing the way in which the %% standard classes do things (as recommended in %% % beware line wrap %% \Qref[question]{writing your own package}{Q-writecls}). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[enumerate.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[enumitem.sty]\CTANref{enumitem} \item[expdlist.sty]\CTANref{expdlist} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[mdwlist.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{mdwtools} \item[paralist.sty]\CTANref{paralist} \item[savetrees.sty]\CTANref{savetrees} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-interruptlist]{Interrupting enumerated lists} It's often convenient to have commentary text, `outside' the list, between successive entries of a list. In the case of \environment{itemize} lists this is no problem, since there's never anything to distinguish successive items, while in the case of \environment{description} lists, the item labels are under the user's control so there's no automatic issue of continuity. For \environment{enumerate} lists, the labels are generated automatically, and are context-sensitive, so the context (in this case, the state of the enumeration counter) needs to be preserved. The belt-and-braces approach is to remember the state of the enumeration in your own counter variable, and then restore it when restarting enumerate: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcounter{saveenum} ... \begin{enumerate} ... \setcounter{saveenum}{\value{enumi}} \end{enumerate} \begin{enumerate} \setcounter{enumi}{\value{saveenum}} ... \end{enumerate} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} This is reasonable, in small doses\dots{} Problems (apart from sheer verbosity) are getting the level right (``should I use counter \texttt{enumi}, \texttt{enumii}, \dots{}'') and remembering not to nest the interruptions (i.e., not to have a separate list, that is itself interrupted) in the ``commentary text''). The \Package{mdwlist} package defines commands \csx{suspend} and \csx{resume} that simplify the process: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{enumerate} ... \suspend{enumerate} \resume{enumerate} ... \end{enumerate} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The package allows an optional name (as in \cmdinvoke{suspend}[id]{enumerate}) to allow you to identify a particular suspension, and hence provide a handle for manipulating nested suspensions. If you're suspending a \Qref*{fancy-enumeration list}{Q-enumerate}, you need to re-supply the optional ``item label layout'' parameters required by the \Package{enumerate} package when resuming the list, whether by the belt-and-braces approach, or by the \Package{mdwlist} \cmdinvoke{resume}{enumerate} technique. The task is a little tedious in the \Package{mdwlist} case, since the optional argument has to be encapsulated, whole, inside an optional argument to \csx{resume}, which requires use of extra braces: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{enumerate}[\textbf{Item} i] ... \suspend{enumerate} \resume{enumerate}[{[\textbf{Item} i]}] ... \end{enumerate} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \nothtml{\noindent}The \Package{enumitem} package, in its most recent release, will allow you to resume lists, at one level only: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{enumerate} ... \end{enumerate} \begin{enumerate}[resume] ... \end{enumerate} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which feels just as ``natural'' as the \Package{mdwtools} facility, and has the advantage of playing well with the other excellent facilities of \Package{enumitem}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[enumerate.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[enumitem.sty]\CTANref{enumitem} \item[mdwlist.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{mdwtools} \end{ctanrefs} \subsection{Tables, figures and diagrams} \Question[Q-destable]{The design of tables} In recent years, several authors have argued that the examples, set out by Lamport in his \Qref*{\LaTeX{} manual}{Q-books}, have cramped authors' style and have led to extremely poor table design. It is in fact difficult even to work out what many of the examples in Lamport's book ``mean''. The criticism focuses on the excessive use of rules (both horizontal and vertical) and on the poor vertical spacing that Lamport's macros offer. The problem of vertical spacing is plain for all to see, and is addressed in several packages~--- see % beware line breaks ``\Qref*[question]{spacing of lines in tables}{Q-struttab}''. The argument about rules is presented in the excellent essay that prefaces the documentation of Simon Fear's \Package{booktabs} package, which (of course) implements Fear's scheme for `comfortable' rules. (The same rule commands are implemented in the \Class{memoir} class.) Lamport's \LaTeX{} was also inflexibly wrong in ``insisting'' that captions should come at the bottom of a table. Since a table may extend over several pages, traditional typography places the caption at the top of a table float. The \csx{caption} command will get its position wrong (by \texttt{10pt}) if you simply write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{table} \caption{Example table} \begin{tabular}{...} ... \end{tabular} \end{table} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \Package{topcapt} package solves this problem: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{topcaption} ... \begin{table} \topcaption{Example table} \begin{tabular}{...} ... \end{tabular} \end{table} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \Class{KOMA-script} classes provide a similar command \csx{captionabove}; they also have a class option \pkgoption{tablecaptionabove} which arranges that \csx{caption} \emph{means} \csx{captionabove}, in table environments. The \Package{caption} (from the release of 23 January, 2004) may be loaded with an option that has the same effect: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[tableposition=top]{caption} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Doing the job yourself is pretty easy: \Package{topcapt} switches the values of the \LaTeXe{} parameters \csx{abovecaptionskip} (default value |10pt|) and \csx{belowcaptionskip} (default value |0pt|), so: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{table} \setlength{\abovecaptionskip}{0pt} \setlength{\belowcaptionskip}{10pt} \caption{Example table} \begin{tabular}{...} ... \end{tabular} \end{table} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} does the job. (The package itself is very slightly more elaborate\dots{}) \begin{ctanrefs} \item[booktabs.sty]\CTANref{booktabs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[topcapt.sty]\CTANref{topcapt} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-fixwidtab]{Fixed-width tables} There are two basic techniques for making fixed-width tables in \LaTeX{}: you can make the gaps between the columns stretch, or you can stretch particular cells in the table. Basic \LaTeX{} can make the gaps stretch: the \environment{tabular*} environment takes an extra argument (before the |clpr| layout one) which takes a length specification: you can say things like ``|15cm|'' or ``\csx{columnwidth}'' here. You must also have an \csx{extracolsep} command in the |clpr| layout argument, inside an |@{}| directive. So, for example, one might have \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular*}{\columnwidth}{@{\extracolsep{\fill}}lllr} \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} \htmlignore \ifpdf \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular*}{\columnwidth}{@{\extracolsep{\fill}}lllr} \end{verbatim} \else \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular*}{\columnwidth}% {@{\extracolsep{\fill}}lllr} \end{verbatim} \fi \endhtmlignore The \csx{extracolsep} applies to all inter-column gaps to its right as well; if you don't want all gaps stretched, add \cmdinvoke{extracolsep}{0pt} to cancel the original. The \Package{tabularx} package defines an extra |clpr| column specification, |X|; |X| columns behave as |p| columns which expand to fill the space available. If there's more than one |X| column in a table, the spare space is distributed between them. The \Package{tabulary} package (by the same author) provides a way of ``balancing'' the space taken by the columns of a table. The package defines column specifications |C|, |L|, |R| and |J|, giving, respectively, centred, left, right and fully-justified versions of space-sharing columns. The package examines how long each column would be ``naturally'' (i.e., on a piece of paper of unlimited width), and allocates space to each column accordingly. There are ``sanity checks'' so that really large entries don't cause everything else to collapse into nothingness (there's a ``maximum width'' that any column can exert), and so that tiny entries can't get smaller than a specified minimum. Of course, all this work means that the package has to typeset each row several times, so things that leave ``side-effects'' (for example, a counter used to produce a row-number somewhere) are inevitably unreliable, and should not even be tried. The \Package{ltxtable} combines the features of the \Package{longtable} and \Package{tabularx} packages: it's important to read the documentation, since usage is distinctly odd. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ltxtable.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{carlisle} \item[tabularx.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[tabulary.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{carlisle} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-struttab]{Spacing lines in tables} \AllTeX{} mechanisms for maintaining the space between lines (the ``\emph{leading}'') rely on \TeX{}'s paragraph builder, which compares the shape of consecutive lines and adjusts the space between them. These mechanisms can't work in exactly the same way when \AllTeX{} is building a table, because the paragraph builder doesn't get to see the lines themselves. As a result, tables sometimes typeset with lines uncomfortably close together (or occasionally ridiculously far apart). Traditional (moving metal type) typographers would adjust the spacing between lines of a table by use of a ``\emph{strut}'' (a metal spacer). A \TeX{} user can do exactly the same thing: most macro packages define a \csx{strut} command, that defines a space appropriate to the current size of the text; placing a \csx{strut} command at the end of a troublesome row is the simplest solution to the problem~--- if it works. Other solutions below are \LaTeX{}-specific, but some may be simply translated to Plain~\TeX{} commands. If your table exhibits a systematic problem (i.e., every row is wrong by the same amount) use \csx{extrarowheight}, which is defined by the \Package{array} package: \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{array}% in the preamble ... \setlength{\extrarowheight}{length} \begin{tabular}{....} \end{verbatim} To correct a single row whose maladjustment isn't corrected by a \csx{strut} command, you can define your own, using \cmdinvoke{rule}{0pt}{length}~--- which is a near approximation to the command that goes inside a \csx{strut}. The \Package{bigstrut} package defines a strut command that you can use for this purpose: \csx{bigstrut} on its own opens up both above and below the current line; \cmdinvoke{bigstrut}[t] opens up above the line, \cmdinvoke{bigstrut}[b] opens up below the line. General solutions are available, however. The \Package{tabls} package automatically generates an appropriately-sized strut at the end of each row. Its disadvantages are that it's really rather slow in operation (since it gets in the way of everything within tables) and its (lack of) compatibility with other packages. The \Package{booktabs} package comes with a thought-provoking essay about how tables should be designed. Since table row-spacing problems most often appear in collisions with rules, the author's thesis, that \LaTeX{} users tend too often to rule their tables, is interesting. The package provides rule commands to support the author's scheme, but deals with inter-row spacing too. The most recent release of \Package{booktabs} sports compatibility with packages such as \Package{longtable}. Documentation of both \Package{bigstrut} and \Package{tabls} may be found as comments in the package files themselves. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[array.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[bigstrut.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{multirow} \item[booktabs.sty]\CTANref{booktabs} \item[tabls.sty]\CTANref{tabls} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-longtab]{Tables longer than a single page} Tables are, by default, set entirely in boxes of their own: as a result, they won't split over a page boundary. Sadly, the world keeps turning up tables longer than a single page that we need to typeset. For simple tables (whose shape is highly regular), the simplest solution may well be to use the \environment{tabbing} environment, which is slightly tedious to set up, but which doesn't force the whole aligment onto a single page. The \Package{longtable} package builds the whole table (in chunks), in a first pass, and then uses information it has written to the |.aux| file during later passes to get the setting ``right'' (the package ordinarily manages to set tables in just two passes). Since the package has overview of the whole table at the time it's doing ``final'' setting, the table is set ``uniformly'' over its entire length, with columns matching on consecutive pages. \Package{longtable} has a reputation for failing to interwork with other packages, but it does work with \Package{colortbl}, and its author has provided the \Package{ltxtable} package to provide (most of) the facilities of \Package{tabularx} (see % beware line wrap \Qref[question]{fixed-width tables}{Q-fixwidtab}) for long tables: beware of its rather curious usage constraints~--- each long table should be in a file of its own, and included by \cmdinvoke*{LTXtable}{width}{file}. Since \Package{longtable}'s multiple-page tables can't possibly live inside floats, the package provides for captions within the \environment{longtable} environment itself. A seeming alternative to \Package{ltxtable} is \Package{ltablex}; but it is outdated and not fully functional. Its worst problem is its strictly limited memory capacity (\Package{longtable} is not so limited, at the cost of much complication in its code); \Package{ltablex} can only deal with relatively small tables, it doesn't seem likely that support is available; but its user interface is much simpler than \Package{ltxtable}, so if its restrictions aren't a problem for you, it may be worth a try. The \Package{supertabular} package starts and stops a \environment{tabular} environment for each page of the table. As a result, each `page worth' of the table is compiled independently, and the widths of corresponding columns may differ on successive pages. However, if the correspondence doesn't matter, or if your columns are fixed-width, \Package{supertabular} has the great advantage of doing its job in a single run. Both \Package{longtable} and \Package{supertabular} allow definition of head- and footlines for the table; \Package{longtable} allows distinction of the first and last head and foot. The \Package{xtab} package fixes some infelicities of \Package{supertabular}, and also provides a ``last head'' facility (though this, of course, destroys \Package{supertabular}'s advantage of operating in a single run). The \Package{stabular} package provides a simple-to-use ``extension to \environment{tabular}'' that allows it to typeset tables that run over the end of a page; it also has usability extensions, but doesn't have the head- and footline capabilities of the major packages. Documentation of \Package{ltablex} is to be found in the package file. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[longtable.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[ltablex.sty]\CTANref{ltablex} \item[ltxtable.sty]Generate by running \CTANref{ltxtable} \item[stabular.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{sttools} \item[supertabular.sty]\CTANref{supertabular} \item[xtab.sty]\CTANref{xtab} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-tabcellalign]{How to alter the alignment of tabular cells} One often needs to alter the alignment of a tabular \texttt{p} (`paragraph') cell, but problems at the end of a table row are common. With a \texttt{p} cell that looks like: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ... & \centering blah ... \\ \end{verbatim} \end{quote} one is liable to encounter errors that complain about a ``misplaced \csx{noalign}'' or ``\Qref*{extra alignment tab}{Q-altabcr}'', or the like. The problem is that the command \texttt{\bsbs } means different things in different circumstances: the \environment{tabular} environment switches the meaning to a value for use in the table, and \csx{centering}, \csx{raggedright} and \csx{raggedleft} all change the meaning to something incompatible. Note that the problem only arises in the last cell of a row: since each cell is set into a box, its settings are lost at the \texttt{\&} (or \texttt{\bsbs }) that terminates it. The simple (old) solution is to preserve the meaning of \texttt{\bsbs }: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand\PBS[1]{\let\temp=\\% #1% \let\\=\temp } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which one uses as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ... & \PBS\centering blah ... \\ \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (for example). The technique using \csx{PBS} was developed in the days of \LaTeXo{} because the actual value of \texttt{\bsbs } that the \environment{tabular} environment uses was only available as an internal command. Nowadays, the value is a public command, and you can in principle use it explicitly: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ... & \centering blah ... \tabularnewline \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which may be incorporated into a simple macro as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\RBS}{\let\\=\tabularnewline} ... ... & \centering\RBS blah ... \\ \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and used as \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ... & \centering\RBS blah ... \\ \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (note, you Preserve backslash with \csx{PBS} \emph{before} the command that changes it, and Restore it with \csx{RBS} \emph{after} the command; in fact, \csx{RBS} is marginally preferable, but the old trick lingers on). The \csx{PBS} and \csx{RBS} tricks also serve well in \Package{array} package ``field format'' preamble specifications: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{...>{\centering\RBS}% p{50mm}} ... \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{... >{\centering\RBS}p{50mm}} ... \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} or \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{...>{\PBS\centering}% p{50mm}} ... \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{... >{\PBS\centering}p{50mm}} ... \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} In the \Package{tabularx} and \Package{tabulary} packages, there's a command \csx{arraybackslash} that has same effect as \csx{RBS} (above); so in those packages, one might say: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{...% >{\centering\arraybackslash}% p{50mm}} ... \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{... >{\centering\arraybackslash}p{50mm}} ... \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} in place of the example above; in fact, the very latest (2003/12/01) release of array.sty also provides a \csx{tabularnewline} command, that has the ``basic tabular/array'' meaning of `\bsbs '. % note space at end of sentence is necessary for sanitize.pl The command does rather lack brevity, but at least you don't have to define it for yourself. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[array.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[tabularx.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[tabulary.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{carlisle} \end{ctanrefs} \nothtml{\vskip 0pt plus 4ex} \Question[Q-rulethk]{The thickness of rules in \LaTeX{} tables} The rules in a \LaTeX{} table are by default \texttt{0.4pt} thick; this is in fact a default built in at the lowest level, and applies to all rules (including those separating blocks of running text). Sometimes, however, we look at a table and find we want the rules to stand out~--- perhaps to separate the text from the rest of the body text, or to make the sections of the table stand out from one another. However, a quick review of any \LaTeX{} manual will reveal no technique for making any one rule stand out, and a little experimentation shows that it is indeed pretty difficult to prevent a change ``bleeding'' out to affect other rules in the same table. Refer to the answer on \Qref*{design of tables}{Q-destable}, elsewhere among these \acro{FAQ}s, and you may sense that the design of \LaTeX{} suimply skipped the issues surrounding table design, and \emph{that's} why there's no facilities to help you. Specifically, the length \csx{arrayrulewidth} affects the thickness of the rules (both horizontal and vertical) within both \environment{tabular} and \environment{array} environments. If you change from the default (see above) only as far as \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \setlength{\arrayrulewidth}{1pt} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} the change is remarkably striking. However, really quite subtle user level programming proves incapable of changing just \emph{one} rule: it's necessary to delve into the (rather tricky) code of \csx{hline} and \csx{cline} themselves. Fortunately, this job has already been done for the community: the \Package{booktabs} package defines three different classes of rule (\csx{toprule}, \csx{midrule} and \csx{bottomrule}), and the package documentation offers hints on how to use them. You are \emph{strongly} advised to read the documentation pretty carefully. The \Class{memoir} class includes the \Package{booktabs} package, and repeats the documentation in its compendious manual. Note that none of the above mentions the issue of the weight of vertical rules (except in passing). For the reasons, see the documentation of the \Package{booktabs} package (again); vertical rules in tables are in any case even more trickily coded than are horizontal rules, and if their lack of configurability makes them still less attractive, so much the better for the design of your document. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[booktabs.sty]\CTANref{booktabs} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-textflow]{Flowing text around figures in \LaTeX{}} There are several \LaTeX{} packages that purport to do this, but they all have their limitations because the \TeX{} machine isn't really designed to solve this sort of problem. Piet van Oostrum has conducted a survey of the available packages; he recommends: \begin{description} \item[\texttt{floatflt}] \Package{floatflt} is an improved version (for \LaTeXe{}) of \File{floatfig.sty}, and its syntax is: \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} \begin{floatingfigure}[options]{width of figure} figure contents \end{floatingfigure} \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} \htmlignore |\begin{floatingfigure}[|\emph{options}|]{|\emph{width of figure}|}|\\ | |\emph{figure contents}\\ |\end{floatingfigure}| \endhtmlignore There is a (more or less similar) \environment{floatingtable} environment. The tables or figures can be set left or right, or alternating on even/odd pages in a double-sided document. The package works with the |multicol| package, but doesn't work well in the neighbourhood of list environments (unless you change your \LaTeX{} document). \item[\texttt{wrapfig}] \Package{wrapfig} has syntax: \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} \begin{wrapfigure}[height of figure in lines]{l|r}[overhang]{width} figure, caption, etc. \end{wrapfigure} \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} \htmlignore \ifpdf |\begin{wrapfigure}[|\emph{height of figure in lines}|]|% |{l|,|r|,\emph{etc}|}|\\ | [|\emph{overhang}|]{|\emph{width}|}|\\ \else |\begin{wrapfigure}[|\emph{height of figure in lines}|]|\\ | {l|,|r|,\emph{etc}|}[|\emph{overhang}|]{|\emph{width}|}|\\ \fi | |\emph{figure, caption, etc.}\\ |\end{wrapfigure}| \endhtmlignore The syntax of the \environment{wraptable} environment is similar. Height can be omitted, in which case it will be calculated by the package; the package will use the greater of the specified and the actual width. The |{l|\emph{,}|r|\emph{,etc}.|}| parameter can also be specified as |i|\emph{(nside)} or |o|\emph{(utside)} for two-sided documents, and uppercase can be used to indicate that the picture should float. The overhang allows the figure to be moved into the margin. The figure or table will entered into the list of figures or tables if you use the \csx{caption} command. The environments do not work within list environments that end before the figure or table has finished, but can be used in a parbox or minipage, and in twocolumn format. \item[\texttt{picins}] \Package{Picins} is part of a large bundle that allows inclusion of pictures (e.g., with shadow boxes, various \MSDOS{} formats, etc.). The command is: \begin{htmlversion} |\parpic(width,height)(x-off,y-off)[Options][Position]{Picture}|\\ \end{htmlversion} \htmlignore \ifpdf |\parpic(|\emph{width}|,|\emph{height}|)(|\emph{x-off}\kern-.125em|,|\emph{y-off}|)|% |[|\emph{Options}|][|\emph{Position}|]|\\ \else |\parpic(|\emph{width}|,|\emph{height}|)(|\emph{x-off}\kern-.125em|,|\emph{y-off}|)|\\ | [|\emph{Options}|][|\emph{Position}|]|\\ \fi | {|\emph{Picture}|}|\\ \endhtmlignore \emph{Paragraph text} All parameters except the \emph{Picture} are optional. The picture can be positioned left or right, boxed with a rectangle, oval, shadowbox, dashed box, and a caption can be given which will be included in the list of figures. % This is the only package that I tried that correctly works inside an % enumerate/itemize item. It does not, however work with % enumerate/itemize besides the picture (i.e. started after the \parpic % command) but neither does any of the other packages as far as I could % discern. Unfortunately (for those of us whose understanding of German is not good), the documentation is in German. Piet van Oostrum has written an English summary. \end{description} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[floatflt.sty]\CTANref{floatflt} \item[picins.sty]\CTANref{picins} \item[picins \nothtml{\rmfamily}documentation summary]\CTANref{picins-summary} \item[wrapfig.sty]\CTANref{wrapfig} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-slashbox]{Diagonal separation in corner cells of tables} You want to label both the top or bottom row and the left- or rightmost column, somewhere at the corner of the table where the row and column meet. A simple way to achieve the result is to construct the table with an arrangement of rules (and possibly \csx{multicolumn} entries), to look like: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ----------------- x y -------------- 1 2 3 4 5 ----------------- 1 2 3 4 5 ----------------- \end{verbatim} \end{quote} However, this doesn't satisfy everyone: many want the labelling in a single cell at the top left of the table. It sounds a simple enough requirement, yet it calls for some slightly tricky \LaTeX{} coding. The \Package{slashbox} package does the job for you: it defines commands \csx{slashbox} and \csx{backslashbox}, each taking the two labels as arguments. It draws a picture with the two labels on either side of a slanting line; the command (and hence the picture) may be placed in the corner cell, where the labelled row and column meet. The package isn't the world's neatest: it uses \LaTeX{} \environment{picture} mode to draw its line, and picture mode has many tedious restrictions (and doesn't, in all honesty, produce particularly good pictures). Load slashbox with the \Package{pict2e} package, and at least the picture quality will be improved. Documentation of \Package{slashbox} is less than satisfactory: a \LaTeX{} source file of rather startling starkness accompanies the package file in the distribution. It does, however, process to a \acro{DVI} file that gives some idea of how the \csx{slashbox} may be expected to look. (The third example in the file shows the effect of \environment{picture} mode's restrictions: the dividing line doesn't go from corner to corner in the box: to correct this requires revision of \Package{slashbox}~--- \Package{pict2e} alone doesn't help in this regard.) \begin{ctanrefs} \item[slashbox.sty]\CTANref{slashbox} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-wholerow]{How to change a whole row of a table} Each cell of a table is set in a box, so that a change of font style (or whatever) only lasts to the end of the cell. If one has a many-celled table, or a long one which needs lots of rows emphasising, putting a font style change command in every cell will be impossibly tedious. With the \Package{array} package, you can define column modifiers which will change the font style for a whole \emph{column}. However, with a bit of subtlety, one can make such modifiers affect rows rather than columns. So, we set things up by: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{array} \newcolumntype{$}{>{% \global\let\currentrowstyle\relax}% } \newcolumntype{^}{>{\currentrowstyle}} \newcommand{\rowstyle}[1]{% \gdef\currentrowstyle{#1}% #1\ignorespaces } \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{array} \newcolumntype{$}{>{\global\let\currentrowstyle\relax}} \newcolumntype{^}{>{\currentrowstyle}} \newcommand{\rowstyle}[1]{\gdef\currentrowstyle{#1}% #1\ignorespaces } \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} Now, we put `\texttt{\$}' before the first column specifier; and we put `|^|' before the modifiers of subsequent ones. We then use \csx{rowstyle} at the start of each row we want to modify: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{|$l|^l|^l|} \hline \rowstyle{\bfseries} Heading & Big and & Bold \\ \hline Meek & mild & entry \\ Meek & mild & entry \\ \rowstyle{\itshape} Strange & and & italic \\ Meek & mild & entry \\ \hline \end{tabular} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \Package{array} package works with several other \environment{tabular}-like environments from other packages (for example \environment{longtable}), but unfortunately this trick won't always work. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[array.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-multirow]{Merging cells in a column of a table} It's easy to come up with a table design that requires a cell that spans several rows. An example is something where the left-most column labels the rest of the table; this can be done (in simple cases) by using % beware line break \Qref*{diagonal separation in corner cells}{Q-slashbox}, but that technique rather strictly limits what can be used as the content of the cell. The \Package{multirow} package enables you to construct such multi-row cells, in a very simple manner. For the simplest possible use, one might write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{|c|c|} \hline \multirow{4}*{Common g text} & Column g2a\\ & Column g2b \\ & Column g2c \\ & Column g2d \\ \hline \end{tabular} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and \Package{multirow} will position ``Common g text'' at the vertical centre of the space defined by the other rows. Note that the rows that don't contain the ``multi-row'' specification must have empty cells where the multi-row is going to appear. The ``|*|'' may be replaced by a column width specification. In this case, the argument may contain forced line-breaks: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{|c|c|} \hline \multirow{4}{25mm}{Common\\g text} & Column g2a\\ & Column g2b \\ & Column g2c \\ & Column g2d \\ \hline \end{tabular} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} A similar effect (with the possibility of a little more sophistication) may be achieved by putting a smaller table that lines up the text into a |*|-declared \csx{multirow}. The \csx{multirow} command may also used to write labels vertically down one or other side of a table (with the help of the \Package{graphics} or \Package{graphicx} package, which provide the \csx{rotatebox} command): \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{|l|l|} \hline \multirow{4}*{\rotatebox{90}{hi there}} & Column g2a\\ & Column g2b \\ & Column g2c \\ & Column g2d \\ \hline \end{tabular} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (which gives text going upwards; use angle |-90| for text going downwards, of course). \Package{Multirow} is set up to interact with the \Package{bigstrut} package (which is also discussed in the answer to % beware line break \Qref[question]{spacing lines in tables}{Q-struttab}). You use an optional argument to the \csx{multirow} command to say how many of the rows in the multi-row have been opened up with \csx{bigstrut}. The documentation of both \Package{multirow} and \Package{bigstrut} is to be found, as comments, in the package files themselves. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[bigstrut.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{multirow} \item[multirow.sty]\CTANref{multirow} \end{ctanrefs} \subsection{Floating tables, figures, etc.} \Question[Q-floatpages]{Floats on their own on float pages} It's sometimes necessary to force a float to live on a page by itself. (It's sometimes even necessary for \emph{every} float to live on a page by itself.) When the float fails to `set', and waits for the end of a chapter or of the document, the natural thing to do is to declare the float as \begin{verbatim} \begin{figure}[p!] \end{verbatim} but the overriding |!| modifier has no effect on float page floats; so you have to make the float satisfy the parameters. \Qref[Question]{Moving tables and figures}{Q-floats} offers some suggestions, but doesn't solve the one-float-per-page question. The `obvious' solution, using the counter |totalnumber| (``total number of floats per page'') doesn't work: |totalnumber| only applies to floats on `text' pages (pages containing text as well as one or more float). So, to allow any size float to take a whole page, set \csx{floatpagefraction} really small, and to ensure that no more than one float occupies a page, make the separation between floats really big: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand\floatpagefraction{.001} \makeatletter \setlength\@fpsep{\textheight} \makeatother \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \Question[Q-vertspacefloat]{Extra vertical space in floats} A common complaint is that extra vertical space has crept into \environment{figure} or \environment{table} floating environments. More common still are users who post code that introduces this extra space, and \emph{haven't noticed the problem}! The trouble arises from the fact that the \environment{center} environment (and its siblings \environment{flushleft} and \environment{flushright}) are actually based on \LaTeX{}'s list-handling code; and lists always separate themselves from the material around them. Meanwhile, there are parameters provided to adjust the spacing between floating environments and their surroundings; so if we have: \begin{verbatim} \begin{figure} \begin{center} \includegraphics{...} \caption{...} \end{center} \end{figure} \end{verbatim} \nothtml{\noindent}or worse still: \begin{verbatim} \begin{figure} \begin{center} \includegraphics{...} \end{center} \caption{...} \end{figure} \end{verbatim} unwarranted vertical space is going to appear. The solution is to let the float and the objects in it position themselves, and to use ``generic'' layout commands rather than their list-based encapsulations. \begin{verbatim} \begin{figure} \centering \includegraphics{...} \caption{...} \end{figure} \end{verbatim} (which even involves less typing). This alternative code will work with any \LaTeX{} package. It will not work with obsolete (pre-\LaTeXe{}) packages such as \Package{psfig} or \Package{epsf}~--- see % beware line break \Qref[question]{graphics inclusion}{Q-impgraph} for discussion of the genesis of \csx{includegraphics}. \Question[Q-2colfloat]{Placing two-column floats at bottom of page} You specified placement `|[htbp]|' for your full-width figure or table, but they always get placed at the top of the page\dots{} Well, it \emph{is} what the documentation says: \LaTeX{}, unadorned, only allows full-width floats at the top of a page, or occupying (part of) a float page. The \Package{stfloats} package ameliorates the situation somewhat, and makes \LaTeX{} honour `[b]' placement as well; the \Package{dblfloatfix} package combines a tidied version of the changes made in \Package{stfloats} with the \begin{narrowversion} % non-hyper float ordering corrections defined in \Package{fixltx2e} (\Qref{}{Q-2colfltorder}). \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} % hyper \Qref{float ordering corrections}{Q-2colfltorder} defined in \Package{fixltx2e}. \end{wideversion} A particular problem with \Package{stfloats} and \Package{dblfloatfix} is that the float will appear, at its earliest, on the page after it is specified. This has two undesirable side-effects: first, there may be no bottom float on the first page of a document, and second, float numbers may become ``entangled'' (particularly if you're using \Package{dblfloatfix} that ensures that the early-specified bottom float is set \emph{before} any single column floats). (The \acro{FAQ} team doesn't know of any package that will make \LaTeX{} honour `[h]' placement of double-column floats, but the \Package{midfloat} package can be pressed into service to provide something approximating the effect it would have.) \begin{ctanrefs} \item[dblfloatfix.sty]\CTANref{dblfloatfix} \item[stfloats.sty, midfloat.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{sttools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-mcfloat]{Floats in multicolumn setting} If you use \begin{verbatim} \begin{figure} ... \end{figure} \end{verbatim} in a \environment{multicols} environment, the figure won't appear. If instead you use \begin{verbatim} \begin{figure*} ... \end{figure*} \end{verbatim} the figure will stretch right across the page (just the same as a \environment{figure*} in standard \LaTeX{}'s |twocolumn| option). It's possible to have single-column figures and tables with captions, using the `|[H]|' placement option introduced by the \Package{float} package but you might have to fiddle with the placement because they won't `float', and exhibit other strange behaviours (such as silently running off the end of the column at the end of the \environment{multicols} environment). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[float.sty]\CTANref{float} \item[multicol.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-dpfloat]{Facing floats on 2-page spread} If a pair of floats are to be forced to form a 2-page spread (in a book, or whatever), the first must lie on the left side of the spread, on an even-numbered page. The \Package{dpfloat} package provides for this: the construction to use is: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{figure}[p] \begin{leftfullpage} \end{leftfullpage} \end{figure} \begin{figure}[p] \begin{fullpage} \end{fullpage} \end{figure} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The construction has no effect unless the standard class option \pkgoption{twoside} is in effect. Full documentation of the package (such as it is) is to be found in \File{README.dpfloat} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[dpfloat.sty]\CTANref{dpfloat} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-vertposfp]{Vertical layout of float pages} By default, \LaTeX{} vertically centres the floats on a float page; the present author is not alone in not liking this arrangement. Unfortunately, the control of the positioning is ``buried'' in \LaTeX{}-internal commands, so some care is needed to change the layout. Float pages use three \LaTeX{} lengths (i.e., \TeX{} skips) to define their layout: \begin{description} \item[\nothtml{\normalfont}\csx{@fptop}] defines the distance from the top of the page to the top of the first float, \item[\nothtml{\normalfont}\csx{@fpsep}] defines the separation between floats, and \item[\nothtml{\normalfont}\csx{@fpbot}] defines the distance from the bottom of the last float on the page to the bottom of the page. \end{description} (In fact, the output routine places a skip of \csx{@fpsep} above each float, so the \csx{@fptop} skip is always followed by a correction for that.) The \LaTeX{} defaults are:\\ \csx{@fptop} = |0pt + 1fil|\\ \csx{@fpsep} = |8pt + 2fil|\\ \csx{@fpbot} = |0pt + 1fil|\\ so that the gaps expand to fill the space not occupied by floats, but if there is more than one float on the page, the gap between them will expand to twice the space at top and bottom. Those who understand this stuff will be able to play elaborate games, but the commonest requirement, that the floats start at the top of the page, is a simple thing to do: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \makeatletter \setlength{\@fptop}{0pt} \makeatother \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Surprisingly, you may find this setting leaves your floats too high on the page. One can justify a value of \texttt{5pt} (in place of \texttt{0pt})~--- it's roughly the difference between \csx{topskip} and the height of normal (\texttt{10pt}) text. Note that this is a ``global'' setting (best established in a class file, or at worst in the document preamble); making the change for a single float page is likely (at the least) to be rather tricky. \subsection{Footnotes} \Question[Q-footintab]{Footnotes in tables} The standard \LaTeX{} \csx{footnote} command doesn't work in tables; the table traps the footnotes and they can't escape to the bottom of the page. If your table is floating, your best bet is (unfortunately) to put the table in a \environment{minipage} environment and to put the notes underneath the table, or to use Donald Arseneau's package \Package{threeparttable} (which implements ``table notes'' proper). The \Package{ctable} package extends the model of \Package{threeparttable}, and also uses the ideas of the \Package{booktabs} package. The \csx{ctable} command does the complete job of setting the table, placing the caption, and defining the notes. The ``table'' may consist of diagrams, and a parameter in \csx{ctable}'s optional argument makes the float that is created a ``figure'' rather than a ``table''. Otherwise, if your table is not floating (it's just a `|tabular|' in the middle of some text), there are several things you can do to fix the problem. \begin{itemize} \item Use \csx{footnotemark} to position the little marker appropriately, and then put in \csx{footnotetext} commands to fill in the text once you've closed the \environment{tabular} environment. This is described in Lamport's book, but it gets messy if there's more than one footnote. \item Stick the table in a |minipage| anyway. This provides all the ugliness of footnotes in a minipage with no extra effort. \item Use \Package{threeparttable} anyway; the package is intended for floating tables, and the result might look odd if the table is not floating, but it will be reasonable. \item Use \Package{tabularx} or \Package{longtable} from the \LaTeX{} tools distribution; they're noticeably less efficient than the standard \environment{tabular} environment, but they do allow footnotes. \item Grab hold of \Package{footnote}, and put your \environment{tabular} environment inside a \environment{savenotes} environment. Alternatively, say \cmdinvoke{makesavenoteenv}{tabular} in the preamble of your document, and tables will all handle footnotes correctly. \item Use \Package{mdwtab} from the same bundle; it will handle footnotes properly, and has other facilities to increase the beauty of your tables. It may also cause other table-related packages (not the standard `tools' ones, though) to become very unhappy and stop working. \end{itemize} The documentation of \Package{threeparttable} appears in the package file itself; that of \Package{ctable} is distributed as a \acro{PDF} file (for convenience's sake). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ctable.sty]\CTANref{ctable} \item[footnote.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{mdwtools} \item[longtable.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[mdwtab.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{mdwtools} \item[threeparttable.sty]\CTANref{threeparttable} \item[tabularx.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-ftnsect]{Footnotes in \LaTeX{} section headings} The \csx{footnote} command is fragile, so that simply placing the command in \csx{section}'s arguments isn't satisfactory. Using \csx{protect}\csx{footnote} isn't a good idea either: the arguments of a section command are used in the table of contents and (more dangerously) potentially also in page headings. Unfortunately, there's no mechanism to suppress the footnote in the heading while allowing it in the table of contents, though having footnotes in the table of contents is probably unsatisfactory anyway. To suppress the footnote in headings and table of contents: \begin{itemize} \item Take advantage of the fact that the mandatory argument doesn't `move' if the optional argument is present: |\section[title]{title|\csx{footnote}|{title ftnt}}| \item Use the \Package{footmisc} package, with package option |stable|~--- this modifies footnotes so that they softly and silently vanish away if used in a moving argument. \end{itemize} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[footmisc.sty]\CTANref{footmisc} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-ftncapt]{Footnotes in captions} Footnotes in captions are especially tricky: they present problems of their own, on top of the problems one experiences with \Qref*{footnotes in section titles}{Q-ftnsect} and with % ! line break \Qref*{footnotes in tables}{Q-footintab}. Fortunately, the requirement for footnotes in captions is extremely rare: if you are experiencing problems, it is worth reviewing what you are trying to say by placing this footnote. Note that the \Package{threeparttable} scheme (see, again, % ! line break \Qref[question]{footnotes in tables}{Q-footintab}) also applies to notes in captions, and may very well be preferable to whatever you were thinking of. If you \emph{are} going to proceed: \begin{itemize} \item use an optional argument in your \csx{caption} command, that doesn't have the footnote in it; this prevents the footnote appearing in the ``List of \dots{}'', and \item put your whole float in a \environment{minipage} so as to keep the footnotes with the float. \end{itemize} so we have: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{figure} \begin{minipage}{\textwidth} ... \caption[Caption for LOF]% {Real caption\footnote{blah}} \end{minipage} \end{figure} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} However, \emph{as well as} all of the above, one \emph{also} has to deal with the tendency of the \csx{caption} command to produce the footnote's text twice. For this last problem, there is no tidy solution this author is aware of. If you're suffering the problem, a well-constructed \csx{caption} command in a \environment{minipage} environment within a float (as in the example above) can produce \emph{two} copies of the footnote body ``blah''. (In fact, the effect only occurs with captions that are long enough to require two lines to be typeset, and so wouldn't appear with such a short caption.) The documentation of the \Package{ccaption} package describes a really rather awful work-around. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ccaption.sty]\CTANref{ccaption} \item[threeparttable.sty]\CTANref{threeparttable} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-repfootnote]{Footnotes whose texts are identical} If the \emph{same} footnote turns up at several places within a document, it's often inappropriate to repeat the footnote in its entirety over and over again. We can avoid repetition by semi-automatic means, or by simply labelling footnotes that we know we're going to repeat and then referencing the result. There is no completely automatic solution (that detects and suppresses repeats) available. If you know you only have one footnote, which you want to repeat, the solution is simple: merely use the optional argument of \csx{footnotemark} to signify the repeats: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ...\footnote{Repeating note} ... ...\footnotemark[1] \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \dots{}\@ which is very easy, since we know there will only ever be a footnote number 1. A similar technique can be used once the footnotes are stable, reusing the number that \LaTeX{} has allocated. This can be tiresome, though, as any change of typesetting could change the relationships of footnote and repeat: labelling is inevitably better. Simple hand-labelling of footnotes is possible, using a counter dedicated to the job: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcounter{fnnumber} ... ...\footnote{Text to repeat}% \setcounter{fnnumber}{\thefootnote}% ... ...\footnotemark[\thefnnumber] \end{verbatim} \end{quote} but this is somewhat tedious. \LaTeX{}'s labelling mechanism can be summoned to our aid, but there are ugly error messages before the \csx{ref} is resolved on a second run through \LaTeX{}: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ...\footnote{Text to repeat\label{fn:repeat}} ... ...\footnotemark[\ref{fn:repeat}] \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Alternatively, one may use the \csx{footref} command, which has the advantage of working even when the footnote mark isn't expressed as a number. The command is defined in the \Package{footmisc} package and in the \Class{memoir} class (at least); \csx{footref} reduces the above example to: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ...\footnote{Text to repeat\label{fn:repeat}} ... ...\footref{fn:repeat} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} This is the cleanest simple way of doing the job. Note that the \csx{label} command \emph{must} be inside the argument of \csx{footnote}. The \Package{fixfoot} package takes away some of the pain of the matter: you declare footnotes you're going to reuse, typically in the preamble of your document, using a \csx{DeclareFixedFoot} command, and then use the command you've `declared' in the body of the document: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \DeclareFixedFootnote{\rep}{Text to repeat} ... ...\rep{} ...\rep{} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The package ensures that the repeated text appears at most once per page: it will usually take more than one run of \LaTeX{} to get rid of the repeats. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fixfoot.sty]\CTANref{fixfoot} \item[footmisc.sty]\CTANref{footmisc} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-multfoot]{More than one sequence of footnotes} The need for more than one series of footnotes is common in critical editions (and other literary criticism), but occasionally arises in other areas. Of course, the canonical critical edition macros, \Package{edmac}, offer the facility, as does its \LaTeX{} port, the \Package{ledmac} package. Multiple ranges of footnotes are offered to \LaTeX{} users by the \Package{manyfoot} package. The package provides a fair array of presentation options, as well. The (rather new) critical editions \Package{ednotes} package is built upon a basis that includes \Package{manyfoot}, as its mechanism for multiple sets of footnotes. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[edmac]\CTANref{edmac} \item[ednotes]\CTANref{ednotes} \item[ledmac]\CTANref{ledmac} \item[manyfoot.sty]Distributed as part of the \CTANref{ncctools} bundle \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-footnpp]{Footnotes numbered ``per page''} The obvious solution is to make the footnote number reset whenever the page number is stepped, using the % ! line break \Qref*{\LaTeX{} internal mechanism}{Q-addtoreset}. Sadly, the place in the document where the page number is stepped is unpredictable, not (``tidily'') at the end of the printed page; so the link only ever works by luck. As a result, resetting footnotes is inevitably a two-pass process, using labels of some sort. It's nevertheless important, given the common requirement for footnotes marked by symbols (with painfully small symbol sets). There are three packages that manage it, one way or another. The \Package{footnpag} package does per-page footnotes and nothing else. The \Package{perpage} package provides a general mechanism for resetting counters per page, so can obviously be used for this task. The interface is pretty simple: \cmdinvoke{MakePerPage}{footnote} will do the job. If you want to restart the counter at something other than~1 (for example to avoid something in the \LaTeX{} footnote symbol list), you can use: \cmdinvoke{MakePerPage}[2]{footnote}. The \Package{footmisc} package provides a variety of means of controlling footnote appearance, among them a package option \pkgoption{perpage} that adjusts the numbering per page. Documentation of \Package{footnpag} comes as a |.dvi| file \File{footnpag-user} in the distribution. Documentation of \Package{perpage} appears in the package file, only: however, it amounts to no more than appears above\dots \begin{ctanrefs} \item[footmisc.sty]\CTANref{footmisc} \item[footnpag.sty]\CTANref{footnpag} \item[perpage.sty]\CTANref{perpage} \end{ctanrefs} \subsection{Document management} \Question[Q-filename]{What's the name of this file} One might want this so as to automatically generate a page header or footer recording what file is being processed. It's not easy\dots{} \TeX{} retains what it considers the name of the \emph{job}, only, in the primitive \csx{jobname}; this is the name of the file first handed to \TeX{}, stripped of its directory name and of any extension (such as |.tex|). If no file was passed (i.e., you're using \TeX{} interactively), \csx{jobname} has the value |texput| (the name that's given to |.log| files in this case). This is fine, for the case of a small document, held in a single file; most significant documents will be held in a bunch of files, and \TeX{} makes no attempt to keep track of files input to the \emph{job}. So the user has to keep track, himself~--- the only way is to patch the input commands and cause them to retain details of the file name. This is particularly difficult in the case of Plain \TeX{}, since the syntax of the \csx{input} command is so peculiar. In the case of \LaTeX{}, the input commands have pretty regular syntax, and the simplest % beware line-breaks (next two lines) \nothtml{patching techniques (}% \Qref{patching techniques}{Q-patch}\nothtml{)} can be used on them: \begin{verbatim} \def\ThisFile{\jobname} \newcounter{FileStack} \let\OrigInput\input \renewcommand{\input}[1]{% \stepcounter{FileStack} \expandafter\let \csname NameStack\theFileStack\endcsname \ThisFile \def\ThisFile{#1}% \OrigInput{#1}% \expandafter\let\expandafter \ThisFile \csname NameStack\theFileStack\endcsname \addtocounter{FileStack}{-1}% } \end{verbatim} (And similarly for \csx{include}.) The code assumes you always use \LaTeX{} syntax for \csx{input}, i.e., always use braces around the argument. The \Package{FiNK} (``File Name Keeper'') package provides a regular means of keeping track of the current file name (with its extension), in a macro \csx{finkfile}. The bundle includes a \File{fink.el} that provides support under \ProgName{emacs} with \acro{AUC}-\TeX{}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fink.sty]\CTANref{fink} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-filesused]{All the files used by this document} When you're sharing a document with someone else (perhaps as part of a co-development cycle) it's as well to arrange that both correspondents have the same set of auxiliary files, as well as the document in question. Your correspondent obviously needs the same set of files (if you use the \Package{url} package, she has to have \Package{url} too, for example). But suppose you have a bug-free version of the \Package{shinynew} package but her copy is still the unstable original; until you both realise what is happening, such a situation can be very confusing. The simplest solution is the \LaTeX{} \csx{listfiles} command. This places a list of the files used and their version numbers in the log file. If you extract that list and transmit it with your file, it can be used as a check-list in case that problems arise. Note that \csx{listfiles} only registers things that are input by the ``standard'' \LaTeX{} mechanisms (\csx{documentclass}, \csx{usepackage}, \csx{input}, \csx{include}, \csx{includegraphics} and so on). But if you use \TeX{} primitive syntax, as in \begin{verbatim} \input mymacros \end{verbatim} \File{mymacros.tex} \emph{won't} be listed by \csx{listfiles}, since you've bypassed the mechanism that records its use. The \Package{snapshot} package helps the owner of a \LaTeX{} document obtain a list of the external dependencies of the document, in a form that can be embedded at the top of the document. The intended use of the package is the creation of archival copies of documents, but it has application in document exchange situations too. The \ProgName{bundledoc} system uses the \Package{snapshot} to produce an archive (e.g., \texttt{.tar.gz} or \texttt{.zip}) of the files needed by your document; it comes with configuration files for use with \ProgName{teTeX} and \ProgName{mikTeX}. It's plainly useful when you're sending the first copy of a document. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[bundledoc]\CTANref{bundledoc} \item[snapshot.sty]\CTANref{snapshot} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-changebars]{Marking changed parts of your document} One often needs clear indications of how a document has changed, but the commonest technique, ``change bars'' (also known as ``revision bars''), requires surprisingly much trickery of the programmer (the problem being that \TeX{} `proper' doesn't provide the programmer with any information about the ``current position'' from which a putative start- or end-point of a bar might be calculated; \PDFTeX{} \emph{does} provide the information, but we're not aware yet of any programmer taking advantage of the fact to write a \PDFTeX{}-based changebar package). The simplest package that offers change bars is Peter Schmitt's \Package{backgrnd.tex}; this was written as a Plain \TeX{} application that patches the output routine, but it appears to work at least on simple \LaTeX{} documents. Wise \LaTeX{} users will be alerted by the information that \Package{backgrnd} patches their output routine, and will watch its behaviour very carefully (patching the \LaTeX{} output routine is not something to undertake lightly\dots{}). The longest-established solution is the \Package{changebar} package, which uses \csx{special} commands supplied by the driver you're using. You need therefore to tell the package which driver to generate \csx{special}s for (in the same way that you need to tell the \Package{graphics} package); the list of available drivers is pretty restricted, but does include \ProgName{dvips}. The package comes with a shell script \ProgName{chbar.sh} (for use on Unix machines) that will compare two documents and generate a third which is marked-up with \Package{changebar} macros to highlight changes. The (excellent) shareware \ProgName{WinEDT} editor has a macro that will generate \Package{changebar} (or other) macros to show differences from an earlier version of your file, stored in an \ProgName{RCS}-controlled repository~--- see \URL{http://www.winedt.org/Macros/LaTeX/RCSdiff.php} The \Package{vertbars} package uses the techniques of the \Package{lineno} package (which must be present); it's thus the smallest of the packages for change bar marking, since it leaves all the trickery to another package. The \Package{framed} package is another that provides bars as a side-effect of other desirable functionality: its \environment{leftbar} environment is simply a stripped-down frame (note, though, that the environment makes a separate paragraph of its contents, so it is best used when the convention is to mark a whole changed paragraph. Finally, the \Class{memoir} class allows marginal editorial comments, which you can obviously use to delimit areas of changed text. Another way to keep track of changes is employed by some word-processors~--- to produce a document that embodies both ``old'' and ``new'' versions. The \ProgName{Perl} script \ProgName{latexdiff} does this for \LaTeX{} documents; you feed it the two documents, and it produces a new \LaTeX{} document in which the changes are very visible. An example of the output is embedded in the documentation, \begin{narrowversion} % actually non-hyperversion \File{latexdiff-man.pdf}, in the distribution. \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} % actually hyperversion \href{http://www.tex.ac.uk/tex-archive/support/latexdiff/latexdiff-man.pdf}{latexdiff-man.pdf} (part of the distribution). \end{wideversion} A rudimentary revision facilility is provided by another \ProgName{Perl} script, \ProgName{latexrevise}, which accepts or rejects all changes. Manual editing of the difference file can be used to accept or reject selected changes only. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[backgrnd.tex]\CTANref{backgrnd} \item[changebar.sty]\CTANref{changebar} \item[framed.sty]\CTANref{framed} \item[latexdiff, latexrevise]\CTANref{latexdiff} \item[lineno.sty]\CTANref{lineno} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[vertbars.sty]\CTANref{vertbars} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-conditional]{Conditional compilation and ``comments''} While \LaTeX{} (or any other \TeX{}-derived package) isn't really like a compiler, people regularly want to do compiler-like things using it. Common requirements are conditional `compilation' and `block comments', and several \LaTeX{}-specific means to this end are available. The simple \cmdinvoke{newcommand}{\csx{gobble}}[1]|{||}| and % line break! \csx{iffalse}\texttt{ ... }\csx{fi} aren't really satisfactory (as a general solution) for comments, since the matter being skipped is nevertheless scanned by \TeX{}, not always as you would expect. The scanning imposes restrictions on what you're allowed to skip; this may not be a problem in \emph{today's} job, but could return to bite you tomorrow. For an example of surprises that may come to bite you, consider the following example (derived from real user experience): \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \iffalse % ignoring this bit consider what happens if we use \verb|\iftrue| -- a surprise \fi \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \csx{iftrue} is spotted by \TeX{} as it scans, ignoring the \csx{verb} command; so the \csx{iffalse} isn't terminated by the following \csx{fi}. Also, \csx{gobble} is pretty inefficient for any but trivial arguments, since all the matter to be skipped is copied to the argument stack before being ignored. If your requirement is for a document from which whole chapters (or the like) are missing, consider the \LaTeX{} \csx{include}/\csx{includeonly} system. If you `\csx{include}' your files (rather than \csx{input} them~--- see % line wrap! \Qref[question]{What's going on in my \csx{include} commands?}{Q-include}), \LaTeX{} writes macro traces of what's going on at the end of each chapter to the \texttt{.aux} file; by using \csx{includeonly}, you can give \LaTeX{} an exhaustive list of the files that are needed. Files that don't get \csx{include}d are skipped entirely, but the document processing continues as if they \emph{were} there, and page, footnote, and other numbers are not disturbed. Note that you can choose which sections you want included interactively, using the \Package{askinclude} package. The inverse can be done using the \Package{excludeonly} package: this allows you to exclude a (list of) \csx{include}d files from your document, by means of an \csx{excludeonly} command. If you want to select particular pages of your document, use Heiko Oberdiek's \Package{pagesel} or the \Package{selectp} packages. You can do something similar with an existing \acro{PDF} document (which you may have compiled using \ProgName{pdflatex} in the first place), using the \Package{pdfpages} package. The job is then done with a document looking like: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \documentclass{article} \usepackage[final]{pdfpages} \begin{document} \includepdf[pages=30-40]{yoursource.pdf} \end{document} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (To include all of the document, you write \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \includepdf[pages=-]{yoursource.pdf} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} omitting the start and end pages in the optional argument.) If you want flexible facilities for including or excluding small portions of a file, consider the \Package{comment}, \Package{version} or \Package{optional} packages. The \Package{comment} package allows you to declare areas of a document to be included or excluded; you make these declarations in the preamble of your file. The command \cmdinvoke*{includecomment}{version-name} declares an environment \environment{version-name} whose content will be included in your document, while \cmdinvoke*{excludecomment}{version-name} defines an environment whose content will be excluded from the document. The package uses a method for exclusion that is pretty robust, and can cope with ill-formed bunches of text (e.g., with unbalanced braces or \csx{if} commands). These FAQs employ the \Package{comment} package to alter layout between the printed (two-column) version and the \acro{PDF} version for browsing; there are \environment{narrowversion} and \environment{wideversion} for the two versions of the file. \Package{version} offers similar facilities to \File{comment.sty} (i.e., \csx{includeversion} and \csx{excludeversion} commands); it's far ``lighter weight'', but is less robust (and in particular, cannot deal with very large areas of text being included/excluded). A significant development of \Package{version}, confusingly called \Package{versions} (i.e., merely a plural of the old package name). \Package{Versions} adds a command \cmdinvoke*{markversion}{version-name} which defines an environment that prints the included text, with a clear printed mark around it. \Package{optional} defines a command \csx{opt}; its first argument is an `inclusion flag', and its second is text to be included or excluded. Text to be included or excluded must be well-formed (nothing mismatched), and should not be too big~--- if a large body of text is needed, \csx{input} should be used in the argument. The documentation (in the package file itself) tells you how to declare which sections are to be included: this can be done in the document preamble, but the documentation also suggests ways in which it can be done on the command line that invokes \LaTeX{}, or interactively. And, not least of this style of conditional compilation, \Package{verbatim} (which should be available in any distribution) defines a \environment{comment} environment, which enables the dedicated user of the source text editor to suppress bits of a \LaTeX{} source file. The \Class{memoir} class offers the same environment. An interesting variation is the \Package{xcomment} package. This defines an environment whose body is all excluded, apart from environments named in its argument. So, for example: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{xcomment}{figure,table} This text is not included \begin{figure} This figure is included \end{figure} This is not included, either \begin{table} This table also included \end{table} ... \end{xcomment} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} A further valuable twist is offered by the \Package{extract} package. This allows you to produce a ``partial copy'' of an existing document: the package was developed to permit production of a ``book of examples'' from a set of lecture notes. The package documentation shows the following usage: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[ active, generate=foobar, extract-env={figure,table}, extract-cmd={chapter,section} ]{extract} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which will cause the package to produce a file \File{foobar.tex} containing all the \environment{figure} and \environment{table} environments, and the \csx{chapter} and \csx{section} commands, from the document being processed. The new file \File{foobar.tex} is generated in the course of an otherwise ordinary run on the `master' document. The package provides a good number of other facilities, including (numeric or labelled) ranges of environments to extract, and an \environment{extract} environment which you can use to create complete ready-to-run \LaTeX{} documents with stuff you've extracted. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[askinclude.sty]\CTANref{askinclude} \item[comment.sty]\CTANref{comment} \item[excludeonly.sty]\CTANref{excludeonly} \item[extract.sty]\CTANref{extract} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[optional.sty]\CTANref{optional} \item[pagesel.sty]Distributed with Heiko Oberdiek's packages \CTANref{oberdiek} \item[pdfpages.sty]\CTANref{pdfpages} \item[selectp.sty]\CTANref{selectp} \item[verbatim.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[version.sty]\CTANref{version} \item[versions.sty]\CTANref{versions} \item[xcomment.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{seminar} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-docotherdir]{Bits of document from other directories} A common way of constructing a large document is to break it into a set of files (for example, one per chapter) and to keep everything related to each of these subsidiary files in a subdirectory. Unfortunately, \TeX{} doesn't have a changeable ``current directory'', so that all files you refer to have to be specified relative to the same directory as the main file. Most people find this counter-intuitive. It may be appropriate to use the ``path extension'' technique % beware line break \Qref[of question]{used in temporary installations}{Q-tempinst} to deal with this problem. However, if there several files with the same name in your document, such as \File{chapter1/fig1.eps} and \File{chapter2/fig1.eps}, you're not giving \TeX{} any hint as to which you're referring to when in the main chapter file you say \cmdinvoke{input}{sect1}; while this is readily soluble in the case of human-prepared files (just don't name them all the same), automatically produced files have a way of having repetitious names, and changing \emph{them} is a procedure prone to error. The \Package{import} package comes to your help here: it defines an \csx{import} command that accepts a full path name and the name of a file in that directory, and arranges things to ``work properly''. So, for example, if \File{/home/friend/results.tex} contains \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} Graph: \includegraphics{picture} \input{explanation} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} then \cmdinvoke{import}{/home/friend/}{results} will include both graph and explanation as one might hope. A \csx{subimport} command does the same sort of thing for a subdirectory (a relative path rather than an absolute one), and there are corresponding \csx{includefrom} and \csx{subincludefrom} commands. The \Package{chapterfolder} package provides commands to deal with its (fixed) model of file inclusion in a document. It provides commands \csx{cfpart}, \csx{cfchapter}, \csx{cfsection} and \csx{cfsubsection}, each of which takes directory and file arguments, e.g.: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \cfpart[pt 1]{Part One}{part1}{part} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which command will issue a `normal' command % ! line break \cmdinvoke{part}[pt 1]{Part One} and then input the file \File{part1/part.tex}, remembering that \File{part1/} is now the ``current folder''. There are also commands of the form \csx{cfpartstar} (which corresponds to a \csx{part*} command). Once you're ``in'' a \Package{chapterfolder}-included document, you may use \csx{cfinput} to input something relative to the ``current folder'', or you may use \csx{input}, using \csx{cfcurrentfolder} to provide a path to the file. (There are also \csx{cfcurrentfolderfigure} for a \path{figure/} subdirectory and \csx{cfcurrentfolderlistings} for a \path{listings/} subdirectory.) Documentation of \Package{chapterfolder} is in French, but the \File{README} in the directory is in English. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[chapterfolder.sty]\CTANref{chapterfolder} \item[import.sty]\CTANref{import} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-RCS]{Version control using \acro{RCS}, \acro{CVS} or \ProgName{Subversion}} If you use \acro{RCS}, \acro{CVS} or \ProgName{Subversion} to maintain your \AllTeX{} documents under version control, you may need some mechanism for including the version details in your document, in such a way that they can be typeset (that is, rather than just hiding them inside a comment). The most complete solution for \acro{RCS} and \acro{CVS} is to use the (\LaTeX{}) package \Package{rcs}, which allows you to parse and display the contents of \acro{RCS} keyword fields in an extremely flexible way. The package \Package{rcsinfo} is simpler, but does most of what you want, and some people prefer it; it is explicitly compatible with \ProgName{LaTeX2HTML}. If, however, you need a solution which works without using external packages, or which will work in plain TeX, then you can use the following minimal solution: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\RCS$#1: #2 ${\expandafter\def\csname RCS#1\endcsname{#2}} \RCS$Revision: 1.299 $ % or any RCS keyword \RCS$Date: 2005/07/07 13:52:16 $ ... \date{Revision \RCSRevision, \RCSDate} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\RCS$#1: #2 ${\expandafter \def\csname RCS#1\endcsname{#2}% } \RCS$Revision: 1.299 $ % or any RCS keyword \RCS$Date: 2005/07/07 13:52:16 $ ... \date{Revision \RCSRevision, \RCSDate} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} If you've entered the brave new world of \ProgName{subversion}, the package \Package{svn} may be for you. It has explicit cleverness about dealing with dates: \begin{quote} \csx{documentclass}\texttt{\{\meta{foo}\}}\\ \texttt{...}\\ \cmdinvoke{usepackage}{svn}\\ \csx{SVNdate}\texttt{ \$Date\$}\\ \cmdinvoke{author}{...}\\ \cmdinvoke{title}{...}\\ \texttt{...}\\ \cmdinvoke{begin}{document}\\ \csx{maketitle}\\ \texttt{...}\\ \cmdinvoke{end}{document} \end{quote} will (once \ProgName{subversion} has committed a copy of the document) cause \csx{maketitle} use the date that has been written into the \texttt{\$Date\$} keyword. The alternative is the \Package{svninfo} package, which has much the same mechanisms as does \Package{svn} but with a rather different focus. \Package{Svninfo} does the date trick that \Package{svn} performs (controlled by a package option), and can set up page foot-lines using \Qref*{package \Package{fancyhdr}}{Q-fancyhdr}. There isn't much to choose between the two packages: you should read the packages' documentation to see which you find best. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[rcs.sty]\CTANref{rcs} \item[rcsinfo.sty]\CTANref{rcsinfo} \item[svn.sty]\CTANref{svn} \item[svninfo.sty]\CTANref{svninfo} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-make]{Makefiles for \LaTeX{} documents} \LaTeX{} is a tricky beast for running \ProgName{make} on: the need to instruct \LaTeX{} to run several times for essentially different reasons (for example, ``get the table of contents stable'', ``get the labels stable'', ``add the bibliography'', ``add the index'') is actually rather difficult to express in the `ordinary' sort of dependency graph that one constructs for \ProgName{make}. For this reason, the only \ProgName{make}-like package on \acro{CTAN} (for a long time) was \ProgName{latexmk}, which is a \ProgName{Perl} script that analyses your \LaTeX{} source for its dependencies, runs \BibTeX{} or \ProgName{makeindex} as and when it notices that those programs' input (parts of the |.aux| file, or the |.idx| file, respectively) has changed, and so on. \ProgName{Latexmk} is a fine solution (and was used in generating printable versions of these \acro{FAQ}s for a long time); it has recently been upgraded and has many bells and whistles that allow it to operate as if it were a poor man's \WYSIWYG{} system. The \nothtml{\Package{texinfo} system (}% beware line breaks \Qref{\Package{texinfo} system}{Q-texinfo}\nothtml{)} comes with a utility called \ProgName{texi2dvi}, which is capable of ``converting'' either \LaTeX{} or \Package{texinfo} files into \acro{DVI} (or into \acro{PDF}, using \PDFTeX{}). A later contribution is the bundle \Package{latexmake}, which offers a set of \ProgName{make} rules that invoke \ProgName{texi2dvi} as necessary. The curious may examine the rules employed to run the present \acro{FAQ} through \LaTeX{}: we don't present them as a complete solution, but some of the tricks employed are surely re-usable. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\acro{FAQ} distribution]\CTANref{faq} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}latexmake]\CTANref{latexmake} \item[latexmk]\CTANref{latexmk} \item[texi2dvi]Distributed as part of \CTANref{texinfo} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-howmanypp]{How many pages are there in my document?} Simple documents (those that start at page 1, and don't have any breaks in their page numbering until their last page) present no problem to the seeker after this truth. The number of pages is reported by the \Package{lastpage} package in its \texttt{LastPage} label. For more complicated documents (most obviously, books with frontmatter in a different series of page numbers) this simple approach will not do. The \Package{count1to} package defines a label \texttt{TotalPages}; this is the value of its copy of \csx{count1} (a reserved \TeX{} count register) at the end of the document. Package \Package{totpages} defines a label \texttt{TotPages}, but it also makes the register it uses available as a \LaTeX{} counter, \texttt{TotPages}, which you can also reference via \csx{theTotPages}. Of course, the counter |TotPages| is asynchronous in the same way that apge numbers are, but snapshots may safely be taken in the output routine. The \Class{memoir} class defines two counters \texttt{lastpage} and \texttt{lastsheet}, which are set (after the first run of a document) to the equivalent of the \texttt{LastPage} label and the \texttt{TotalPages} labels. Both \Package{count1to} and \Package{totpages} need the support of the \Package{everyshi} package. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[count1to.sty \nothtml{\bgroup\rmfamily}and\nothtml{\egroup} everyshi.sty]% line break!! Distributed in \CTANref{ms} \item[lastpage.sty]\CTANref{lastpage} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[totpages.sty]\CTANref{totpages} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-inclplain]{Including Plain \TeX{} files in \LaTeX{}} \LaTeX{}, though originally \nothtml{based on Plain \TeX{} (}% beware line brk \Qref{based on Plain \TeX{}}{Q-LaTeXandPlain}\nothtml{)}, does not contain all of Plain \TeX{}'s commands. Worse, some Plain \TeX{} command names appear in \LaTeX{}, with different semantics. As a result, special measures need to be taken to allow general Plain \TeX{} documents (or parts of documents) to be typeset within \LaTeX{}. The truly reliable way is to translate the Plain \TeX{} commands, to produce an equivalent of the original's semantics. However, this is not practical in many circumstances, and for those occasions, the \Package{plain} package will often come to your aid. The package defines a \environment{plain} environment, in which a Plain \TeX{} document may be processed: \begin{verbatim} \begin{plain} \input{plain-doc} \end{plain} \end{verbatim} The package is known to fail, for example, with documents that use \AMSTeX{}; no doubt it would also fail if asked to load \Eplain{}. All these things can be overcome (although it's not often easy), but the environment saves a lot of work on many occasions. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[plain.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{carlisle} \end{ctanrefs} \subsection{Hyphenation} \Question[Q-nohyph]{My words aren't being hyphenated} Let's assume you've selected the right \TeX{} `language'~--- as explained in \Qref[question]{``how hyphenation works''}{Q-hyphen}, you're not likely to get the correct results typesetting one language using the hyphenation rules of another. (Select the proper language, using \Package{babel} if you're a \LaTeX{} user. This may reveal that you need another set of hyphenation patterns; see % beware line wrap \Qref[question]{``using a new language''}{Q-newlang} for advice on how to install it.) So what else can go wrong? \begin{itemize} \item Since \TeX{} version~3.0, the limits on how near to either end of a word hyphenation may take place have been programmable (see \Qref[question]{``weird hyphenation''}{Q-weirdhyphen}), and for some reason the values in question may have been corrupted in some macros you are using. \TeX{} won't hyphenate less than \csx{lefthyphenmin} characters after the start of a word, nor less than \csx{righthyphenmin} before the end of a word; thus it won't hyphenate a word shorter than the sum of the two minima, at all. For example, since the minima are 2 and 3 for English, \TeX{} won't hyphenate a word shorter than 5 letters long, if it believes the word to be English. \item \TeX{} won't hyphenate a word that's already been hyphenated. For example, the (caricature) English surname Smyth-Postlethwaite wouldn't hyphenate, which could be troublesome. This is correct English typesetting style (it may not be correct for other languages), but if needs must, you can replace the hyphen in the name with a \csx{hyph} command, defined \begin{verbatim} \def\hyph{\penalty0\hskip0pt\relax} \end{verbatim} This is \emph{not} the sort of thing this \acro{FAQ} would ordinarily recommend\dots{} The \Package{hyphenat} package defines a bundle of such commands (for introducing hyphenation points at various punctuation characters). \item There may be accents in the word. The causes of and remedies for this effect are discussed in % beware line break \Qref[question]{accents and hyphens}{Q-hyphenaccents}. \item The hyphenation may simply not have been spotted; while \TeX{}'s algorithm is good, it's not infallible, and it does miss perfectly good hyphenations in some languages. When this happens, you need to give \TeX{} \emph{explicit} instructions on how to hyphenate. \end{itemize} The \csx{hyphenation} command allows you to give explicit instructions. Provided that the word will hyphenate at all (that is, it is not prevented from hyphenating by any of the other restrictions above), the command will override anything the hyphenation patterns might dictate. The command takes one or more hyphenated words as argument~--- \cmdinvoke{hyphenation}{ana-lysis pot-able}; note that (as here, for analysis) you can use the command to overrule \TeX{}'s choice of hyphenation (ana-lysis is the British etymological hyphenation; some feel the American hyphenation feels `unfortunate'\dots{}). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[hyphenat.sty]\CTANref{hyphenat} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-weirdhyphen]{Weird hyphenation of words} If your words are being h-yphenated, like this, with jus-t single letters at the beginning or the end of the word, you may have a version mismatch problem. \TeX{}'s hyphenation system changed between version~2.9 and~3.0, and macros written for use with version~2.9 can have this effect with a version~3.0 system. If you are using Plain \TeX{}, make sure your \File{plain.tex} file has a version number which is at least~3.0, and rebuild your format. If you are using \LaTeXo{} your best plan is to upgrade to \LaTeXe{}. If for some reason you can't, the last version of \LaTeXo{} (released on 25 March 1992) is still available (for the time being at least) and ought to solve this problem. If you're using \LaTeXe{}, the problem probably arises from your |hyphen.cfg| file, which has to be created if you're using a multi-lingual version. A further source of oddity can derive from the 1995 release of \Qref*{Cork-encoded fonts}{Q-ECfonts}, which introduced an alternative hyphen character. The \LaTeXe{} configuration files in the font release specified use of the alternative hyphen, and this could produce odd effects with words containing an explicit hyphen. The font configuration files in the December 1995 release of \LaTeXe{} do \emph{not} use the alternative hyphen character, and therefore removed this source of problems; the solution, again, is to upgrade your \LaTeX{}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\LaTeXo{}]\CTANref{latex209-base} \item[plain.tex]\CTANref{plain} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-oddhyphen]{(Merely) peculiar hyphenation} You may have found that \TeX{}'s famed automatic word-division does not produce the break-points recommended by your dictionary. This may be because \TeX{} is set up for American English, whose rules for word division (as specified, for example, in Webster's Dictionary) are completely different from the British ones (as specified, for example, in the Oxford Dictionaries). This problem is being addressed by the \acro{UK} \TeX{} User community (see \BV{}, issue~4.4) but an entirely satisfactory solution will take time; the current status is to be found on \acro{CTAN} (see % beware line-wrap \Qref[question]{``using a new language''}{Q-newlang} for instructions on adding this new ``language''). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[UK patterns]\CTANref{ukhyph} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-hyphenaccents]{Accented words aren't hyphenated} \TeX{}'s algorithm for hyphenation gives up when it encounters an \csx{accent} command; there are good reasons for this, but it means that quality typesetting in non-English languages can be difficult. For \TeX{} macro packages, you can avoiding the effect by using an appropriately encoded font (for example, a Cork-encoded font~--- see \Qref[question]{the \acro{EC} fonts}{Q-ECfonts}) which contains accented letters as single glyphs. \LaTeX{} users can achieve this end simply by adding the command \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[T1]{fontenc} \end{verbatim} to the preamble of their document. Other encodings (notably \acro{LY}1, once promoted by \YandY{} inc) %% ~--- see %% %beware line wrap %% \Qref[question]{commercial implementations}{Q-commercial}) may be used in place of \acro{T}1. Indeed, most current 8-bit \TeX{} font encodings will `work' with the relevant sets of hyphenation patterns. In the future, perhaps, \Qref*{Omega}{Q-omega} will provide a rather different solution. \Question[Q-newlang]{Using a new language with Babel} \Package{Babel} is capable of working with a large range of languages, and a new user often wants to use a language that her \TeX{} installation is not set up to employ. Simply asking Babel to use the language, with the command \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[catalan]{babel} \end{verbatim} provokes the warning message \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} Package babel Warning: No hyphenation patterns were loaded for (babel) the language `Catalan' (babel) I will use the patterns loaded for \language=0 instead. \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} Package babel Warning: No hyphenation patterns were loaded for (babel) the language `Catalan' (babel) I will use the patterns loaded for \language=0 instead. \end{verbatim} (The last line of the above has been wrapped to fit on the page.) \end{narrowversion} The problem is that your \TeX{} system doesn't know how to hyphenate Catalan text: you need to tell it how before Babel can do its work properly. To do this, for \LaTeX{} installations, one needs to change \File{language.dat} (which is part of the Babel installation); it will contain a line \begin{verbatim} %catalan cahyphen.tex \end{verbatim} which, if you remove the comment marker, is supposed to instruct \LaTeX{} to load Catalan hyphenation patterns when you tell it to build a new format. Unfortunately, in many Babel distributions, the line just isn't right~--- you need to check the name of the file containing the patterns you're going to use. As you can see, in the author's system, the name is supposed to be \File{cahyphen.tex}; however the file actually present on the system is \File{cahyph.tex}~--- fortunately, the error should prove little more than an inconvenience (most of the files are in better distributions anyway, but an elusive one may be found on \acro{CTAN}; if you have to retrieve a new file, ensure that it's correctly installed, for which see \Qref[question]{installing a new package}{Q-instpackages}). Finally, you need to regenerate the formats used (in fact, most users of Babel are using it in their \LaTeX{} documents, so regenerating the \LaTeX{}-related formats will ordinarily be enough; however, the author always generates the lot, regardless). \begin{description} \item[te\TeX{}]It's possible to do the whole operation in one go, by using the \ProgName{texconfig} command: \begin{verbatim} texconfig hyphen latex \end{verbatim} which first enters an editor for you to edit \File{language.dat}, and then regenerates the format you specify (\ProgName{latex} in this case). Otherwise, to regenerate all formats, do: \\ \texttt{fmtutil -\relax-all} If you're willing to think through what you're doing (this is \emph{not} for the faint-hearted), you can select a sequence of formats and for each one, run: \\ \texttt{fmtutil -\relax-byfmt \meta{formatname}}\\ where \emph{\texttt{formatname}} is something like `\texttt{latex}', or: \\ \texttt{fmtutil -\relax-byhyphen \meta{hyphenfile}}\\ where \emph{\texttt{hyphenfile}} is the file specifying hyphenation to the format~--- usually \texttt{language.dat} \item[fp\TeX{}] Click \texttt{Start}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Programs}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{MikTeX}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Maintenance}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Create all format files}, or run any of the te\TeX{} options in a windows command window. \item[MiK\TeX{}] On a \Package{MikTeX} distribution earlier than v2.0, do: \\ \texttt{Start}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Programs}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{MikTeX}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Maintenance}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Create all format files} % this sequence suggested for miktex 1.20e, 2000/12/22, by Giuseppe Bilotta or get a DOS window and run:\\ \texttt{initexmf -\relax-dump} On a \Package{MikTeX} distribtution v2.0 or later, the whole procedure can be done via the \acro{GUI}. To select the new language, do:\\ \texttt{Start}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Programs}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{MikTeX 2}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{MikTeX Options}, and select the \texttt{Languages} tab. Select your language from the list, press the \texttt{Apply} button, and then the \texttt{OK} button. Then select the \texttt{General} tab and press the \texttt{Update Now} button. Otherwise, edit the \File{language.dat} file (as outlined above), and then run:\\ \texttt{initexmf -\relax-dump}\\ just as for a pre-v2.0 system. \end{description} \nothtml{\noindent}\textbf{\emph{Caveat}:} It is (just) possible that your \TeX{} system may run out of ``pattern memory'' while generating the new format. Most \TeX{} implementations have fixed-size arrays for storing the details of hyphenation patterns, but although their size is adjustable in most modern distributions, actually changing the size is a fiddle. If you \emph{do} find you've run out of memory, it may be worth scanning the list of languages in your \File{language.dat} to see whether any could reasonably be removed. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[babel]\CTANref{babel} \item[hyphenation patterns]\CTANref{hyphenation} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-hyphoff]{Stopping all hyphenation} It may seem an odd thing to want to do (after all, one of \TeX{}'s great advertised virtues is the quality of its hyphenation) but it's sometimes necessary. The real problem is, that the quality of \TeX{}'s output is by default largely dependent on the presence of hyphenation; if you want to abandon hyphenation, something has to give. \TeX{} (slightly confusingly) offers four possible mechanisms for suppressing hyphenation (there were only two prior to the extensions that arrived with \TeX{} version~3). First, one can set the hyphenation penalties \csx{hyphenpenalty} and \csx{exhyphenpenalty} to an `infinite' value (that is to say, 10000). This means that all hyphenations will sufficiently penalise the line that would contain them, that the hyphenation won't happen. The disadvantage of this method is that \TeX{} will re-evaluate any paragraph for which hyphenations might help, which will slow \TeX{} down. Second, one can select a language for which no hyphenation patterns exist. Some distributions create a language |nohyphenation|, and the \Package{hyphenat} package uses this technique for its \csx{nohyphens} command which sets its argument without any hyphenation. Third, one can set \csx{left-} and/or \csx{righthyphenmin} to a sufficiently large value that no hyphenation could possibly succeed, since the minimum is larger than the the length of the longest word \TeX{} is willing to hyphenate (the appropriate value is 62). Fourth, one can suppress hyphenation for all text using the current font by the command \begin{verbatim} \hyphenchar\font=-1 \end{verbatim} This isn't a particularly practical way for users to suppress hyphenation~--- the command has to be issued for every font the document uses~--- but it's how \LaTeX{} itself suppresses hyphenation in |tt| and other fixed-width fonts. Which of the techniques you should use depends on what you actually want to do. If the text whose hyphenation is to be suppressed runs for less than a paragraph, your only choice is the no-hyphens language: the language value is preserved along with the text (in the same way that the current font is); the values for penalties and hyphen minima active at the end of a paragraph are used when hyphenation is calculated. Contrariwise, if you are writing a multilanguage document using the \Package{babel} package, you \emph{cannot} suppress hyphenation throughout using either the no-hyphens language or the hyphen minima: all those values get changed at a \Package{babel} language switch: use the penalties instead. If you simply switch off hyphenation for a good bit of text, the output will have a jagged edge (with many lines seriously overfull), and your \AllTeX{} run will bombard you with warnings about overfull and underfull lines. To avoid this you have two options. You may use \csx{sloppy} (or its environment version \environment{sloppypar}), and have \TeX{} stretch what would otherwise be underfull lines to fill the space offered, and wrap other lines, while prematurely wrapping overfull lines and stretching the remainder. Alternatively, you may set the text \nothtml{ragged right (}% % beware line wrap \Qref{ragged right}{Q-ragright}\nothtml{)}, and at least get rid of the overfull lines; this technique is `traditional' (in the sense that typists do it) and may be expected to appeal to the specifiers of eccentric document layouts (such as those for dissertations), but for once their sense conforms with typographic style. (Or at least, style constrained in this curious way.) \begin{ctanrefs} \item[hyphenat.sty]\CTANref{hyphenat} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-wdnohyph]{Preventing hyphenation of a particular word} It's quite possible for (\emph{any}) hyphenation of a particular word to seem ``completely wrong'', so that you want to prevent it being hyphenated. If the word occurs in just one place, put it in a box: \begin{verbatim} \mbox{oddword} \end{verbatim} (Plain~\TeX{} users should use \csx{hbox}, and take care at the start of paragraphs.) However, boxing the word is not really advisable unless you are sure it only occurs once. If the word occurs commonly, the best choice is to assert a non-hyphenation for it: \begin{verbatim} \hyphenation{oddword} \end{verbatim} This hyphenation exception (with no break points) will be used in preference to what \TeX{}'s hyphenation algorithm may come up with. In a multilingual document, repeat the exception specification for each language the word may appear in. So: \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[french,english]{babel} \selectlanguage{english} \hyphenation{oddword} \selectlanguage{french} \hyphenation{oddword} \end{verbatim} (note that \Package{babel} will select the default language for the document~--- English, in this case~--- at \cmdinvoke{begin}{document}.) \Question[Q-hyphexcept]{Hyphenation exceptions} While \TeX{}'s hyphenation rules are good, they're not infallible: you will occasionally find words \TeX{} just gets \emph{wrong}. So for example, \TeX{}'s default hyphenation (for American English) don't know the word ``\emph{manuscript}'', and since it's a long word you may find you need to hyphenate it. You \emph{can} ``write the hyphenation out'' each time you use the word: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ... man\-u\-script ... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Here, each of the \csx{-} commands is converted to a hyphenated break, if (\emph{and only if}) necessary. That technique can rapidly become tedious: you'll probably only accept it if there are no more than one or two wrongly-hyphenated words in your document. The alternative is to set up hyphenations in the document preamble. To do that, for the hyphenation above, you would write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \hyphenation{man-u-script} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and the hyphenation would be set for the whole document. Barbara Beeton publishes articles containing lists of these ``hyphenation exceptions'', in \textsl{TUGboat}; the hyphenation `man-u-script' comes from one of those articles. What if you have more than one language in your document? Simple: select the appropriate language, and do the same as above: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[french]{babel} \selectlanguage{french} \hyphenation{re-cher-cher} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (nothing clever here: this is the ``correct'' hyphenation of the word, in the current tables). However, there's a problem here: just as words with accents in them won't break, so \csx{hyphenation} commands with accents in them produce an error: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[french]{babel} \selectlanguage{french} \hyphenation{r\'e-f\'e-rence} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} tells us that the hyphenation is ``improper'', and that it will be ``flushed''. But, just as hyphenation of words is enabled by selecting an 8-bit font encoding, so \csx{hyphenation} commands are rendered proper again by selecting that same 8-bit font encoding. For the hyphenation patterns provided in the usual distributions, the encoding is \Qref*{Cork}{Q-ECfonts}, so the complete sequence is: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[T1]{fontenc} \usepackage[french]{babel} \selectlanguage{french} \hyphenation{r\'e-f\'e-rence} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The same sort of performance goes for any language for which 8-bit fonts and corresponding hyphenation patterns are available. Since you have to select both the language and the font encoding to have your document typeset correctly, it should not be a great imposition to do the selections before setting up hyphenation exceptions. \subsection{Odds and ends} \Question[Q-logos]{Typesetting all those \TeX{}-related logos} Knuth was making a particular point about the capabilities of \TeX{} when he defined the logo. Unfortunately, many believe, he thereby opened floodgates to give the world a whole range of rather silly `bumpy road' logos such as \AMSTeX{}, \PiCTeX{}, \BibTeX{}, and so on, produced in a flurry of different fonts, sizes, and baselines~--- indeed, everything one might hope to cause them to obstruct the reading process. In particular, Lamport invented \LaTeX{} \htmlignore (silly enough in itself) \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} (silly enough in itself, with a raised small `A' and a lowered `E') \end{htmlversion} and marketing input from Addison-Wesley led to the even stranger current logo \htmlignore \LaTeXe{}. \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \LaTeXe{}, which appends a lowered single-stroke Greek letter epsilon. \end{htmlversion} Sensible users don't have to follow this stuff wherever it goes, but, for those who insist, a large collection of logos is defined in the \Package{texnames} package (but note that this set of macros isn't entirely reliable in \LaTeXe{}). The \MF{} and \MP{} logos can be set in fonts that \LaTeXe{} knows about (so that they scale with the surrounding text) using the \Package{mflogo} package; but be aware that booby-traps surround the use of the Knuthian font for \MP{} (you might get \htmlignore \textlogo{META\hphantom{P}O\hphantom{S}T}). \endhtmlignore % the following htmlversion stuff seems to do roughly what's required, % which is nice, given the feebleness of representing all these silly % logos in html otherwise... \begin{htmlversion} something like `META O T'). \end{htmlversion} You needn't despair, however~--- the author himself uses just `MetaPost'. For those who don't wish to acquire the `proper' logos, the canonical thing to do is to say \texttt{AMS-}\cmdinvoke{TeX}{} \htmlignore (\acro{AMS}-\TeX{}) \endhtmlignore for \AMSTeX{}, \texttt{Pic}\cmdinvoke{TeX}{} \htmlignore (Pic\TeX{}) \endhtmlignore for \PiCTeX{}, \texttt{Bib}\cmdinvoke{TeX}{} \htmlignore (Bib\TeX{}) \endhtmlignore for \BibTeX{}, and so on. While the author of this FAQ list can't quite bring himself to do away with the bumpy-road logos herein, he regularly advises everyone else to\dots{} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[mflogo.sty]\CTANref{mflogo} \item[texnames.sty]\CTANref{texnames} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-bold-extras]{How to do bold-tt or bold-sc} \LaTeX{}, as delivered, offers no means of handling bold ``teletype'' or small-caps fonts. There's a practical reason for this (Knuth never designed such fonts), but there are typographical considerations too (the ``medium weight'' \texttt{cmtt} font is already pretty bold (by comparison with other fixed-width fonts), and bold small-caps is not popular with many professional typographers). There's a set of ``extra'' \MF{} files on \acro{CTAN} that provide bold versions of both \texttt{cmtt} and \texttt{cmcsc} (the small caps font). With modern \TeX{} distributions, one may bring these fonts into use simply by placing them in an % ! line break \Qref*{appropriate place in the \emph{texmf} tree}{Q-wherefiles} (these are \AllTeX{}-specific files, so the ``\emph{public}'' supplier would be an appropriate place). Once you've % ! line break, again \Qref*{rebuilt the file indexes as necessary}{Q-instpackages}, \TeX{} (and friends) will automatically build whatever font files they need when you first make reference to them. There's a jiffy package \Package{bold-extra} that builds the necessary font data structures so that you can use the fonts within \LaTeX{}. Another alternative is to use the \Qref*{\acro{EC} fonts}{Q-ECfonts}, which come with bold variants of the small-caps fonts. If you need to use Type~1 fonts, you can't proceed with Knuth-style fonts, since there are no Type~1 versions of the \Package{mf-extra} set. There are, however, Type~1 distributions of the EC~fonts, so you can switch to EC and use them; alternatives are discussed in \Qref[question]{8-bit Type~1 fonts}{Q-type1T1}. Of course, commercial fixed-width fonts (even the default \FontName{Courier}) almost always come with a bold variant, so that's not a problem. Furthermore \Qref*{\acro{PSNFSS}}{Q-usepsfont} will usually provide ``faked'' small caps fonts, and has no compunctions about providing them in a bold form. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[bold-extra.sty]\CTANref{bold-extra} \item[bold tt and small caps fonts]\CTANref{bold} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-varwidth]{Automatic sizing of \environment{minipage}} The \environment{minipage} environment requires you to specify the width of the ``page'' you're going to create. This is sometimes inconvenient: you would like to occupy less space, if possible, but \environment{minipage} sets a box that is exactly the width you specified. The \Package{pbox} package defines a \csx{pbox} whose width is exactly that of the longest enclosed line, subject to a maximum width that you give it. So while \cmdinvoke{parbox}{2cm}{Hello\bsbs world!} produces a box of width exactly \texttt{2cm}, \cmdinvoke{pbox}{2cm}{Hello\bsbs world!} produces one whose width is \texttt{1.79cm} (if one's using the default \FontName{cmr} font for the text, at least). The package also provides a \cmdinvoke*{settominwidth}[min]{length}{text} (which looks (almost) like the standard \csx{settowidth} command), and a \csx{widthofpbox} function analagous to the \csx{widthof} command for use with the \Package{calc} package. The \Package{eqparbox} package extends \Package{pbox}'s idea, by allowing you to set a series of boxes, all with the same (minimised) width. (Note that it doesn't accept a limiting maximum width parameter.) The package documentation shows the following example drawn from a joke \emph{curriculum vitae}: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \noindent% \eqparbox{place}% {\textbf{Widgets, Inc.}} \hfill \eqparbox{title}% {\textbf{Senior Widget Designer}} \hfill \eqparbox{dates}{\textbf{1/95--present}} ... \noindent% \eqparbox{place}% {\textbf{Thingamabobs, Ltd.}} \hfill \eqparbox{title}% {\textbf{Lead Engineer}} \hfill \eqparbox{dates}{\textbf{9/92--12/94}} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \noindent% \eqparbox{place}{\textbf{Widgets, Inc.}} \hfill \eqparbox{title}{\textbf{Senior Widget Designer}} \hfill \eqparbox{dates}{\textbf{1/95--present}} ... \noindent% \eqparbox{place}{\textbf{Thingamabobs, Ltd.}} \hfill \eqparbox{title}{\textbf{Lead Engineer}} \hfill \eqparbox{dates}{\textbf{9/92--12/94}} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} The code makes the three items on each of the heading lines have exactly the same width, so that the lines as a whole produce a regular pattern down the page. A command \csx{eqboxwidth} allows you to use the measured width of a group: the documentation shows how the command may be used to produce sensible-looking columns that mix \texttt{c}-, \texttt{r}- or \texttt{l}-rows, with the equivalent of a |p{...}| entry, by making the fixed-width rows an \Package{eqparbox} group, and making the last from a \csx{parbox} using the width that's been measured for the group. The \Package{varwidth} package defines a \environment{varwidth} environment which sets the content of the box to match a ``narrower natural width'' if it finds one. (You give it the same parameters as you would give \environment{minipage}: in effect, it is a `drop-in' replacement.) \Package{Varwidth} provides its own ragged text command: \csx{narrowragged}, which aims to make narrower lines and to put more text in the last line of the paragraph (thus producing lines with more nearly equal lengths than typically happens with \csx{raggedright} itself). The documentation (in the package file) lists various restrictions and things still to be done, but the package is already proving useful for a variety of jobs. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[eqparbox.sty]\CTANref{eqparbox} \item[pbox.sty]\CTANref{pbox} \item[varwidth.sty]\CTANref{varwidth} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Symbols, etc.} \Question[Q-numbersets]{Symbols for the number sets} It is a good idea to have commands such as \csx{R} for the real numbers and other standard number sets. Traditionally these were typeset in bold. Because, in the ordinary course of events, mathematicians do not have access to bold chalk, they invented the special symbols that are now often used for \csx{R}, \csx{C}, \emph{etc}. These symbols are known as ``blackboard bold''. Before insisting on using them, consider whether going back to the old system of ordinary bold might not be acceptable (it is certainly simpler). A set of blackboard bold capitals is available in the \acro{AMS} \FontName{msbm} fonts (\FontName{msbm} is available at a range of design sizes, with names such as \FontName{msbm10}). The pair of font families (the other is called \FontName{msam}) have a large number of mathematical symbols to supplement the ones in the standard \TeX{} distribution, and are available in Type~1 format with most modern distributions. Support files for using the fonts, both under Plain~\TeX{} and \LaTeX{} (packages \Package{amssymb} and \Package{amsfonts}), are available. The font shape is a rather austere sans, which many people don't like (though it captures the essence of quickly-chalked writing rather well). The \FontName{bbold} family is set of blackboard bold fonts written in \MF{}. This set offers blackboard bold forms of lower-case letters; the font source directory also contains sources for a \LaTeX{} package that enables use of the fonts. The fonts are not available in Type~1 format. The \FontName{bbm} family claims to provide `blackboard' versions of most of the \FontName{cm} fonts~\dots{} including the bold and bold-extended series. Again, the fonts are designed in \MF{} and are not available in Type~1 format. \LaTeX{} macro support comes from a package by Torsten Hilbrich. The \FontName{doublestroke} family comes in just roman and sans shapes, at a single weight, and is available both as \MF{} sources and as Type~1; the font covers the uppercase latin letters, lowercase `h' and 'k', and the digit `1'. An alternative source of Type~1 fonts with blackboard bold characters may be found in the steadily increasing set of complete families, both commercial and free, that have been prepared for use with \AllTeX{} (see % beware line break \htmlonly{``}\Qref[question]{choice of outline fonts}{Q-psfchoice}\htmlonly{''}). Of the free sets, the \FontName{txfonts} and \FontName{pxfonts} families both come with replicas of \FontName{msam} and \FontName{msbm} (though, as noted elsewhere, there are other reasons not to use these fonts). The \FontName{mathpazo} family includes a ``mathematically significant'' choice of blackboard bold characters, and the \FontName{fourier} fonts contain blackboard bold upper-case letters, the digit `1', and lower-case `k'. The ``lazy person's'' blackboard bold macros: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\R}{{\sf R\hspace*{-0.9ex}% \rule{0.15ex}{1.5ex}\hspace*{0.9ex}}} \newcommand{\N}{{\sf N\hspace*{-1.0ex}% \rule{0.15ex}{1.3ex}\hspace*{1.0ex}}} \newcommand{\Q}{{\sf Q\hspace*{-1.1ex}% \rule{0.15ex}{1.5ex}\hspace*{1.1ex}}} \newcommand{\C}{{\sf C\hspace*{-0.9ex}% \rule{0.15ex}{1.3ex}\hspace*{0.9ex}}} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} are almost acceptable at normal size if the surrounding text is \FontName{cmr10}. However, they are not part of a proper maths font, and so do not work in sub- and superscripts. Moreover, the size and position of the vertical bar can be affected by the font of the surrounding text. As we've seen, there are plenty of alternatives: don't try the macros, or anything similar using capital `I' (which looks even worse!). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[AMS support files (Plain)]\CTANref{amsfonts-plain} \item[AMS support files (LaTeX)]\CTANref{amsfonts-latex} \item[AMS symbol fonts]\CTANref{amsfonts-symbols} \item[AMS symbol fonts in Type~1 format]Browse \CTANref{ams-AMStype1} \item[bbm fonts]\CTANref{bbm} \item[bbm macros]\CTANref{bbm-macros} \item[bbold fonts]\CTANref{bbold} \item[doublestroke fonts]\CTANref{doublestroke} \item[fourier fonts]\CTANref{fourier} \item[mathpazo fonts]\CTANref{mathpazo} \item[pxfonts]\CTANref{pxfonts} \item[txfonts]\CTANref{txfonts} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-scriptfonts]{Better script fonts for maths} The font selected by \csx{mathcal} is the only script font `built in'. However, there are other useful calligraphic fonts included with modern \TeX{} distributions. \begin{description} \item[Euler] The \Package{eucal} package (part of most sensible \TeX{} distributions; the fonts are part of the \acro{AMS} font set) gives a slightly curlier font than the default. The package changes the font that is selected by \csx{mathcal}. Type 1 versions of the fonts are available in the \acro{AMS} fonts distribution. \item[RSFS] The \Package{mathrsfs} package uses a really fancy script font (the name stands for ``Ralph Smith's Formal Script'') which is already part of most modern \TeX{} distributions. The package creates a new command \csx{mathscr}. Type 1 versions of the font have been made available by Taco Hoekwater. \item[Zapf Chancery] is the standard \PS{} calligraphic font. There is no package but you can easily make it available by means of the command \begin{verbatim} \DeclareMathAlphabet{\mathscr}{OT1}{pzc}% {m}{it} \end{verbatim} in your preamble. You may find the font rather too big; if so, you can use a scaled version of it like this: \begin{verbatim} \DeclareFontFamily{OT1}{pzc}{} \DeclareFontShape{OT1}{pzc}{m}{it}% {<-> s * [0.900] pzcmi7t}{} \DeclareMathAlphabet{\mathscr}{OT1}{pzc}% {m}{it} \end{verbatim} Adobe Zapf Chancery (which the above examples use) is distributed in any but the most basic \PS{} printers. A substantially identical font (to the the extent that the same metrics may be used) is available from \acro{URW} and is distributed with \ProgName{ghostscript}. \end{description} Examples of the available styles are available on \acro{CTAN}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[eucal.sty]\CTANref{eucal} \item[euler fonts]\CTANref{amsfonts-euler} \item[euler fonts, in Type 1 format]\CTANref{ams-AMStype1} \item[ghostscript]Browse \CTANref{ghostscript} \item[mathrsfs.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{jknappen-macros} \item[rsfs fonts]\CTANref{rsfs} \item[rsfs fonts, in Type 1 format]\CTANref{rsfs-type1} \item[Script font examples]\CTANref{mathscript} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-boldgreek]{Setting bold Greek letters in \LaTeX{}} The issue here is complicated by the fact that \csx{mathbf} (the command for setting bold \emph{text} in \TeX{} maths) affects a select few mathematical symbols (the uppercase Greek letters). However lower-case Greek letters behave differently from upper-case Greek letters (due to Knuth's esoteric font encoding decisions). However, \csx{mathbf} \emph{can't} be used even for upper-case Greek letters in the \AMSLaTeX{} \Package{amsmath} package, which disables this font-switching and you must use one of the techniques outlined below. The Plain \TeX{} solution \emph{does} work, in a limited way: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} {\boldmath$\theta$} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} but \csx{boldmath} may not be used in maths mode, so this `solution' requires arcana such as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} $... \mbox{\boldmath$\theta$} ...$ \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which then causes problems in superscripts, etc. These problems may be addressed by using a bold mathematics package. \begin{itemize} \item The \Package{bm} package, which is part of the \LaTeX{} tools distribution, defines a command \csx{bm} which may be used anywhere in maths mode. \item The \Package{amsbsy} package (which is part of \AMSLaTeX{}) defines a command \csx{boldsymbol}, which (though slightly less comprehensive than \csx{bm}) covers almost all common cases. \end{itemize} All these solutions cover all mathematical symbols, not merely Greek letters. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[bm.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[amsbsy.sty]Distributed as part of \AMSLaTeX{} \CTANref{amslatex} \item[amsmath.sty]Distributed as part of \AMSLaTeX{} \CTANref{amslatex} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-prinvalint]{The Principal Value Integral symbol} This symbol (an integral sign, `crossed') does not appear in any of the fonts ordinarily available to \AllTeX{} users, but it can be created by use of the following macros: \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\Xint#1{\mathchoice {\XXint\displaystyle\textstyle{#1}}% {\XXint\textstyle\scriptstyle{#1}}% {\XXint\scriptstyle\scriptscriptstyle{#1}}% {\XXint\scriptscriptstyle\scriptscriptstyle{#1}}% \!\int} \def\XXint#1#2#3{{\setbox0=\hbox{$#1{#2#3}{\int}$} \vcenter{\hbox{$#2#3$}}\kern-.5\wd0}} \def\ddashint{\Xint=} \def\dashint{\Xint-} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\Xint#1{\mathchoice {\XXint\displaystyle\textstyle{#1}}% {\XXint\textstyle\scriptstyle{#1}}% {\XXint\scriptstyle\scriptscriptstyle{#1}}% {\XXint\scriptscriptstyle \scriptscriptstyle{#1}}% \!\int} \def\XXint#1#2#3{{% \setbox0=\hbox{$#1{#2#3}{\int}$} \vcenter{\hbox{$#2#3$}}\kern-.5\wd0}} \def\ddashint{\Xint=} \def\dashint{\Xint-} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \csx{dashint} gives a single-dashed integral sign, \csx{ddashint} a double-dashed one. \Question[Q-underscore]{How to use the underscore character} The underscore character \texttt{\symbol{95}} is ordinarily used in \TeX{} to indicate a subscript in maths mode; if you type \texttt{\symbol{95}} in the course of ordinary text, \TeX{} will complain. If you're writing a document which will contain a large number of underscore characters, the prospect of typing \csx{\symbol{95}} (or, worse, \csx{textunderscore}) for every one of them will daunt most ordinary people. Moderately skilled macro programmers can readily generate a quick hack to permit typing \texttt{\symbol{95}} to mean `text underscore'. However, the code \emph{is} somewhat tricky, and more importantly there are significant points where it's easy to get it wrong. There is therefore a package \Package{underscore} which provides a general solution to this requirement. There is a problem, though: \acro{OT}1 text fonts don't contain an underscore character, unless they're in the typewriter version of the encoding (used by fixed-width fonts such as \texttt{cmtt}). So either you must ensure that your underscore characters only occur in text set in a typewriter font, or you must use a fuller encoding, such as \acro{T}1, which has an underscore character in every font. If the requirement is only for occasional uses of underscores, it may be acceptable to use the following construct: \begin{verbatim} \def\us{\char`\_} ... \texttt{create\us process} \end{verbatim} The construction isn't in the least robust (in the normal English sense of the word), but it \emph{is} robust under expansion (i.e., the \LaTeX{} sense of the word); so use it with care, but don't worry about section headings and the like. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[underscore.sty]\CTANref{underscore} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-atsign]{How to type an `@' sign?} Long ago, some packages used to make the `@' sign active, so that special measures were needed to type it. While those packages are still in principle available, few people use them, and those that do use them have ready access to rather good documentation. Ordinary people (such as the author of this \acro{FAQ}) need only type `@'. \Question[Q-euro]{Typesetting the Euro sign} The European currency ``Euro'' is represented by a symbol of somewhat dubious design, but it's an important currency and \AllTeX{} users need to typeset it. Note that the Commission of the European Community at first deemed that the Euro symbol should always be set in a sans-serif font; fortunately, this eccentric ruling has now been rescinded, and one may apply best typesetting efforts to making it appear at least slightly ``respectable'' (typographically). The \acro{TS}1-encoded fonts provided as part of the \acro{EC} font distribution provide Euro glyphs. The fonts are called Text Companion (\acro{TC}) fonts, and offer the same range of faces as do the \acro{EC} fonts themselves. The \Package{textcomp} package provides a \csx{texteuro} command for accessing the symbol, which selects a symbol to match the surrounding text. The design of the symbol in the \acro{TC} fonts is not universally loved\dots{} Nevertheless, use the \acro{TC} font version of the symbol if you are producing documents using Knuth's Computer Modern Fonts. The \Package{latin9} input encoding defined by the \Package{inputenc} package has a euro character defined (character position 164, occupied in other \acro{ISO} Latin character sets by the ``currency symbol''). The encoding uses the command \csx{texteuro} for the character; at present that command is \emph{only} available from the \Package{textcomp} package. There is a MicroSoft code page position, too, but standardisation of such things proceeds via rather different routes and the \LaTeX{} project hasn't yet been given details of the change. Outline fonts which contain nothing but Euro symbols are available (free) from \href{ftp://ftp.adobe.com/pub/adobe/type/win/all/eurofont.exe}{Adobe}\nobreakspace--- the file is packaged as a \ProgName{Windows} self-extracting executable, but it may be decoded as a |.zip| format achive on other operating systems. The \Package{euro} bundle contains metrics, \ProgName{dvips} map files, and macros (for Plain \TeX{} and \LaTeX{}), for using these fonts in documents. \LaTeX{} users will find two packages in the bundle: \Package{eurosans} only offers the sans-serif version (to conform with the obsolete ruling about sans-serif-only symbols; the package provides the command \csx{euro}), whereas \Package{europs} matches the Euro symbol with the surrounding text (providing the command \csx{EUR}). To use either package with the \Package{latin9} encoding, you need to define \csx{texteuro} as an alias for the euro command the package defines. The Adobe fonts are probably the best bet for use in non-Computer Modern environments. They are apparently designed to fit with Adobe Times, Helvetica and Courier, but can probably fit with a wider range of modern fonts. The \Package{eurofont} package provides a compendious analysis of the ``problem of the euro symbol'' in its documentation, and offers macros for configuring the source of the glyphs to be used; however, it seems rather large for everyday use. The \Package{euro-ce} bundle is a rather pleasing \MF{}-only design providing Euro symbols in a number of shapes. The file \File{euro-ce.tex}, in the distribution, offers hints as to how a Plain~\TeX{} user might make use of the fonts. Euro symbols are found in several other places, which we list here for completeness. The \Package{marvosym} fonts contain a Euro symbol among many other good things. %% ; the font on \acro{CTAN} is not Adobe \ProgName{ATM} %% compatible, but a compatible version is available free from %% \href{http://www.YandY.com/download/marvosym.zip}{\YandY{}}. The font %% on \acro{CTAN} comes with a set of macros to typeset all the symbols %% it contains. Other \MF{}-based bundles containing Euro symbols are to be found in \Package{china2e} (whose primary aim is Chinese dates and suchlike matters) and the \Package{eurosym} fonts. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[china2e bundle]\CTANref{china2e} \item[EC fonts]\CTANref{ec} \item[euro fonts]\CTANref{euro-fonts} \item[euro-ce fonts]\CTANref{euro-ce} \item[eurofont.sty]\CTANref{eurofont} \item[eurosym fonts]\CTANref{eurosym} \item[marvosym fonts]\CTANref{marvosym-fonts} \item[textcomp.sty]Part of the \LaTeX{} distribution. \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-tradesyms]{How to get copyright, trademark, etc.} The ``\nothtml{Comprehensive symbol list'' (}% beware line break \Qref{Comprehensive symbol list}{Q-symbols}\latexhtml{)}{''}, lists the symbol commands \csx{textcopyright}, \csx{textregistered} and \csx{texttrademark}, which are available in \acro{TS}1-encoded fonts, and which are enabled using the \Package{textcomp} package. In fact, all three commands are enabled in default \LaTeX{}, but the glyphs you get aren't terribly beautiful. In particular, \csx{textregistered} behaves oddly when included in bold text (for example, in a section heading), since it is composed of a small-caps letter, which typically degrades to a regular shape letter when asked to set in a bold font. This means that the glyph becomes a circled ``r'', whereas the proper symbol is a circled ``R''. This effect is of course avoided by use of \Package{textcomp}. Another problem arises if you want \csx{textregistered} in a superscript position (to look similar to \csx{texttrademark}). Using a maths-mode superscript to do this provokes lots of pointless errors: you \emph{must} use \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \textsuperscript{\textregistered} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Macro programming} \subsection{``Generic'' macros and techniques} \Question[Q-findwidth]{Finding the width of a letter, word, or phrase} Put the word in a box, and measure the width of the box. For example, \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newdimen\stringwidth \setbox0=\hbox{hi} \stringwidth=\wd0 \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Note that if the quantity in the \csx{hbox} is a phrase, the actual measurement only approximates the width that the phrase will occupy in running text, since the inter-word glue can be adjusted in paragraph mode. The same sort of thing is expressed in \LaTeX{} by: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newlength{\gnat} \settowidth{\gnat}{\textbf{small}} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} This sets the value of the length command |\gnat| to the width of ``small'' in bold-face text. \Question[Q-patch]{Patching existing commands} In the general case (possibly sticking something in the middle of an existing command) this is difficult. However, the common requirement, to add some code at the beginning or the end of an existing command, is conceptually quite easy. Suppose we want to define a version of a command that does some small extension of its original definition: we would naturally write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand{\splat}{\mumble\splat} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} However, this would not work: a call to \csx{splat} would execute \csx{mumble}, and the call the redefined \csx{splat} again; this is an infinite recursive loop, that will quickly exhaust \TeX{}'s memory. Fortunately, the \TeX{} primitive \csx{let} command comes to our rescue; it allows us to take a ``snapshot'' of the current state of a command, which we can then use in the redefinition of the command. So: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \let\OldSmooth\smooth \renewcommand{\smooth}{\mumble\OldSmooth} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} effects the required patch, safely. Adding things at the end of a command works similarly. If \csx{smooth} takes arguments, one must pass them on: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand{\smooth}[2]{\mumble\OldSmooth{#1}{#2}} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand{\smooth}[2]% {\mumble\OldSmooth{#1}{#2}} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} The general case may be achieved in two ways. First, one can use the \LaTeX{} command \csx{CheckCommand}; this compares an existing command with the definition you give it, and issues a warning if two don't match. Use is therefore: \begin{quote} |\CheckCommand{\complex}{|\meta{original definition}|}|\\ |\renewcommand{\complex}{|\meta{new definition}|}| \end{quote} This technique is obviously somewhat laborious, but if the original command comes from a source that's liable to change under the control of someone else, it does at least warn you that your patch is in danger of going wrong. Otherwise, \LaTeX{} users may use one of the \Package{patch} or \Package{patchcmd} systems. \Package{Patch} gives you an ingenious (and difficult to understand) mechanism, and comes as an old-style \LaTeX{} documented macro file. Sadly the old-style \Package{doc} macros are no longer available, but the file (\File{patch.doc}) may be input directly, and the documentation may be read (un-typeset). Roughly speaking, one gives the command a set of instructions analagous to \ProgName{sed} substitutions, and it regenerates the command thus amended. The author of this \acro{FAQ} has (slightly reluctantly) given up using \Package{patch}\dots{} The \Package{patchcmd} package addresses a slightly simpler task, by restricting the set of commands that you may patch; you mayn't patch any command that has an optional argument, though it does deal with the case of commands defined with \csx{DeclareRobustCommand}. The package defines a \csx{patchcommand} command, that takes three arguments: the command to patch, stuff to stick at the front of its definition, and stuff to stick on the end of its definition. So, if \csx{b} contains ``|b|'', then \csx{patchcommand}\nothtml{\penalty-150\hskip0pt\relax}\cmdinvoke{b}{a}{c} will produce a new version of \csx{b} that contains ``|abc|''. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[patch.doc]\CTANref{patch} \item[patchcommand.sty]\CTANref{patchcmd} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-compjobnam]{Comparing the ``job name''} The token \csx{jobname} amusingly produces a sequence of characters whose category code is 12 (`other'), regardless of what the characters actually are. Since one inevitably has to compare a macro with the contents of another macro (using \csx{ifx}, somewhere) one needs to create a macro whose expansion looks the same as the expansion of \csx{jobname}. We find we can do this with \csx{meaning}, if we strip the ``\csx{show} command'' prefix. The full command looks like: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\StripPrefix#1>{} \def\jobis#1{FF\fi \def\predicate{#1}% \edef\predicate{\expandafter\StripPrefix\meaning\predicate}% \edef\job{\jobname}% \ifx\job\predicate } \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\StripPrefix#1>{} \def\jobis#1{FF\fi \def\predicate{#1}% \edef\predicate{\expandafter\StripPrefix \meaning\predicate}% \edef\job{\jobname}% \ifx\job\predicate } \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} And it's used as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \if\jobis{mainfile}% \message{YES}% \else \message{NO}% \fi \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Note that the command \csx{StripPrefix} need not be defined if you're using \LaTeX{}~--- there's already an % line break! \Qref*{internal command}{Q-atsigns} \csx{strip@prefix} that you can use. \Question[Q-isitanum]{Is the argument a number?} \TeX{}'s own lexical analysis doesn't offer the macro programmer terribly much support: while category codes will distinguish letters (or what \TeX{} currently thinks of as letters) from everything else, there's no support for analysing numbers. The simple-minded solution is to compare numeric characters with the characters of the argument, one by one, by a sequence of direct tests, and to declare the argument ``not a number'' if any character fails all comparisons: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \ifx1#1 \else\ifx2#1 ... \else\ifx9#1 \else\isanumfalse \fi\fi...\fi \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which one would then use in a tail-recursing macro to gobble an argument. One could do slightly better by assuming (pretty safely) that the digits' character codes are consecutive: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \ifnum`#1<`0 \isanumfalse \else\ifnum`#1>`9 \isanumfalse \fi \fi \end{verbatim} \end{quote} again used in tail-recursion. However, these forms aren't very satisfactory: getting the recursion ``right'' is troublesome (it has a tendency to gobble spaces in the argument), and in any case \TeX{} itself has mechanisms for reading numbers, and it would be nice to use them. Donald Arseneau's \Package{cite} package offers the following test for an argument being a strictly positive integer: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\IsPositive#1{% TT\fi \ifcat_\ifnum0<0#1 _\else A\fi } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which can be adapted to a test for a non-negative integer thus: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\IsNonNegative{% \ifcat_\ifnum9<1#1 _\else A\fi } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} or a test for any integer: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\gobbleminus#1{\ifx-#1\else#1\fi} \def\IsInteger#1{% TT\fi \ifcat_\ifnum9<1\gobbleminus#1 _\else A\fi } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} but this surely stretches the technique further than is reasonable. If we don't care about the sign, we can use \TeX{} to remove the entire number (sign and all) from the input stream, and then look at what's left: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\testnum#1{\afterassignment\testresult \count255=#1 \end} \def\testresult#1\end{\ifx\end#1\end} \def\IsInteger#1{TT\fi \testnum{#1}} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\testnum#1{\afterassignment\testresult\count255=#1 \end} \def\testresult#1\end{\ifx\end#1\end\isanumtrue\else\isanumfalse\fi} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} (which technique is due to David Kastrup); this can provoke errors. In a later thread on the same topic, Michael Downes offered: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\IsInteger#1{% TT\fi \begingroup \lccode`\-=`\0 \lccode`+=`\0 \lccode`\1=`\0 \lccode`\2=`\0 \lccode`\3=`\0 \lccode`\4=`\0 \lccode`\5=`\0 \lccode`\6=`\0 \lccode`\7=`\0 \lccode`\8=`\0 \lccode`\9=`\0 \lowercase{\endgroup \expandafter\ifx\expandafter\delimiter \romannumeral0\string#1}\delimiter } \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\IsInteger#1{% TT\fi \begingroup \lccode`\-=`\0 \lccode`+=`\0 \lccode`\1=`\0 \lccode`\2=`\0 \lccode`\3=`\0 \lccode`\4=`\0 \lccode`\5=`\0 \lccode`\6=`\0 \lccode`\7=`\0 \lccode`\8=`\0 \lccode`\9=`\0 \lowercase{\endgroup \expandafter\ifx\expandafter\delimiter \romannumeral0\string#1}\delimiter } \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} which relies on \csx{romannumeral} producing an empty result if its argument is zero. Sadly, this technique has the unfortunate property that it accepts simple expressions such as `\texttt{1+2-3}'; this could be solved by an initial \csx{gobbleminus}-like construction. All the complete functions above are designed to be used in \TeX{} conditionals written ``naturally''~--- for example: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \if\IsInteger{}% % \else % \fi \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \LaTeX{} \Class{memoir} class has an internal command of its own, \cmdinvoke*{checkifinteger}{num}, that sets the conditional command \csx{ifinteger} according to whether the argument was an integer. Of course, all this kerfuffle would be (essentially) void if there was a simple means of ``catching'' \TeX{} errors. Imagining an error-catching primitive \csx{ifnoerror}, one might write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\IsInteger#1{% TT% \ifnoerror \tempcount=#1\relax % carries on if no error \expandafter\iftrue \else % here if there was an error \expandafter\iffalse \fi } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} thus using \TeX{}'s own integer-parsing code to do the check. It's a pity that such a mechanism was never defined (it could be that it's impossible to program within \TeX{}!). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-hash]{Defining macros within macros} The way to think of this is that |##| gets replaced by |#| in just the same way that |#1| gets replaced by `whatever is the first argument'. So if you define a macro and use it as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\a#1{+++#1+++#1+++#1+++} \a{b} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} the macro expansion produces `+++b+++b+++b+++', which people find normal. However, if we now replace part of the macro: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\a#1{+++#1+++\def\x #1{xxx#1}} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \cmdinvoke{a}{b} will expand to `+++b+++|\def\x b{xxxb}|'. This defines \csx{x} to be a macro \emph{delimited} by |b|, and taking no arguments, which people may find strange, even though it is just a specialisation of the example above. If you want \csx{a} to define \csx{x} to be a macro with one argument, you need to write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\a#1{+++#1+++\def\x ##1{xxx##1}} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and \csx{a{b}} will expand to `+++b+++|\def\x #1{xxx#1}|', because |#1| gets replaced by `b' and |##| gets replaced by |#|. To nest a definition inside a definition inside a definition then you need |####1|, as at each stage |##| is replaced by |#|. At the next level you need 8~|#|s each time, and so on. \Question[Q-spinmacro]{Spaces in macros} It's very easy to write macros that produce space in the typeset output where it's neither desired nor expected. Spaces introduced by macros are particularly insidious because they don't amalgamate with spaces around the macro (unlike consecutive spaces that you type), so your output can have a single bloated space that proves to be made up of two or even more spaces that haven't amalgamated. And of course, your output can also have a space where none was wanted at all. Spaces are produced, inside a macro as elsewhere, by space or tab characters, or by end-of-line characters. There are two basic rules to remember when writing a macro: first, the rules for ignoring spaces when you're typing macros are just the same as the rules that apply when you're typing ordinary text, and second, rules for ignoring spaces do \emph{not} apply to spaces produced while a macro is being obeyed (``expanded''). Spaces are ignored in vertical mode (between paragraphs), at the beginning of a line, and after a command name. Since sequences of spaces are collapsed into one, it `feels as if' spaces are ignored if they follow another space. Space can have syntactic meaning after certain sorts of non-braced arguments (e.g., \emph{count} and \emph{dimen} variable assignments in Plain \TeX{}) and after certain control words (e.g., in \csx{hbox} |to|, so again we have instances where it `feels as if' spaces are being ignored when they're merely working quietly for their living. Consider the following macro, fairly faithfully adapted from one that appeared on \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex}: \begin{narrowversion} \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\stline}[1] { \bigskip \makebox[2cm]{ \textbf{#1} } } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (the original appeared on a single line: it's wrapped here to fit in the printed \acro{FAQ}'s narrow columns). \noindent \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\stline}[1]{ \bigskip \makebox[2cm]{ \textbf{#1} } } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \end{wideversion} The macro definition contains five spaces: \begin{itemize} \item after the opening |{| of the macro body; this space will be ignored, not because ``because the macro appears at the start of a line'', but rather because the macro was designed to operate between paragraphs \item after \csx{bigskip}; this space will be ignored (while the macro is being defined) because it follows a command name \item after the |{| of the mandatory argument of \csx{makebox}; even though this space will inevitably appear at the start of an output line, it will \emph{not} be ignored \item after the |}| closing the argument of \csx{textbf}; this space will not be ignored, but may be overlooked if the argument is well within the |2cm| allowed for it \item after the |}| closing the mandatory argument of \csx{makebox}; this space will not be ignored \end{itemize} The original author of the macro had been concerned that the starts of his lines with this macro in them were not at the left margin, and that the text appearing after the macro wasn't always properly aligned. These problems arose from the space at the start of the mandatory argument of \csx{makebox} and the space immediately after the same argument. He had written his macro in that way to emphasise the meaning of its various parts; unfortunately the meaning was rather lost in the problems the macro caused. The principal technique for suppressing spaces is the use of \texttt{\textpercent} characters: everything after a \texttt{\textpercent} is ignored, even the end of line itself (so that not even the end of line can contribute an unwanted space). The secondary technique is to ensure that the end of line is preceded by a command name (since the end of line behaves like a space, it will be ignored following a command name). Thus the above command would be written (by an experienced programmer with a similar eye to emphasising the structure): \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\stline}[1]{% \bigskip \makebox[2cm]{% \textbf{#1}\relax }% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Care has been taken to ensure that every space in the revised definition is ignored, so none appears in the output. The revised definition takes the ``belt and braces'' approach, explicitly dealing with every line ending (although, as noted above, a space introduced at the end of the first line of the macro would have been ignored in actual use of the macro. This is the best technique, in fact~--- it's easier to blindly suppress spaces than to analyse at every point whether you actually need to. Three techniques were used to suppress spaces: \begin{itemize} \item placing a \texttt{\textpercent} character at the end of a line (as in the 1st, 3rd and 5th lines), \item ending a line `naturally' with a control sequence, as in line 2, and \item ending a line with an `artificial' control sequence, as in line 4; the control sequence in this case (\csx{relax}) is a no-op in many circumstances (as here), but this usage is deprecated~--- a \texttt{\textpercent} character would have been better. \end{itemize} Beware of the (common) temptation to place a space \emph{before} a \texttt{\textpercent} character: if you do this you might as well omit the \texttt{\textpercent} altogether. In ``real life'', of course, the spaces that appear in macros are far more cryptic than those in the example above. The most common spaces arise from unprotected line ends, and this is an error that occasionally appears even in macros written by the most accomplished programmers. \Question[Q-moren9]{How to break the 9-argument limit} If you think about it, you will realise that Knuth's command definition syntax: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\blah#1#2 ... #9{} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} is intrinsically limited to just 9 arguments. There's no direct way round this: how would you express a 10th argument?~--- and ensure that the syntax didn't gobble some other valid usage? If you really must have more than 9 arguments, the way to go is: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\blah#1#2 ... #9{% \def\ArgI{{#1}}% \def\ArgII{{#2}}% ... \def\ArgIX{{#9}}% \BlahRelay } \def\BlahRelay#1#2#3{% % arguments 1-9 are now in % \ArgI-\ArgIX % arguments 10-12 are in % #1-#3 % } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} This technique is easily extendible by concert pianists of the \TeX{} keyboard, but is really hard to recommend. \LaTeX{} users have the small convenience of merely giving a number of arguments in the \csx{newcommand} that defines each part of the relaying mechanism: Knuth's restriction applies to \csx{newcommand} just as it does to \csx{def}. However, \LaTeX{} users also have the way out of such barbarous command syntax: the \Package{keyval} package. With \Package{keyval}, and a bit of programming, one can write really quite sophisticated commands, whose invocation might look like: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \flowerinstance{species=Primula veris, family=Primulaceae, location=Coldham's Common, locationtype=Common grazing land, date=1995/04/24, numplants=50, soiltype=alkaline } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The merit of such verbosity is that it is self-explanatory: the typist doesn't have to remember that argument twelve is |soiltype|, and so on: the commands may be copied from field notes quickly and accurately. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[keyval.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{graphics} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-activechars]{Defining characters as macros} Single characters can act as macros (defined commands), and both Plain~\TeX{} and \LaTeX{} define the character ``\texttt{\textasciitilde}'' as a ``non-breakable space''. A character is made definable, or ``active'', by setting its \emph{category code} (catcode) to be \csx{active} (13): |\catcode`_=\active|. Any character could, in principle, be activated this way and defined as a macro (|\def_{|\csx{\symbol{95}}|}|~--- the simple answer to % beware line break \Qref[question]{using underscores}{Q-underscore}), but you must be wary: whereas people expect an active tilde, other active characters may be unexpected and interact badly with other macros. Furthermore, by defining an active character, you preclude the character's use for other purposes, and there are few characters ``free'' to be subverted in this way. To define the character ``|z|'' as a command, one would say something like: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \catcode`\z=\active \def z{Yawn, I'm tired}% \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and each subsequent ``|z|'' in the text would become a yawn. This would be an astoundingly bad idea for most documents, but might have special applications. (Note that, in ``|\def z|'', ``|z|'' is no longer interpreted as a letter; the space is therefore not necessary~--- ``|\defz|'' would do; we choose to retain the space, for what little clarity we can manage.) Some \LaTeX{} packages facilitate such definitions. For example, the \Package{shortvrb} package with its \csx{MakeShortVerb} command. \TeX{} uses category codes to interpret characters as they are read from the input. % beware line break \emph{Changing a catcode value will not affect characters that have already been read}. Therefore, it is best if characters have fixed category codes for the duration of a document. If catcodes are changed for particular purposes (the \csx{verb} command does this), then the altered characters will not be interpreted properly when they appear in the argument to another command (as, for example, in % beware line-break \htmlonly{``}\Qref[question]{\csx{verb} in command arguments}{Q-verbwithin}\htmlonly{''}). An exemplary case is the \Package{doc} package, which processes .dtx files using the \Package{shortvrb} package to define \texttt{\textbar\dots{}\textbar} as a shorthand for \csx{verb}\texttt{\textbar\dots{}\textbar}. But \texttt{\textbar} is also used in the preambles of tabular environments, so that tables in |.dtx| files can only have vertical line separation between columns by employing special measures of some sort. Another consequence is that catcode assignments made in macros often don't work as expected % beware linebreak (\htmlonly{see ``}\Qref{Active characters in command arguments}{Q-actinarg}\htmlonly{''}). For example, the definition \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\mistake{% \catcode`_=\active \def_{\textunderscore\-}% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} does not work because it attemts to define an ordinary |_| character: When the macro is used, the category change does not apply to the underscore character already in the macro definition. Instead, one may use: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begingroup \catcode`_=\active \gdef\works{% note the global \gdef \catcode`_=\active \def_{\textunderscore\-}% } \endgroup \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The alternative (``tricksy'') way of creating such an isolated definition depends on the curious properties of \csx{lowercase}, which changes characters without altering their catcodes. Since there is always \emph{one} active character (``\texttt{\textasciitilde}''), we can fool \csx{lowercase} into patching up a definition without ever explicitly changing a catcode: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begingroup \lccode`\~=`\_ \lowercase{\endgroup \def~{\textunderscore\-}% }% \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The two definitions have the same overall effect (the character is defined as a command, but the character does not remain active), except that the first defines a \csx{global} command. For active characters to be used only in maths mode, it is much better to leave the character having its ordinary catcode, but assign it a special active \emph{maths code}, as with \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begingroup \lccode`~=`x \lowercase{\endgroup \def~{\times}% }% \mathcode`x="8000 \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The special character does not need to be redefined whenever it is made active~--- the definition of the command persists even if the character's catcode reverts to its original value; the definition becomes accessible again if the character once again becomes active. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[doc.sty]Distributed as part of the source of \LaTeX{}, \CTANref{latex} \item[shortvrb.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-actinarg]{Active characters in command arguments} Occasionally, it's nice to make one or two characters active in the argument of a command, to make it easier for authors to code the arguments. Active characters \emph{can} be used safely in such situations; but care is needed. An example arose while this answer was being considered: an aspirant macro writer posted to \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex} asking for help to make |#| and |b| produce musical sharp and flat signs, respectively, in a macro for specifying chords. The first problem is that both |#| and |b| have rather important uses elsewhere in \TeX{} (to say the least!), so that the characters can only be made active while the command is executing. Using the techniques discussed in % beware line break, next line \htmlonly{``}\Qref[question]{characters as commands}{Q-activechars}\htmlonly{''}, we can define: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begingroup \catcode`\#=\active \gdef#{$\sharp$} \endgroup \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begingroup \lccode`\~=`\b \lowercase{\endgroup \def~{$\flat$}% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The second problem is one of timing: the command has to make each character active \emph{before} its arguments are read: this means that the command can't actually ``have'' arguments itself, but must be split in two. So we write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\chord{% \begingroup \catcode`\#=\active \catcode`\b=\active \Xchord } \def\Xchord#1{% \chordfont#1% \endgroup } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and we can use the command as \cmdinvoke{chord}{F\#} or \cmdinvoke{chord}{Bb minor}. Two features of the coding are important: \begin{itemize} \item \csx{begingroup} in \csx{chord} opens a group that is closed by \csx{endgroup} in \csx{Xchord}; this group limits the change of category codes, which is the \emph{raison d'\^etre} of the whole exercise. \item Although |#| is active while \csx{Xchord} is executed, it's \emph{not} active when it's being defined, so that the use of |#1| doesn't require any special attention. \end{itemize} Note that the technique used in such macros as \csx{chord}, here, is analagous to that used in such commands as \csx{verb}; and, in just the same way as \csx{verb} (see % beware breaking long line \htmlonly{``}\Qref[question]{\csx{verb} doesn't work in arguments}{Q-verbwithin}\htmlonly{''}), \csx{chord} won't work inside the argument of another command (the error messages, if they appear at all, will probably be rather odd). \Question[Q-csname]{Defining a macro from an argument} It's common to want a command to create another command: often one wants the new command's name to derive from an argument. \LaTeX{} does this all the time: for example, \csx{newenvironment} creates start- and end-environment commands whose names are derived from the name of the environment command. The (seemingly) obvious approach: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\relay#1#2{\def\#1{#2}} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} doesn't work (the \TeX{} engine interprets it as a rather strange redefinition of |\#|). The trick is to use \csx{csname}, which is a \TeX{} primitive for generating command names from random text, together with \csx{expandafter}. The definition above should read: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\relay#1#2{% \expandafter\def\csname #1\endcsname{#2}% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} With this definition, \cmdinvoke{relay}{blah}{bleah} is equivalent to \csx{def}\cmdinvoke{blah}{bleah}. Note that the definition of \csx{relay} omits the braces round the `command name' in the \csx{newcommand} it executes. This is because they're not necessary (in fact they seldom are), and in this circumstance they make the macro code slightly more tedious. The name created need not (of course) be \emph{just} the argument: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\newrace#1#2#3{\expandafter\def \csname start#1\endcsname{% #2% }% \expandafter\def \csname finish#1\endcsname{% #3% }% } \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\newrace#1#2#3{% \expandafter\def\csname start#1\endcsname{% #2% }% \expandafter\def\csname finish#1\endcsname{% #3% }% } \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} With commands \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\start#1{\csname start#1\endcsname} \def\finish#1{\csname finish#1\endcsname} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} these `races' could behave a bit like \LaTeX{} environments. \Question[Q-cvtlatex]{Transcribing \LaTeX{} command definitions} At several places in this \acro{FAQ}, questions are answered in terms of how to program a \LaTeX{} macro. Sometimes, these macros might also help users of Plain \TeX{} or other packages; this answer attempts to provide a rough-and-ready guide to transcribing such macro definitions for use in other packages. The reason \LaTeX{} has commands that replace \csx{def}, is that there's a general philosophy within \LaTeX{} that the user should be protected from himself: the user has different commands according to whether the command to be defined exists (\csx{renewcommand}) or not (\csx{newcommand}), and if its status proves not as the user expected, an error is reported. A third definition command, \csx{providecommand}, only defines if the target is not already defined; \LaTeX{} has no direct equivalent of \csx{def}, which ignores the present state of the command. The final command of this sort is \csx{DeclareRobustCommand}, which creates a command which is ``robust'' (i.e., will not expand if subjected to \LaTeX{} ``protected expansion''); from the Plain~\TeX{} user's point of view, \csx{DeclareRobustCommand} should be treated as a non-checking version of \csx{newcommand}. \LaTeX{} commands are, by default, defined \csx{long}; an optional \texttt{*} between the \csx{newcommand} and its (other) arguments specifies that the command is \emph{not} to be defined \csx{long}. The \texttt{*} is detected by a command \csx{@ifstar} which uses \csx{futurelet} to switch between two branches, and gobbles the \texttt{*}: \LaTeX{} users are encouraged to think of the \texttt{*} as part of the command name. \LaTeX{}'s checks for unknown command are done by \csx{ifx} comparison of a \csx{csname} construction with \csx{relax}; since the command name argument is the desired control sequence name, this proves a little long-winded. Since \texttt{\#1} is the requisite argument, we have: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \expandafter\ifx \csname \expandafter\@gobble\string#1% \endcsname \relax ... \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \expandafter\ifx \csname\expandafter\@gobble\string#1\endcsname \relax ... \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} (\csx{@gobble} simply throws away its argument). The arguments of a \LaTeX{} command are specified by two optional arguments to the defining command: a count of arguments (0--9: if the count is 0, the optional count argument may be omitted), and a default value for the first argument, if the defined command's first argument is to be optional. So: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand\foo{...} \newcommand\foo[0]{...} \newcommand\foo[1]{...#1...} \newcommand\foo[2][boo]{...#1...#2...} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} In the last case, \csx{foo} may be called as \cmdinvoke{foo}{goodbye}, which is equivalent to \cmdinvoke{foo}[boo]{goodbye} (employing the default value given for the first argument), or as \cmdinvoke{foo}[hello]{goodbye} (with an explicit first argument). Coding of commands with optional arguments is exemplified by the coding of the last \csx{foo} above: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\foo{\futurelet\next\@r@foo} \def\@r@foo{\ifx\next[% \let\next\@x@foo \else \def\next{\@x@foo[boo]}% \fi \next } \def\@x@foo[#1]#2{...#1...#2...} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \Question[Q-empty]{Detecting that something is empty} Suppose you need to know that the argument of your command is empty: that is, to distinguish between \cmdinvoke{cmd}{\relax} % \relax doesn't print and \cmdinvoke{cmd}{blah}. This is pretty simple: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \def\cmd#1{% \def\tempa{}% \def\tempb{#1}% \ifx\tempa\tempb \else \fi } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The case where you want to ignore an argument that consists of nothing but spaces, rather than something completely empty, is more tricky. It's solved in the code fragment \Package{ifmtarg}, which defines commands \csx{@ifmtarg} and \csx{@ifnotmtarg}, which distinguish (in opposite directions) between a second and third argument. The package's code also appears in the \LaTeX{} \Class{memoir} class. \Package{Ifmtarg} makes challenging reading; there's also a discussion of the issue in number two of the ``around the bend'' articles by the late lamented Mike Downes. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Around the bend series]\CTANref{aro-bend} \item[ifmtarg.sty]\CTANref{ifmtarg} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-ifpdf]{Am I using \PDFTeX{}?} It's often useful to know whether your macros are operating within \PDFTeX{} or within (``normal'') \TeX{}; getting the right answer is surprisingly tricky. Suppose you need to test whether your output will be \acro{PDF} or \acro{DVI}. The natural thing is to check whether you have access to some \PDFTeX{}-only primitive; a good one to try (not least because it was present in the very first releases of \PDFTeX{}) is \csx{pdfoutput}. So you try \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \ifx\pdfoutput\undefined \else \fi \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Except that neither branch of this conditional is rock-solid. The first branch can be misleading, since the ``awkward'' user could have written: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \let\pdfoutput\undefined \end{verbatim} \end{quote} so that your test will falsely choose the first alternative. While this is a theoretical problem, it is unlikely to be a major one. More important is the user who loads a package that uses \LaTeX{}-style testing for the command name's existence (for example, the \LaTeX{} \Package{graphics} package, which is useful even to the Plain~\TeX{} user). Such a package may have gone ahead of you, so the test may need to be elaborated: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \ifx\pdfoutput\undefined \else \ifx\pdfoutput\relax \else \fi \fi \end{verbatim} \end{quote} If you only want to know whether some \PDFTeX{} extension (such as marginal kerning) is present, you can stop at this point: you know as much as you need. However, if you need to know whether you're creating \acro{PDF} output, you also need to know about the value of \csx{pdfoutput}: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \ifx\pdfoutput\undefined \else \ifx\pdfoutput\relax \else \ifnum\pdfoutput>0 <...PDF output> \else <...DVI output> \fi \fi \fi \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The above is, in essence, what Heiko Oberdiek's \Package{ifpdf} package does; the reasoning is the \acro{FAQ}'s interpretation of Heiko's explanation. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ifpdf.sty]Distributed with Heiko Oberdiek's packages \CTANref{oberdiek} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-subverttoks]{Subverting a token register} A common requirement is to ``subvert'' a token register that other macros may use. The requirement arises when you want to add something to a system token register (\csx{output} or \csx{every*}), but know that other macros use the token register, too. (A common requirement is to work on \csx{everypar}, but \LaTeX{} changes \csx{everypar} at every touch and turn.) The following technique, due to David Kastrup, does what you need, and allows an independent package to play the exact same game: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \let\mypkg@@everypar\everypar \newtoks\mypkg@everypar \mypkg@everypar\expandafter{\the\everypar} \mypkg@@everypar{\mypkgs@ownstuff\the\mypkg@everypar} \def\mypkgs@ownstuff{% % } \let\everypar\mypkg@everypar \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \let\mypkg@@everypar\everypar \newtoks\mypkg@everypar \mypkg@everypar\expandafter{\the\everypar} \mypkg@@everypar{\mypkgs@ownstuff \the\mypkg@everypar} \def\mypkgs@ownstuff{% % } \let\everypar\mypkg@everypar \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} As you can see, the package (\Package{mypkg}) \begin{itemize} \item creates an alias for the existing ``system'' \csx{everypar} (which is frozen into any surrounding environment, which will carry on using the original); \item creates a token register to subvert \csx{everypar} and initialises it with the current contents of \csx{everypar}; \item sets the ``old'' \csx{everypar} to execute its own extra code, as well as the contents of its own token register; \item defines the macro for the extra code; and \item points the token \csx{everypar} at the new token register. \end{itemize} and away we go. The form \csx{mypkg@...} is (sort of) blessed for \LaTeX{} package internal names, which is why this example uses macros of that form. \subsection{\LaTeX{} macro tools and techniques} \Question[Q-plninltx]{Using Plain or primitive commands in \LaTeX{}} It's well-known that \LaTeX{} commands tend to be more complex, and to run more slowly than, any Plain (or primitive) command that they replace. There is therefore great temptation not to use \LaTeX{} commands when macro programming. Nevertheless, the general rule is that you should use \LaTeX{} commands, if there are seeming equivalents. The exception is when you are sure you know the differences between the two commands and you know that you need the Plain version. So, for example, use \csx{mbox} in place of \csx{hbox} unless you know that the extras that \LaTeX{} provides in \csx{mbox} would cause trouble in your application. Similarly, use \csx{newcommand} (or one of its relatives) unless you need one of the constructs that cannot be achieved without the use of \csx{def} (or friends). As a general rule, any \LaTeX{} text command will start a new paragraph if necessary; this isn't the case with Plain \TeX{} commands, a fact which has a potential to confuse. The commands \csx{smallskip}, \csx{medskip} and \csx{bigskip} exist both in Plain \TeX{} and \LaTeX{}, but behave slightly differently: in Plain \TeX{} they terminate the current paragraph, but in \LaTeX{} they don't. The command \csx{line} is part of picture mode in \LaTeX{}, whereas it's defined as ``\csx{hbox}\texttt{ to }\csx{hsize}'' in Plain \TeX{}. (There's no equivalent for users of the Plain \TeX{} command in \LaTeX{}: an equivalent appears as the internal command \csx{@@line}). Maths setting shows a case where the \LaTeX{} version \emph{is} essentially equivalent to the \TeX{} primitive commands: the \LaTeX{} \csx{(}\texttt{\ ...\ }\csx{)} does essentially no different to the \TeX{} \texttt{\$\ ...\ \$} (except for checking that you're not attempting to open a maths environment when you're already in one, or vice versa). % ! line break However, \csx{[}\texttt{\ ...\ }\csx{]} \emph{isn't} the same as \texttt{\$\$\ ...\ \$\$}: the \TeX{} version, used in \LaTeX{}, contrives to miss the effect of the class option \pkgoption{fleqn}. Font handling is, of course, wildly different in Plain \TeX{} and \LaTeX{}: even the \LaTeX{} equivalent of the Plain \TeX{} font-loading command (\csx{newfont}) should be avoided wherever possible: the possibilities of confusion with constructs that vary their behaviour according to the font size that \LaTeX{} has recorded are (sadly) legion. A really rather funny example is to be had by saying: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \documentclass{article} \begin{document} \font \myfont=cmr17 scaled 2000 \myfont \LaTeX \end{document} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (the reader is encouraged to try this). The ``A'' of \LaTeX{} has pretty much disappeared: \LaTeX{} sets the ``A'' according to \emph{its} idea of the font size (10pt), but ``\csx{myfont}'' is more than three times that size. Another ``\csx{myfont}'' example arises from an entirely different source. The mini-document: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \documentclass{article} \begin{document} \font \myfont=ecrm1000 {\myfont par\`a} \end{document} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} gives you ``German low double quotes'' in place of the grave accent. This problem arises because \FontName{ecrm1000} is in a different \Qref*{font encoding}{Q-whatenc} than \LaTeX{} is expecting~--- if you use \LaTeX{} font commands, all the tiresome encoding issues are solved for you, behind the scenes. So, whether you're dealing with a one-off font or a major new family, you are far more likely to be satisfied with the \LaTeX{} file selection system, so it's worth investing a small amount of effort to write declarations of the font's family and how it should be loaded. For details of the commands you need, see the \LaTeX{} font usage guide, \File{fntguide}: this may be viewed on the archive, but you should find a copy of the document in your own system. %% %% Consider \csx{vskip} (or Plain \TeX{} users of it like \csx{medskip}) %% \emph{vs}.\nothtml{\@} \csx{vspace} or \csx{vspace*}, but most %% especially \csx{addvspace}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fntguide.pdf]\CTANref{fntguide.pdf} \item[fntguide.tex]Distributed with \CTANref{latex} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-atsigns]{\csx{@} and \texttt{@} in macro names} Macro names containing \texttt{@} are \emph{internal} to \LaTeX{}, and without special treatment just don't work in ordinary use. An exemplar of the problems caused is discussed in % ! beware line break \htmlonly{``}\Qref[question]{\csx{@} in vertical mode}{Q-atvert}\htmlonly{''}. The problems users see are caused by copying bits of a class (|.cls| file) or package (|.sty| file) into a document, or by including a class or package file into a \LaTeX{} document by some means other than \csx{documentclass} or \csx{usepackage}. \LaTeX{} defines internal commands whose names contain the character |@| to avoid clashes between its internal names and names that we would normally use in our documents. In order that these commands may work at all, \csx{documentclass} and \csx{usepackage} play around with the meaning of |@|. If you've included a file wrongly, you solve the problem by using the correct command. If you're using a fragment of a package or class, you may well feel confused: books such as \Qref*{\emph{The \LaTeX{} Companion}}{Q-books} are full of fragments of packages as examples for you to employ. For example, there's a lengthy section in \emph{The Companion} about \csx{@startsection} and how to use it to control the appearance of section titles. Page~15 discusses the problem; and suggests that you make such changes in the document preamble, between \csx{makeatletter} and \csx{makeatother}. So the redefinition of \csx{subsection} on page~26 could be: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \makeatletter \renewcommand{\subsection}{\@startsection {subsection}% % name ... {\normalfont\normalsize\itshape}}% style \makeatother \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The alternative is to treat all these fragments as a package proper, bundling them up into a \texttt{.sty} file and including them with \csx{usepackage}. (This approach is marginally preferable, from the \LaTeX{} purist's point of view.) \Question[Q-protect]{What's the reason for `protection'?} Sometimes \LaTeX{} saves data it will reread later. These data are often the argument of some command; they are the so-called moving arguments. (`Moving' because data are moved around.) Places to look for are all arguments that may go into table of contents, list of figures, \emph{etc}.; namely, data that are written to an auxiliary file and read in later. Other places are those data that might appear in head- or footlines. Section headings and figure captions are the most prominent examples; there's a complete list in Lamport's book (see \Qref[question]{\TeX{}-related books}{Q-books}). %You don't want to care about this stuff? Simply |\protect| all %\LaTeX{} commands within these moving arguments. What's going on really, behind the scenes? The commands in the moving arguments are already expanded to their internal structure during the process of saving. Sometimes this expansion results in invalid \TeX{} code when processed again. ``\csx{protect}\csx{cmd}'' tells \LaTeX{} to save \csx{cmd} as \csx{cmd}, without expansion. What is a `fragile command'? It's a command that expands into illegal \TeX{} code during the save process. What is a `robust command'? It's a command that expands into legal \TeX{} code during the save process. Again, commands are marked as `robust' or `fragile', as they're defined in Lamport's book. Sadly, some commands are robust in \LaTeX{} itself, but are redefined by some packages to be fragile; the \csx{cite} command commonly suffers this treatment. No-one (of course) likes this situation; the \LaTeX{}3 team have removed the need for protection of some things in the production of \LaTeXe{}, but the techniques available to them within current \LaTeX{} mean that this is an expensive exercise. It remains a long-term aim of the team to remove all need for these things. \Question[Q-edef]{\csx{edef} does not work with \csx{protect}} Robust \LaTeX{} commands are either ``naturally robust''~--- meaning that they never need \csx{protect}, or ``self-protected''~--- meaning that they have \csx{protect} built in to their definition in some way. Self-protected commands are robust only in a context where the \csx{protect} mechanism is properly handled. The body of an \csx{edef} definition doesn't handle \csx{protect} properly, since \csx{edef} is a \TeX{} primitive rather than a \LaTeX{} command. This problem is resolved by a \LaTeX{} internal command \csx{protected@edef}, which does the job of \csx{edef} while keeping the \csx{protect} mechanism working. There's a corresponding \csx{protected@xdef} which does the job of \csx{xdef}. Of course, these commands need to be tended carefully, since they're % beware line break on next line internal: see \Qref[question]{'@' in control sequence names}{Q-atsigns}. \Question[Q-ltxcmds]{The definitions of \LaTeX{} commands} There are several reasons to want to know the definitions of \LaTeX{} commands: from the simplest ``idle curiosity'', to the pressing need to patch something to make it ``work the way you want it''. None of these are \emph{pure} motives, but knowledge and expertise seldom arrive through the purest of motives. The simple answer is to try \csx{show}, in a run of \LaTeX{} that is taking commands from the terminal: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} *\show\protected@edef > \protected@edef=macro: ->\let \@@protect \protect \let \protect \@unexpandable@protect \afterassignment \restore@protect \edef . \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (I've rearranged the output there, from the rather confused version \TeX{} itself produces.) We may perhaps, now, wonder about \csx{@unexpandable@protect}: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} *\show\@unexpandable@protect > \@unexpandable@protect=macro: ->\noexpand \protect \noexpand . \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and we're starting to see how one part of the \csx{protect}ion mechanism works (one can probably fairly safely guess what \csx{restore@protect} does). Many kernel commands are declared robust: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} *\show\texttt > \texttt=macro: ->\protect \texttt . \end{verbatim} \end{quote} so that \csx{show} isn't much help. Define a command \csx{pshow} as shown below, and use that instead: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} *\def\pshow#1{{\let\protect\show #1}} *\pshow\texttt > \texttt =\long macro: #1->\ifmmode \nfss@text {\ttfamily #1}% \else \hmode@bgroup \text@command {#1}% \ttfamily \check@icl #1\check@icr \expandafter \egroup \fi . \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Note that the command name that is protected is the `base' command, with a space appended. This is cryptically visible, in a couple of places above. (Again, the output has been sanitised.) If one has a malleable text editor, the same investigation may more comfortably be conducted by examining the file \File{latex.ltx} (which is usually to be found, in a \acro{TDS} system, in directory \path{tex/latex/base}). In fact, \File{latex.ltx} is the product of a \ProgName{docstrip} process on a large number of \Qref*{\texttt{.dtx} files}{Q-dtx}, and you can refer to those instead. The \LaTeX{} distribution includes a file \File{source2e.tex}, and most systems retain it, again in \path{tex/latex/base}. \File{Source2e.tex} may be processed to provide a complete source listing of the \LaTeX{} kernel (in fact the process isn't entirely straightforward, but the file produces messages advising you what to do). The result is a huge document, with a line-number index of control sequences the entire kernel and a separate index of changes recorded in each of the files since the \LaTeX{} team took over. The printed kernel is a nice thing to have, but it's unwieldy and sits on my shelves, seldom used. One problem is that the comments are patchy: the different modules range from well and lucidly documented, through modules documented only through an automatic process that converted the documentation of the source of \LaTeXo{}, to modules that hardly had any useful documentation even in the \LaTeXo{} original. In fact, each kernel module \texttt{.dtx} file will process separately through \LaTeX{}, so you don't have to work with the whole of \File{source2e}. You can easily determine which module defines the macro you're interested in: use your ``malleable text editor'' to find the definition in \File{latex.ltx}; then search backwards from that point for a line that starts % ! line break \texttt{\textpercent\textpercent\textpercent\ From File:}~--- that line tells you which \texttt{.dtx} file contains the definition you are interested in. Doing this for \csx{protected@edef}, we find: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} %%% From File: ltdefns.dtx \end{verbatim} \end{quote} When we come to look at it, \File{ltdefns.dtx} proves to contain quite a dissertation on the methods of handling \csx{protect}ion; it also contains some automatically-converted \LaTeXo{} documentation. And of course, the kernel isn't all of \LaTeX{}: your command may be defined in one of \LaTeX{}'s class or package files. For example, we find a definition of \csx{thebibliography} in \Class{article}, but there's no \File{article.dtx}. Some such files are generated from parts of the kernel, some from other files in the distribution. You find which by looking at the start of the file: in \File{article.cls}, we find: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} %% This is file `article.cls', %% generated with the docstrip utility. %% %% The original source files were: %% %% classes.dtx (with options: `article') \end{verbatim} \end{quote} so we need to format \File{classes.dtx} to see the definition in context. All these .dtx files are on \acro{CTAN} as part of the main \LaTeX{} distribution. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\LaTeX{} distribution]\CTANref{latex} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-oarglikesect]{Optional arguments like \csx{section}} Optional arguments, in macros defined using \csx{newcommand}, don't quite work like the optional argument to \csx{section}. The default value of \csx{section}'s optional argument is the value of the mandatory argument, but \csx{newcommand} requires that you `know' the value of the default beforehand. The requisite trick is to use a macro in the optional argument: \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand\thing[2][\DefaultOpt]{\def\DefaultOpt{#2} ...} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand\thing[2][\DefaultOpt]{% \def\DefaultOpt{#2}% ...% } \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \Question[Q-twooptarg]{More than one optional argument} If you've already read % ! line break ``\Qref*[question]{breaking the 9-argument limit}{Q-moren9}''. you can probably guess the solution to this problem: command relaying. \LaTeX{} allows commands with a single optional argument thus: \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\blah}[1][Default]{...} \end{verbatim} You may legally call such a command either with its optional argument present, as \cmdinvoke{blah}[nonDefault] or as \csx{blah}; in the latter case, the code of \csx{blah} will have an argument of |Default|. To define a command with two optional arguments, we use the relaying technique, as follows: \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\blah}[1][Default1]{% \def\ArgI{{#1}}% \BlahRelay } \newcommand\BlahRelay[1][Default2]{% % the first optional argument is now in % \ArgI % the second is in #1 ...% } \end{verbatim} Of course, \csx{BlahRelay} may have as many mandatory arguments as are allowed, after allowance for the one taken up with its own optional argument~--- that is, 8. Variants of \csx{newcommand} (and friends), with names like \csx{newcommandtwoopt}, are available in the \Package{twoopt} package. However, if you can, it's probably better to learn to write the commands yourself, just to see why they're not even a good idea from the programming point of view. A command with two optional arguments strains the limit of what's sensible: obviously you can extend the technique to provide as many optional arguments as your fevered imagination can summon. However, see the comments on the use of the \Package{keyval} package, again in ``\Qref*[question]{breaking the 9-argument limit}{Q-moren9}''. which offer an alternative way forward. If you must, however, consider the \Package{optparams} package; provides a \csx{optparams} command that you use as an intermediate in defining commands with up to nine optional arguments. The documentation shows examples of commands with four optional arguments (and this from an author who has his own key-value package!). An alternative approach is offered by Scott Pakin's \ProgName{newcommand} program, which takes a command name and a definition of a set of command arguments (in a fairly readily-understood language), and emits \AllTeX{} macros which enable the command to be defined. The command requires that a \ProgName{Python} system be installed on your computer. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[newcommand.py]\CTANref{newcommand} \item[optparams.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{sauerj} \item[twoopt.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{oberdiek} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-cmdstar]{Commands defined with * options} \LaTeX{} commands commonly have ``versions'' defined with an asterisk tagged onto their name: for example \csx{newcommand} and \csx{newcommand*} (the former defines a \csx{long} version of the command). The simple-minded way for a user to write such a command involves use of the \Package{ifthen} package: \begin{wideversion} \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\mycommand}[1]{\ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{*}}% {\mycommandStar}% {\mycommandNoStar{#1}}% } \newcommand{\mycommandStar}{starred version} \newcommand{\mycommandNoStar}[1]{normal version} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\mycommand}[1]{% \ifthenelse{\equal{#1}{*}}% {\mycommandStar}% {\mycommandNoStar{#1}}% } \newcommand{\mycommandStar}% {starred version} \newcommand{\mycommandNoStar}[1]% {normal version} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \end{narrowversion} This does the trick, for sufficiently simple commands, but it has various tiresome failure modes, and it requires \csx{mycommandnostar} to take an argument. Of course, the \LaTeX{} kernel has something slicker than this: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\mycommand}[1]{\@ifstar \mycommandStar% \mycommandNoStar% } \newcommand{\mycommandStar}{starred version} \newcommand{\mycommandNoStar}{normal version} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Which is all very well, is fast and efficient, but requires the definition to be \Qref*{\csx{makeatletter} protected}{Q-atsigns}. The technique doesn't interfere at all with the definitions of \csx{mycommandStar} or \csx{mycommandNoStar}; they can have any combination of optional and mandatory arguments that you could define them to have in the ordinary way. A pleasing alternative is the \Package{suffix} package. This elegant piece of code allows you to define variants of your commands: \begin{narrowversion} \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand\mycommand{normal version} \WithSuffix\newcommand\mycommand*% {starred version} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand\mycommand{normal version} \WithSuffix\newcommand\mycommand*{starred version} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \end{wideversion} The package needs \Qref*{\elatex{}}{Q-NTS}, but any new enough distribution defines \LaTeX{} as \elatex{} by default. Command arguments may be specified in the normal way, in both command definitions (after the ``\texttt{*}'' in the \csx{WithSuffix} version). You can also use the \TeX{} primitive commands, creating a definition like: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \WithSuffix\gdef\mycommand*{starred version} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ifthen.sty]Part of the \LaTeX{} distribution \item[suffix.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{bigfoot} \end{ctanrefs} %\nothtml{\hrule height 0pt \nobreak\vskip0pt plus2.5in\vskip 0pt\relax} \Question[Q-ltxabbrv]{\LaTeX{} internal ``abbreviations'', etc.} In the deeps of time, when \TeX{} first happened, computers had extremely limited memory, and were (by today's standards) painfully slow. When \LaTeX{} came along, things weren't much better, and even when \LaTeXe{} appeared, there was a strong imperative to save memory space (and to a lesser extent) \acro{CPU} time. From the very earliest days, Knuth used shortcut macros to speed things up. \LaTeX{}, over the years, has extended Knuth's list by a substantial amount. An interesting feature of the ``abbreviations'' is that on paper, they may look longer than the thing they stand for; however, to \AllTeX{} they \emph{feel} smaller\dots The table at the end of this answer lists the commonest of these ``abbreviations''. It is not complete; as always, if the table doesn't help, try the \LaTeX{} source. The table lists each abbreviation's \emph{name} and its \emph{value}, which provide most of what a user needs to know. The table also lists the abbreviation's \emph{type}, which is a trickier concept: if you need to know, the only real confusion is that the abbreviations labelled `defn' are defined using an \csx{\emph{xxx}def} command. \begin{tabular}{lll} Name \tbamp Type \tbamp Value \tbeol \tbhline \csx{m@ne} \tbamp count \tbamp \ensuremath{-1} \tbeol \csx{p@} \tbamp dimen \tbamp 1pt \tbeol \csx{z@} \tbamp dimen \tbamp 0pt \tbeol \csx{z@skip} \tbamp skip \tbamp 0pt plus 0pt minus 0pt \tbeol \tbhline \csx{@ne} \tbamp defn \tbamp 1 \tbeol \csx{tw@} \tbamp defn \tbamp 2\tbeol \csx{thr@@} \tbamp defn \tbamp 3 \tbeol \csx{sixt@@n} \tbamp defn \tbamp 16 \tbeol \csx{@cclv} \tbamp defn \tbamp 255 \tbeol \csx{@cclvi} \tbamp defn \tbamp 256 \tbeol \csx{@m} \tbamp defn \tbamp 1000 \tbeol \csx{@M} \tbamp defn \tbamp 10000 \tbeol \csx{@MM} \tbamp defn \tbamp 20000 \tbeol \tbhline \csx{@vpt} \tbamp macro \tbamp 5 \tbeol \csx{@vipt} \tbamp macro \tbamp 6 \tbeol \csx{@viipt} \tbamp macro \tbamp 7 \tbeol \csx{@viiipt} \tbamp macro \tbamp 8 \tbeol \csx{@ixpt} \tbamp macro \tbamp 9 \tbeol \csx{@xpt} \tbamp macro \tbamp 10 \tbeol \csx{@xipt} \tbamp macro \tbamp 10.95 \tbeol \csx{@xiipt} \tbamp macro \tbamp 12 \tbeol \csx{@xivpt} \tbamp macro \tbamp 14.4 \tbeol \csx{@xviipt} \tbamp macro \tbamp 17.28 \tbeol \csx{@xxpt} \tbamp macro \tbamp 20.74 \tbeol \csx{@xxvpt} \tbamp macro \tbamp 24.88 \tbeol \tbhline \csx{@plus} \tbamp macro \tbamp ``\texttt{plus}'' \tbeol \csx{@minus} \tbamp macro \tbamp ``\texttt{minus}'' \tbeol %\csx{hb@xt@} \tbamp macro \tbamp ``\csx{hbox} \texttt{to}'' \end{tabular} \subsection{\LaTeX{} macro techniques} \Question[Q-fixnam]{How to change \LaTeX{}'s ``fixed names''} \LaTeX{} document classes define several typographic operations that need `canned text' (text not supplied by the user). In the earliest days of \LaTeXo{} these bits of text were built in to the body of \LaTeX{}'s macros and were rather difficult to change, but ``fixed name'' macros were introduced for the benefit of those wishing to use \LaTeX{} in languages other than English. For example, the special section produced by the \csx{tableofcontents} command is always called \csx{contentsname} (or rather, what \csx{contentsname} is defined to mean). Changing the canned text is now one of the easiest customisations a user can do to \LaTeX{}. The canned text macros are all of the form \csx{\meta{thing}name}, and changing them is simplicity itself. Put: \begin{quote} \cmdinvoke{renewcommand}{\csx{\meta{thing}name}}{Res minor} \end{quote} in the preamble of your document, and the job is done. (However, beware of the \Package{babel} package, which requires you to use a different mechanism: be sure to check % beware line wrap \Qref[question]{changing \Package{babel} names}{Q-latexwords} if you're using it.) The names that are defined in the standard \LaTeX{} classes (and the \Package{makeidex} package) are listed below. Some of the names are only defined in a subset of the classes (and the \Class{letter} class has a set of names all of its own); the list shows the specialisation of each name, where appropriate. \nothtml{\noindent}\begin{tabular}{@{}ll} \csx{abstractname} \tbamp Abstract\tbeol \csx{alsoname} \tbamp see also (\Package{makeidx} package)\tbeol \csx{appendixname} \tbamp Appendix\tbeol \csx{bibname} \tbamp Bibliography (\Class{report},\Class{book})\tbeol \csx{ccname} \tbamp cc (\Class{letter})\tbeol \csx{chaptername} \tbamp Chapter (\Class{report},\Class{book})\tbeol \csx{contentsname} \tbamp Contents\tbeol \csx{enclname} \tbamp encl (\Class{letter})\tbeol \csx{figurename} \tbamp Figure (for captions)\tbeol \csx{headtoname} \tbamp To (\Class{letter})\tbeol \csx{indexname} \tbamp Index\tbeol \csx{listfigurename} \tbamp List of Figures\tbeol \csx{listtablename} \tbamp List of Tables\tbeol \csx{pagename} \tbamp Page (\Class{letter})\tbeol \csx{partname} \tbamp Part\tbeol \csx{refname} \tbamp References (\Class{article})\tbeol \csx{seename} \tbamp see (\Package{makeidx} package)\tbeol \csx{tablename} \tbamp Table (for caption) \end{tabular} \Question[Q-latexwords]{Changing the words \Package{babel} uses} \LaTeX{} uses symbolic names for many of the automatically-generated text it produces (special-purpose section headings, captions, etc.). As noted in \Qref[question]{``\LaTeX fixed names''}{Q-fixnam} (which includes a list of the names themselves), this enables the user to change the names used by the standard classes, which is particularly useful if the document is being prepared in some language other than \LaTeX{}'s default English. So, for example, a Danish author may wish that her table of contents was called ``Indholdsfortegnelse'', and so would expect to place a command \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand{\contentsname}% {Indholdsfortegnelse} \end{verbatim} in the preamble of her document. However, it's natural for a user of a non-English language to use \Package{babel}, because it offers many conveniences and typesetting niceties for those preparing documents in those languages. In particular, when \Package{babel} is selecting a new language, it ensures that \LaTeX{}'s symbolic names are translated appropriately for the language in question. Unfortunately, \Package{babel}'s choice of names isn't always to everyone's choice, and there is still a need for a mechanism to replace the `standard' names. Whenever a new language is selected, \Package{babel} resets all the names to the settings for that language. In particular, \Package{babel} selects the document's main language when \cmdinvoke{begin}{document} is executed, which immediately destroys any changes to these symbolic names made in the prologue of a document that uses \Package{babel}. Therefore, babel defines a command to enable users to change the definitions of the symbolic names, on a per-language basis: \csx{addto}\csx{captions}\texttt{\meta{language}} is the thing (\texttt{\meta{language}} being the language option you gave to \Package{babel} in the first place). For example: \begin{verbatim} \addto\captionsdanish{% \renewcommand{\contentsname}% {Indholdsfortegnelse}% } \end{verbatim} \Question[Q-running-nos]{Running equation, figure and table numbering} Many \LaTeX{} classes (including the standard \Class{book} class) number things per chapter; so figures in chapter 1 are numbered 1.1, 1.2, and so on. Sometimes this is not appropriate for the user's needs. Short of rewriting the whole class, one may use one of the \Package{removefr} and \Package{remreset} packages; both define a \csx{@removefromreset} command, and having included the package one writes something like: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \makeatletter \@removefromreset{figure}{chapter} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and the automatic renumbering stops. You then need to redefine the way in which the figure number (in this case) is printed: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand{\thefigure}{\@arabic\c@figure} \makeatother \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (remember to do the whole job, for every counter you want to manipulate, within \csx{makeatletter} \dots{}\@ \csx{makeatother}). The technique may also be used to change where in a multilevel structure a counter is reset. Suppose your class numbers figures as \meta{chapter}.\meta{section}.\meta{figure}, and you want figures numbered per chapter, try: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \@removefromreset{figure}{section} \@addtoreset{figure}{chapter} \renewcommand{\thefigure}{\thechapter.\@arabic\c@figure} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \@removefromreset{figure}{section} \@addtoreset{figure}{chapter} \renewcommand{\thefigure}% {\thechapter.\@arabic\c@figure} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} (the command \csx{@addtoreset} is a part of \LaTeX{} itself). The \Package{chngcntr} package provides a simple means to access the two sorts of changes discussed, defining \csx{counterwithin} and \csx{counterwithout} commands; the \Class{memoir} class also provides these functions. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[chngcntr.sty]\CTANref{chngcntr} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[removefr.tex]\CTANref{removefr} (note, this is constructed as a ``fragment'' for use within other packages: load by \cmdinvoke{input}{removefr}) \item[remreset.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{carlisle} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-labelctr]{Making labels from a counter} Suppose we have a \LaTeX{} counter, which we've defined with \cmdinvoke{newcounter}{foo}. We can increment the value of the counter by \cmdinvoke{addtocounter}{foo}{1}, but that's pretty clunky for an operation that happens so often \dots{}~so there's a command \cmdinvoke{stepcounter}{foo} that does this special case of increasing-by-one. There's an internal \LaTeX{} variable, the ``current label'', that remembers the last `labellable' thing that \LaTeX{} has processed. You could (if you were to insist) set that value by the relevant \TeX{} command (having taken the necessary precautions to ensure that the internal command worked)~--- but it's not necessary. If, instead of either of the stepping methods above, you say \cmdinvoke{refstepcounter}{foo}, the internal variable is set to the new value, and (until something else comes along), \csx{label} will refer to the counter. \Question[Q-oddpage]{Finding if you're on an odd or an even page} \Qref[Question]{Another question}{Q-marginparside} discusses the issue of getting \csx{marginpar} commands to put their output in the correct margin of two-sided documents. This is an example of the general problem of knowing where a particular bit of text lies: the output routine is asynchronous, and \AllTeX{} will usually process quite a bit of the ``next'' page before deciding to output any page. As a result, the |page| counter (known internally in \LaTeX{} as \csx{c@page}) is normally only reliable when you're actually \emph{in} the output routine. The solution is to use some version of the \csx{label} mechanism to determine which side of the page you're on; the value of the page counter that appears in a \csx{pageref} command has been inserted in the course of the output routine, and is therefore safe. However, \csx{pageref} itself isn't reliable: one might hope that \begin{verbatim} \ifthenelse{\isodd{\pageref{foo}}}{odd}{even} \end{verbatim} would do the necessary, but both the \Package{babel} and \Package{hyperref} packages have been known to interfere with the output of \csx{pageref}; be careful! The \Package{chngpage} package needs to provide this functionality for its own use, and therefore provides a command \csx{checkoddpage}; this sets a private-use label, and the page reference part of that label is then examined (in a \Package{hyperref}-safe way) to set a conditional \csx{ifcpoddpage} true if the command was issued on an odd page. The \Class{memoir} class has the same command setting a conditional \csx{ifoddpage}. Of course, the \csx{label} contributes to \LaTeX{}'s ``Rerun to get cross-references right'' error messages\dots{} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[chngpage.sty]\CTANref{chngpage} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-labelformat]{How to change the format of labels} By default, when a label is created, it takes on the appearance of the counter labelled: specifically, it is set to \csx{the}\texttt{\meta{counter}}~--- what would be used if you asked to typeset the counter in your text. This isn't always what you need: for example, if you have nested enumerated lists with the outer numbered and the inner labelled with letters, one might expect to want to refer to items in the inner list as ``2(c)''. (Remember, you can \nothtml{change the structure of list items~--- }% \Qref{change the structure of list items}{Q-enumerate}.) The change is of course possible by explicit labelling of the parent and using that label to construct the typeset result~--- something like \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \ref{parent-item}(\ref{child-item}) \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which would be both tedious and error-prone. What's more, it would be undesirable, since you would be constructing a visual representation which is inflexible (you couldn't change all the references to elements of a list at one fell swoop). \LaTeX{} in fact has a label-formatting command built into every label definition; by default it's null, but it's available for the user to program. For any label \meta{counter} there's a \LaTeX{} internal command \csx{p@}\meta{\texttt{counter}}; for example, a label definition on an inner list item is supposedly done using the command \cmdinvoke{p@enumii}{\csx{theenumii}}. Unfortunately, the internal workings of this aren't quite right, and you need to patch the \csx{refstepcounter} command: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand*\refstepcounter[1]{% \stepcounter{#1}% \protected@edef\@currentlabel{% \csname p@#1\expandafter\endcsname \csname the#1\endcsname }% } \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand*\refstepcounter[1]{\stepcounter{#1}% \protected@edef\@currentlabel{% \csname p@#1\expandafter\endcsname \csname the#1\endcsname }% } \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} With the patch in place you can now, for example, change the labels on all inner lists by adding the following code in your preamble: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \makeatletter \renewcommand{\p@enumii}[1]{\theenumi(#1)} \makeatother \end{verbatim} \end{quote} This would make the labels for second-level enumerated lists appear as ``1(a)'' (and so on). The analogous change works for any counter that gets used in a \csx{label} command. In fact, the \Package{fncylab} package does all the above (including the patch to \LaTeX{} itself). With the package, the code above is (actually quite efficiently) rendered by the command: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \labelformat{enumii}{\theenumi(#1)} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} In fact, the above example, which we can do in several different ways, has been rendered obsolete by the appearance of the \Package{enumitem} package, which is discussed in the answer about % ! line break \Qref*{decorating enumeration lists}{Q-enumerate}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[enumitem.sty]\CTANref{enumitem} \item[fncylab.sty]\CTANref{fncylab} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-seccntfmt]{Adjusting the presentation of section numbers} The general issues of adjusting the appearance of section headings are pretty complex, and are covered in % beware line breaks (2 lines) \latexhtml{question}{the question on} \Qref[\htmlonly]{the style of section headings}{Q-secthead}. However, people regularly want merely to change the way the section number appears in the heading, and some such people don't mind writing out a few macros. This answer is for \emph{them}. The way the section number is typeset is determined by the \csx{@seccntformat} command, which is given the ``name'' (section, subsection, \dots{}) of the heading, as argument. Ordinarily, it merely outputs the section number, and then a \csx{quad} of space. Suppose you want to put a stop after every section (subsection, subsubsection, \dots{}) number, a trivial change may be implemented by simple modification of the command: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand*{\@seccntformat}[1]{% \csname the#1\endcsname.\quad } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Many people (for some reason) just want a stop after a section number. To do this, one must make \csx{@seccntformat} switch according to its argument. The following technique for doing the job is slightly wasteful, but is efficient enough: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \let\@@seccntformat\@seccntformat \renewcommand*{\@seccntformat}[1]{% \expandafter\let\expandafter\@tempa \csname @seccntformat@#1\endcsname \ifx\@tempa\relax \expandafter\@@seccntformat \else \expandafter\@tempa \fi {#1}% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which looks to see if a second-level command has been defined, and uses it if so; otherwise it uses the original. The second-level command to define stops after section numbers (only) has the same definition as the original ``all levels alike'' version: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand*{\@seccntformat@section}[1]{% \csname the#1\endcsname.\quad } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Note that all the command definitions of this answer are dealing in \Qref*{\LaTeX{} internal commands}{Q-atsigns}, so the above code should be in a package file, for preference. The \Class{Koma-script} classes have different commands for specifying changes to section number presentation: \csx{partformat}, \csx{chapterformat} and \csx{othersectionlevelsformat}, but otherwise their facilities are similar to those of ``raw'' \LaTeX{}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}KOMA script bundle]\CTANref{koma-script} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-spaftend]{There's a space added after my environment} You've written your own environment \environment{env}, and it works except that a space appears at the start of the first line of typeset text after \cmdinvoke{end}{env}. This doesn't happen with similar \LaTeX{}-supplied environments. You could impose the restriction that your users always put a ``\texttt{\textpercent}'' sign after the environment~\dots{}\nothtml{\@} but \LaTeX{} environments don't require that, either. The \LaTeX{} environments' ``secret'' is an internal flag which causes the unwanted spaces to be ignored. Fortunately, you don't have to use the internal form: since 1996, \LaTeX{} has had a user command \csx{ignorespacesafterend}, which sets the internal flag. \Question[Q-labundef]{Finding if a label is undefined} People seem to want to know (at run time) if a label is undefined (I don't actually understand \emph{why}, particularly: it's a transient state, and \LaTeX{} deals with it quite well). A resolved label is simply a command: \csx{r@}\texttt{\meta{label-name}}; determining if the label is set is then simply a matter of detecting if the command exists. The usual \LaTeX{} internal way of doing this is to use the command \csx{@ifundefined}: \begin{quote} \cmdinvoke*{@ifundefined}{\texttt{r@}lab-name}{undef-cmds}{def-cmds} \end{quote} In which, \meta{lab-name} is exactly what you would use in a \csx{label} command, and the remaining two arguments are command sequences to be used if the label is undefined (\meta{undef-cmds}) or if it is defined (\texttt{\emph{def-cmds}}). Note that any command that incorporates \csx{@ifundefined} is naturally fragile, so remember to create it with \csx{DeclareRobustCommand} or to use it with \csx{protect} in a moving argument. If you're into this game, you may well not care about \LaTeX{}'s warning about undefined labels at the end of the document; however, if you are, include the command \csx{G@refundefinedtrue} in \meta{\texttt{undef-cmds}}. \Question[Q-addtoreset]{Master and slave counters} It's common to have things numbered ``per chapter'' (for example, in the standard \Class{book} and \Class{report} classes, figures, tables and footnotes are all numbered thus). The process of resetting is done automatically, when the ``master'' counter is stepped (when the \csx{chapter} command that starts chapter \meta{n} happens, the \texttt{chapter} counter is stepped, and all the dependent counters are set to zero). How would you do that for yourself? You might want to number algorithms per section, or corrolaries per theorem, for example. If you're defining these things by hand, you declare the relationship when you define the counter in the first place: \begin{quote} \cmdinvoke*{newcounter}{new-name}[master] \end{quote} says that every time counter \meta{master} is stepped, counter \meta{new-name} will be reset. But what if you have an uncooperative package, that defines the objects for you, but doesn't provide a programmer interface to make the counters behave as you want? The \csx{newcounter} command uses a \LaTeX{} internal command, and you can also use it: \begin{quote} \cmdinvoke*{@addtoreset}{new-name}{master} \end{quote} (but remember that it needs to be between \csx{makeatletter} and \csx{makeatother}, or in a package of your own). The \Package{chngcntr} package encapsulates the \csx{@addtoreset} command into a command \csx{counterwithin}. So: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \counterwithin*{corrolary}{theorem} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} will make the corrolary counter slave to theorem counters. The command without its asterisk: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \counterwithin{corrolary}{theorem} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} will do the same, and also redefine \csx{thecorrolary} as % line brk! \meta{theorem number}.\meta{corrolary number}, which is a good scheme if you ever want to refer to the corrolaries~--- there are potentially many ``corrolary~1'' in any document, so it's as well to tie its number to the counter of the theorem it belongs to. This is true of pretty much any such counter-within-another; if you're not using the \Package{chngcntr}, refer to the answer to % line break! \Qref*{redefining counters' \csx{the-}commands}{Q-the-commands} for the necessary techniques. Note that the technique doesn't work if the master counter is |page|, the number of the current page. The |page| counter is stepped deep inside the output routine, which usually gets called some time after the text for the new page has started to appear: so special techniques are required to deal with that. One special case is dealt with elsewhere: \Qref*{footnotes numbered per page}{Q-footnpp}. One of the techniques described there, using package \Package{perpage}, may be applied to any counter. The command: \begin{quote} \cmdinvoke*{MakePerPage}{counter} \end{quote} will cause \meta{counter} to be reset for each page. The package uses a label-like mechanism, and may require more than one run of \LaTeX{} to stabilise counter values~--- \LaTeX{} will generate the usual warnings about labels changing. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[chngcntr.sty]\CTANref{chngcntr} \item[perpage.sty]\CTANref{perpage} \end{ctanrefs} %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Things are Going Wrong\dots{}} \subsection{Getting things to fit} \Question[Q-enlarge]{Enlarging \TeX{}} The \TeX{} error message `capacity exceeded' covers a multitude of problems. What has been exhausted is listed in brackets after the error message itself, as in: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ! TeX capacity exceeded, sorry ... [main memory size=263001]. \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Most of the time this error can be fixed \emph{without} enlarging \TeX{}. The most common causes are unmatched braces, extra-long lines, and poorly-written macros. Extra-long lines are often introduced when files are transferred incorrectly between operating systems, and line-endings are not preserved properly (the tell-tale sign of an extra-long line error is the complaint that the `|buf_size|' has overflowed). If you really need to extend your \TeX{}'s capacity, the proper method depends on your installation. There is no need (with modern \TeX{} implementations) to change the defaults in Knuth's \acro{WEB} source; but if you do need to do so, use a change file to modify the values set in module 11, recompile your \TeX{} and regenerate all format files. Modern implementations allow the sizes of the various bits of \TeX{}'s memory to be changed semi-dynamically. Some (such as em\TeX{}) allow the memory parameters to be changed in command-line switches when \TeX{} is started; most frequently, a configuration file is read which specifies the size of the memory. On \ProgName{web2c}-based systems, this file is called \File{texmf.cnf}: see the documentation that comes with the distribution for other implementations. Almost invariably, after such a change, the format files need to be regenerated after changing the memory parameters. \Question[Q-usepictex]{Why can't I load \PiCTeX{}?} \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. 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 \File{pictex.sty} with \LaTeX{} and some other packages that also need dimension registers. When this happens, you will see the \TeX{} error message: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ! No room for a new \dimen. \end{verbatim} \end{quote} There is nothing that can directly be done about this error: you can't extend the number of available \csx{dimen} registers without extending \TeX{} itself. \begin{wideversion} % hyper \Qref{\eTeX{}}{Q-NTS} and \Qref{Omega}{Q-omega} both do this, as does \Qref{MicroPress Inc's V\TeX{}}{Q-commercial}. \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \eTeX{} and \ensuremath{\Omega}~--- \Qref[see questions]{}{Q-NTS} \Qref[and]{}{Q-omega} respectively~--- both do this, as does MicroPress Inc's V\TeX{}~--- \Qref{}{Q-commercial}. \end{narrowversion} It's actually quite practical (with most modern distributions) to use \eTeX{}'s extended register set: use package \Package{etex} (which comes with \eTeX{} distributions) and the allocation mechanism is altered to cope with the larger register set: \PiCTeX{} will now load. If you're in some situation where you can't use \eTeX{}, 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. The \CONTeXT{} module \File{m-pictex.tex} (for Plain \TeX{} and variants) or the corresponding \LaTeX{} \Package{m-pictex} package provide an ingenious solution to the problem based on hacking the code of \csx{newdimen} itself. Alternatively, Andreas Schell's \Package{pictexwd} and related packages replace \PiCTeX{} with a version that uses 33 fewer \csx{dimen} registers; so use \Package{pictexwd} in place of \Package{pictex} (either as a \LaTeX{} package, or as a file to read into Plain \TeX{}). And how does one use \PiCTeX{} anyway, given that the manual is so \Qref*{hard to come by}{Q-docpictex}? Fortunately for \MSDOS{} and Windows users, the \ProgName{MathsPic} system may be used to translate a somewhat different language into \PiCTeX{} commands; and the \ProgName{MathsPic} manual is free (and part of the distribution). \ProgName{MathsPic} is written in \ProgName{Basic}; a version written in \ProgName{Perl} is under development, and should be available soon. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[m-pictex.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{context-tmf} \item[m-pictex.tex]Distributed as part of \CTANref{context-tmf} \item[MathsPic]\CTANref{mathspic} \item[pictexwd.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{pictex-addon} \end{ctanrefs} \subsection{Making things stay where you want them} \Question[Q-floats]{Moving tables and figures in \LaTeX{}} Tables and figures have a tendency to surprise, by \emph{floating} away from where they were specified to appear. This is in fact perfectly ordinary document design; any professional typesetting package will float figures and tables to where they'll fit without violating the certain typographic rules. Even if you use the placement specifier~\texttt{h} for `here', the figure or table will not be printed `here' if doing so would break the rules; the rules themselves are pretty simple, and are given on page~198, section~C.9 of the \LaTeX{} manual. In the worst case, \LaTeX{}'s rules can cause the floating items to pile up to the extent that you get an error message saying \nothtml{``Too many unprocessed floats'' (see }% \Qref[question]{``Too many unprocessed floats''}{Q-tmupfl}\latexhtml{).}{.} What follows is a simple checklist of things to do to solve these problems (the checklist talks throughout about figures, but applies equally well to tables, or to ``non-standard'' floats defined by the \Package{float} or other packages). \begin{itemize} \item Do your figures need to float at all? If not, consider the \texttt{[H]} placement option offered by the \Package{float} package: figures with this placement are made up to look as if they're floating, but they don't in fact float. Beware outstanding floats, though: the \csx{caption} commands are numbered in the order they appear in the document, and a \texttt{[H]} float can `overtake' a float that hasn't yet been placed, so that figures numbers get out of order. \item Are the placement parameters on your figures right? The default (\texttt{tbp}) is reasonable, but you can reasonably change it (for example, to add an \texttt{h}). Whatever you do, \emph{don't} omit the `\texttt{p}': doing so could cause \LaTeX{} to believe that if you can't have your figure \emph{here}, you don't want it \emph{anywhere}. (\LaTeX{} does try hard to avoid being confused in this way\dots{}) \item \LaTeX{}'s own float placement parameters could be preventing placements that seem entirely ``reasonable'' to you~--- they're notoriously rather conservative. To encourage \LaTeX{} not to move your figure, you need to loosen its demands. (The most important ones are the ratio of text to float on a given page, but it's sensible to have a fixed set that changes the whole lot, to meet every eventuality.) \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand{\topfraction}{.85} \renewcommand{\bottomfraction}{.7} \renewcommand{\textfraction}{.15} \renewcommand{\floatpagefraction}{.66} \renewcommand{\dbltopfraction}{.66} \renewcommand{\dblfloatpagefraction}{.66} \setcounter{topnumber}{9} \setcounter{bottomnumber}{9} \setcounter{totalnumber}{20} \setcounter{dbltopnumber}{9} \end{verbatim} The meanings of these parameters are described on pages~199--200, section~C.9 of the \LaTeX{} manual. \item Are there places in your document where you could `naturally' put a \csx{clearpage} command? If so, do: the backlog of floats is cleared after a \csx{clearpage}. (Note that the \csx{chapter} command in the standard \Class{book} and \Class{report} classes implicitly executes \csx{clearpage}, so you can't float past the end of a chapter.) \item Try the \Package{placeins} package: it defines a \csx{FloatBarrier} command beyond which floats may not pass. A package option allows you to declare that floats may not pass a \csx{section} command, but you can place \csx{FloatBarrier}s wherever you choose. \item If you are bothered by floats appearing at the top of the page (before they are specified in your text), try the \Package{flafter} package, which avoids this problem by insisting that floats should always appear after their definition. \item Have a look at the \LaTeXe{} \Package{afterpage} package. Its documentation gives as an example the idea of putting \csx{clearpage} \emph{after} the current page (where it will clear the backlog, but not cause an ugly gap in your text), but also admits that the package is somewhat fragile. Use it as a last resort if the other possibilities below don't help. \item If you would actually \emph{like} great blocks of floats at the end of each of your chapters, try the \Package{morefloats} package; this `simply' increases the number of floating inserts that \LaTeX{} can handle at one time (from~18 to~36). \item If you actually \emph{wanted} all your figures to float to the end (\emph{e.g}., for submitting a draft copy of a paper), don't rely on \LaTeX{}'s mechanism: get the \Package{endfloat} package to do the job for you. \end{itemize} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[afterpage.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[endfloat.sty]\CTANref{endfloat} \item[flafter.sty]Part of the \LaTeX{} distribution \item[float.sty]\CTANref{float} \item[morefloats.sty]\CTANref{morefloats} \item[placeins.sty]\CTANref{placeins} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-underline]{Underlined text won't break} Knuth made no provision for underlining text: he took the view that underlining is not a typesetting operation, but rather one that provides emphasis on typewriters, which typically offer but one typeface. The corresponding technique in typeset text is to switch from upright to italic text (or vice-versa): the \LaTeX{} command \csx{emph} does just that to its argument. Nevertheless, typographically illiterate people (such as those that specify double-spaced \nothtml{thesis styles~--- }\Qref{thesis styles}{Q-linespace}) continue to require underlining of us, so \LaTeX{} as distributed defines an \csx{underline} command that applies the mathematical `underbar' operation to text. This technique is not entirely satisfactory, however: the text gets stuck into a box, and won't break at line end. Two packages are available that solve this problem. The \Package{ulem} package redefines the \csx{emph} command to underline its argument; the underlined text thus produced behaves as ordinary emphasised text, and will break over the end of a line. (The package is capable of other peculiar effects, too: read its documentation, contained within the file itself.) The \Package{soul} package defines an \csx{ul} command (after which the package is, in part, named) that underlines running text. Beware of \Package{ulem}'s default behaviour, which is to convert the \csx{emph} command into an underlining command; this can be avoided by loading the package with: \begin{verbatim} \usepackage[normalem]{ulem} \end{verbatim} Documentation of \Package{ulem} is in the package itself. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ulem.sty]\CTANref{ulem} \item[soul.sty]\CTANref{soul} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-widows]{Controlling widows and orphans} Widows (the last line of a paragraph at the start of a page) and orphans (the first line of paragraph at the end of a page) interrupt the reader's flow, and are generally considered ``bad form''; \AllTeX{} takes some precautions to avoid them, but completely automatic prevention is often impossible. If you are typesetting your own text, consider whether you can bring yourself to change the wording slightly so that the page break will fall differently. The page maker, when forming a page, takes account of \csx{widowpenalty} and \csx{clubpenalty} (which relates to orphans!). These penalties are usually set to the moderate value of \texttt{150}; this offers mild discouragement of bad breaks. You can increase the values by saying (for example) \csx{widowpenalty}\texttt{=500}; however, vertical lists (such as pages are made of) typically have rather little stretchability or shrinkability, so if the page maker has to balance the effect of stretching the unstretchable and being penalised, the penalty will seldom win. Therefore, for typical layouts, there are only two sensible settings for the penalties: finite (150 or 500, it doesn't matter which) to allow widows and orphans, and infinite (10000 or greater) to forbid them. The problem can be avoided by allowing the pagemaker to run pages short, by using the \csx{raggedbottom} directive; however, many publishers insist on the default \csx{flushbottom}; it is seldom acceptable to introduce stretchability into the vertical list, except at points (such as section headings) where the document design explicitly permits it. Once you've exhausted the automatic measures, and have a final draft you want to ``polish'', you should proceed to manual measures. To get rid of an orphan is simple: precede the paragraph with \csx{clearpage} and the paragraph can't start in the wrong place. Getting rid of a widow can be more tricky. If the paragraph is a long one, it may be possible to set it `tight': say \csx{looseness}\texttt{=-1} immediately after the last word of the paragraph. If that doesn't work, try adjusting the page size: \cmdinvoke{enlargethispage}{\csx{baselineskip}} may do the job, and get the whole paragraph on one page. Reducing the size of the page by \cmdinvoke{enlargethispage}{-\csx{baselineskip}} may produce a (more-or-less) acceptable ``two-line widow''. (Note: \csx{looseness}\texttt{=1}, increasing the line length by one, seldom seems to work~--- the looser paragraph typically has a one-word final line, which doesn't look much better than the straight widow.) \subsection{Things have ``gone away''} \Question[Q-oldfontnames]{Old \LaTeX{} font references such as \csx{tenrm}} \LaTeXo{} defined a large set of commands for access to the fonts that it had built in to itself. For example, various flavours of |cmr| could be found as \csx{fivrm}, \csx{sixrm}, \csx{sevrm}, \csx{egtrm}, \csx{ninrm}, \csx{tenrm}, \csx{elvrm}, \csx{twlrm}, \csx{frtnrm}, \csx{svtnrm}, \csx{twtyrm} and \csx{twfvrm}. These commands were never documented, but certain packages nevertheless used them to achieve effects they needed. Since the commands weren't public, they weren't included in \LaTeXe{}; to use the unconverted \LaTeXo{} packages under \LaTeXe{}, you need also to include the \Package{rawfonts} package (which is part of the \LaTeXe{} distribution). \Question[Q-missssymb]{Missing symbol commands} You're processing an old document, and some symbol commands such as \csx{Box} and \csx{lhd} appear no longer to exist. These commands were present in the core of \LaTeXo{}, but are not in current \LaTeX{}. They are available in the \Package{latexsym} package (which is part of the \LaTeX{} distribution), and in the \Package{amsfonts} package (which is part of the \acro{AMS} distribution, and requires \acro{AMS} symbol fonts). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[amsfonts.sty]\CTANref{amsfonts-latex} \item[AMS symbol fonts]\CTANref{amsfonts-symbols} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-msxy]{Where are the \texttt{msx} and \texttt{msy} fonts?} The \FontName{msx} and \FontName{msy} fonts were designed by the American Mathematical Society in the very early days of \TeX{}, for use in typesetting papers for mathematical journals. They were designed using the `old' \MF{}, which wasn't portable and is no longer available; for a long time they were only available in 300dpi versions which only imperfectly matched modern printers. The \acro{AMS} has now redesigned the fonts, using the current version of \MF{}, and the new versions are called the \FontName{msa} and \FontName{msb} families. Nevertheless, \FontName{msx} and \FontName{msy} continue to turn up to plague us. There are, of course, still sites that haven't got around to upgrading; but, even if everyone upgraded, there would still be the problem of old documents that specify them. If you have a \texttt{.tex} source that requests \FontName{msx} and \FontName{msy}, the best technique is to edit it so that it requests \FontName{msa} and \FontName{msb} (you only need to change the single letter in the font names). If you have a \acro{DVI} file that requests the fonts, there is a package of \Qref*{virtual fonts}{Q-virtualfonts} to map the old to the new series. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[msa and msb fonts]\CTANref{amsfonts-symbols} \item[virtual font set]\CTANref{msx2msa} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-amfonts]{Where are the \texttt{am} fonts?} One \emph{still} occasionally comes across a request for the \FontName{am} series of fonts. The initials stood for `Almost [Computer] Modern', and they were the predecessors of the Computer Modern fonts that we all know and love (or hate)% \begin{footnoteenv} The fonts acquired their label `Almost' following the realisation that their first implementation in \MF{}79 still wasn't quite right; Knuth's original intention had been that they were the final answer \end{footnoteenv}. There's not a lot one can do with these fonts; they are (as their name implies) almost (but not quite) the same as the \FontName{cm} series; if you're faced with a document that requests them, all you can reasonably do is to edit the document. The appearance of \acro{DVI} files that request them is sufficiently rare that no-one has undertaken the mammoth task of creating a translation of them by means of virtual fonts; however, most drivers let you have a configuration file in which you can specify font substitutions. If you specify that every \FontName{am} font should be replaced by its corresponding \FontName{cm} font, the output should be almost correct. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Why does it \emph{do} that?} \subsection{Common errors} \Question[Q-crossref]{\LaTeX{} gets cross-references wrong} Sometimes, however many times you run \LaTeX{}, the cross-references are just wrong. Remember that the \csx{label} command must come \emph{after} the \csx{caption} command, or be part of it. For example, \htmlignore \par\noindent \begin{tabular}{@{}lll} | \begin{figure}| & & |\begin{figure}|\\ | \caption{A Figure}| & or & |\caption{A Figure%| \\ | \label{fig}| & & | \label{fig}}| \\ | \end{figure}| & & |\end{figure}| \\ \end{tabular} \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} \begin{figure} \begin{figure} \caption{A Figure} or \caption{A Figure% \label{fig} \label{fig}} \end{figure} \end{figure} \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} You can, just as effectively, shield the \csx{caption} command from its associated \csx{label} command, by enclosing the caption in an environment of its own. For example, people commonly seek help after: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{center} \caption{A Figure} \end{center} \label{fig} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} has failed to label correctly. If you really need this centring (and those in the know commonly reject it), code it as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{center} \caption{A Figure} \label{fig} \end{center} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \Question[Q-newlineargs]{Start of line goes awry} \keywords{asterisk square bracket start line} This answer concerns two sorts of problems: errors of the form \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ! Missing number, treated as zero. g <*> [grump] \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and those where a single asterisk at the start of a line mysteriously fails to appear in the output. Both problems arise because |\|{}|\| takes optional arguments. The command |\|{}|\*| means ``break the line here, and inhibit page break following the line break''; the command |\|{}|\[|\meta{dimen}|]| means ``break the line here and add \meta{dimen} extra vertical space afterwards''. So why does |\|{}|\| get confused by these things at the start of a line? It's looking for the first non-blank thing, and in the test it uses ignores the end of the line in your input text. The solution is to enclose the stuff at the start of the new line in braces: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} {\ttfamily /* C-language comment\\ {[grump]} I don't like this format\\ {*}/ } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (The above text derives from an actual post to \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex}; this particular bit of typesetting could plainly also be done using the \environment{verbatim} environment.) The problem also appears in maths mode, in arrays and so on. In this case, large-scale bracketing of things is \emph{not} a good idea; the \TeX{} primitive \csx{relax} (which does nothing except to block searches of this nature) may be used. From another \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex} example: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{eqnarry} [a] &=& b \\ \relax[a] &=& b \end{eqnarry} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which is a usage this \acro{FAQ} would not recommend, anyway: refer to the \Qref*{reason not to use \environment{eqnarray}}{Q-eqnarray}. Note that the \Package{amsmath} package modifies the behaviour of \texttt{\bsbs } in maths. With \Package{amsmath}, the \environment{eqnarray} example doesn't need any special measures. \Question[Q-verbwithin]{Why doesn't \csx{verb} work within\,\dots{}?} The \LaTeX{} verbatim commands work by changing category codes. Knuth says of this sort of thing ``Some care is needed to get the timing right\dots{}'', since once the category code has been assigned to a character, it doesn't change. So \csx{verb} has to assume that it is getting the first look at its parameter text; if it isn't, \TeX{} has already assigned category codes so that \csx{verb} doesn't have a chance. For example: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \verb+\error+ \end{verbatim} \end{quote} will work (typesetting `\csx{error}'), but \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\unbrace}[1]{#1} \unbrace{\verb+\error+} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} will not (it will attempt to execute \csx{error}). Other errors one may encounter are `\csx{verb} ended by end of line', or even `\csx{verb} illegal in command argument'. This is why the \LaTeX{} book insists that verbatim commands must not appear in the argument of any other command; they aren't just fragile, they're quite unusable in any command parameter, regardless of \Qref*{\csx{protect}ion}{Q-protect}. (The \csx{verb} command tries hard to detect if you're misusing it; unfortunately, it can't always do so, and the error message is therefore not a reliable indication of problems.) The first question to ask yourself is: ``is \csx{verb} actually necessary?''. \begin{itemize} \item If \cmdinvoke{texttt}{\emph{your text}} produces the same result as \csx{verb}\texttt{+\emph{your text}+}, then there's no need of \csx{verb} in the first place. \item If you're using \csx{verb} to typeset a \acro{URL} or email address or the like, then the \csx{url} command from the \Package{url} package will help: it doesn't suffer from the problems of \csx{verb}. \item If you're putting \csx{verb} into the argument of a boxing command (such as \csx{fbox}), consider using the \environment{lrbox} environment: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newsavebox{\mybox} ... \begin{lrbox}{\mybox} \verb!VerbatimStuff! \end{lrbox} \fbox{\usebox{\mybox}} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \end{itemize} Otherwise, there are three partial solutions to the problem. \begin{itemize} \item Some packages have macros which are designed to be responsive to verbatim text in their arguments. For example, the \Package{fancyvrb} package defines a command \csx{VerbatimFootnotes}, which redefines the \csx{footnotetext} (and hence the \csx{footnote}) commands in such a way that you can include \csx{verb} commands in its argument. This approach could in principle be extended to the arguments of other commands, but it can clash with other packages: for example, \csx{VerbatimFootnotes} interacts poorly with the |para| option to the \Package{footmisc} package. The \Class{memoir} class defines its \csx{footnote} command so that it will accept verbatim in its arguments, without any supporting package. \item The \Package{fancyvrb} package defines a command \csx{SaveVerb}, with a corresponding \csx{UseVerb} command, that allow you to save and then to reuse the content of its argument; for details of this extremely powerful facility, see the package documentation. Rather simpler is the \Package{verbdef} package, which defines a (robust) command which expands to the verbatim argument given. \item If you have a single character that is giving trouble (in its absence you could simply use \csx{texttt}), consider using \csx{string}. \cmdinvoke{texttt}{my\csx{string}\symbol{95}name} typesets the same as |\verb+my_name+|, and will work in the argument of a command. It won't, however, work in a moving argument, and no amount of \Qref*{\csx{protect}ion}{Q-protect} will make it work in such a case. A robust alternative is: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \chardef\bs=`\_ ... \section{... \texttt{my\bs name}} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Such a definition is `naturally' robust; the construction ``\meta{back-tick}\csx{\meta{char}}'' may be used for any troublesome character (though it's plainly not necessary for things like percent signs for which \AllTeX{} already provides robust macros). \end{itemize} Documentation of both \Package{url} and \Package{verbdef} is in the package files. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fancyvrb.sty]\CTANref{fancyvrb} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[url.sty]\CTANref{url} \item[verbdef.sty]\CTANref{verbdef} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-noline]{No line here to end} The error \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} ! LaTeX Error: There's no line here to end. See the LaTeX manual or LaTeX Companion for explanation. \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} ! LaTeX Error: There's no line here to end. See the LaTeX manual or LaTeX Companion ... for explanation. \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} comes in reaction to you giving \LaTeX{} a |\|{}|\| command at a time when it's not expecting it. The commonest case is where you've decided you want the label of a list item to be on a line of its own, so you've written (for example): \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{description} \item[Very long label] \\ Text... \end{description} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} |\|{}|\| is actually a rather bad command to use in this case (even if it worked), since it would force the `paragraph' that's made up of the text of the item to terminate a line which has nothing on it but the label. This would lead to an ``|Underfull \hbox|'' warning message (usually with `infinite' badness of 10000); while this message doesn't do any actual harm other than slowing down your \LaTeX{} run, any message that doesn't convey any information distracts for no useful purpose. The proper solution to the problem is to write a new sort of \environment{description} environment, that does just what you're after. (The \nothtml{\emph{\LaTeX{} Companion}~--- see }% ! line wrap \Qref[question]{\emph{\LaTeX{} Companion}}{Q-books}\nothtml{~---} offers a rather wide selection of variants of these things.) The quick-and-easy solution, which avoids the warning, is to write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{description} \item[Very long label] \hspace*{\fill} \\ Text... \end{description} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which fills out the under-full line before forcing its closure. The \Package{expdlist} package provides the same functionality with its \csx{breaklabel} command, and \Package{mdwlist} provides it via its \csx{desclabelstyle} command. The other common occasion for the message is when you're using the \texttt{center} (or \environment{flushleft} or \environment{flushright}) environment, and have decided you need extra separation between lines in the environment: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{center} First (heading) line\\ \\ body of the centred text... \end{center} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The solution here is plain: use the |\|{}|\| command in the way it's supposed to be used, to provide more than just a single line break space. |\|{}|\| takes an optional argument, which specifies how much extra space to add; the required effect in the text above can be had by saying: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{center} First (heading) line\\[\baselineskip] body of the centred text... \end{center} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[expdlist.sty]\CTANref{expdlist} \item[mdwlist.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{mdwtools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-2colfltorder]{Two-column float numbers out of order} When \LaTeX{} can't place a float immediately, it places it on one of several ``defer'' lists. If another float of the same type comes along, and the ``defer'' list for that type still has something in it, the later float has to wait for everything earlier in the list. Now, standard \LaTeX{} has different lists for single-column floats, and double-column floats; this means that single-column figures can overtake double-column figures (or vice-versa), and you observe later figures appear in the document before early ones. The same is true, of course, for tables, or for any user-defined float. The \LaTeX{} team recognise the problem, and provides a package (\Package{fixltx2e}) to deal with it. \Package{Fixltx2e} amalgamates the two defer lists, so that floats don't get out of order. For those who are still running an older \LaTeX{} distribution, the package \Package{fix2col} should serve. This package (also by a member of the \LaTeX{} team) was the basis of the relevant part of \Package{fixltx2e}. The functionality has also been included in \Package{dblfloatfix}, which also has code to place full-width floats at \Qref*{\texttt{[b]} placement}{Q-2colfloat}. Once you have loaded the package, no more remains to be done: the whole requirement is to patch the output routine; no extra commands are needed. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[dblfloatfix.sty]\CTANref{dblfloatfix} \item[fix2col.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{carlisle} \item[fixltx2e.sty]Part of the \LaTeX{} distribution. \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-tabacc]{Accents misbehave in \environment{tabbing}} So you are constructing a \environment{tabbing} environment, and you have the need of some diacriticised text~--- perhaps something as simple as \cmdinvoke{'}{e}~--- and the accent disappears because it has been interpreted as a \environment{tabbing} command, and everything goes wrong. This is really a rather ghastly feature of the \environment{tabbing} environment; in order to type accented characters you need to use the \csx{a} kludge: so \cmdinvoke{a'}{e} inside \environment{tabbing} for \cmdinvoke{'}{e} outside, and similarly \csx{a`} for \csx{`} and \csx{a=} for \csx{=}. This whole procedure is of course hideous and error-prone. The simplest alternative is to type in an encoding that has the diacriticised characters in it, and to use an appropriate encoding definition file in the \Package{inputenc} package. So for example, type: \begin{quote} \cmdinvoke{usepackage}[latin1]{inputenc}\\ \texttt{...}\\ \cmdinvoke{begin}{tabbing}\\ \texttt{...}\\ \texttt{...} \csx{>} \texttt{voil\`a} \csx{>} \texttt{...} \end{quote} for: \begin{quote} \dots{}\quad voil\`a\quad \dots{} \end{quote} and the internal mechanisms of the \Package{inputenc} package will put the right version of the accent command in there. A witty reversal of the r\^oles is introduced by the package \Package{Tabbing} (note the capital ``T''): it provides a \environment{Tabbing} environment which duplicates \environment{tabbing}, but all the single-character commands become complicated objects. So \environment{tabbing}'s \csx{>} becomes \csx{TAB>}, \csx{=} becomes \csx{TAB=}, and so on. The above trivial example would therefore become: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{Tabbing} ... \begin{Tabbing} ... ... \TAB> voil\`a \TAB> ... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[Tabbing.sty]\CTANref{Tabbing} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-alreadydef]{Package reports ``command already defined''} You load a pair of packages, and the second reports that one of the commands it defines is already present. For example, both the \Package{txfonts} and \Package{amsmath} define a command \csx{iint} (and \csx{iiint} and so on); so \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ... \usepackage{txfonts} \usepackage{amsmath} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} produces a string of error messages of the form: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} ! LaTeX Error: Command \iint already defined. Or name \end... illegal, see p.192 of the manual. \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} ! LaTeX Error: Command \iint already defined. Or name \end... illegal, see p.192 of the manual. \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} As a general rule, things that \Package{amsmath} defines, it defines well; however, there is a good case for using the \Package{txfonts} version of \csx{iint}~--- the associated \FontName{tx} fonts have a double integral symbol that doesn't need to be ``faked'' in the way \Package{amsmath} does. In the case that you are loading several symbol packages, every one of which defines the same symbol, you are likely to experience the problem in a big way (\csx{euro} is a common victim). There are similar cases where one package redefines another's command, but no error occurs because the redefining package doesn't use \csx{newcommand}. Often, in such a case, you only notice the change because you assume the definition given by the first package. The \Package{amsmath}--\Package{txfonts} packages are just such a pair; \Package{txfonts} doesn't provoke errors. You may deal with the problem by saving and restoring the command. Macro programmers may care to do this for themselves; for the rest of us, there's the package \Package{savesym}. The sequence: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{savesym} \usepackage{amsmath} \savesymbol{iint} \usepackage{txfonts} \restoresymbol{TXF}{iint} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} does the job; restoring the \Package{amsmath} version of the command, and making the \Package{txfonts} version of the command available as \csx{TXFiint}. Documentation of \Package{savesym} doesn't amount to much: the only commands are \csx{savesymbol} and \csx{restoresymbol}, as noted above. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[amsmath.sty]Part of \CTANref{amslatex} \item[savesym.sty]\CTANref{savesym} \item[txfonts.sty]Part of \CTANref{txfonts} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-zerochap]{Why are my sections numbered 0.1\,\dots{}?} This happens when your document is using the standard \Class{book} or \Class{report} class (or one similar), and you've got a \csx{section} before your first \csx{chapter}. What happens is, that the class numbers sections as % ! line break ``\meta{chapter no}.\meta{section no}'', and until the first chapter has appeared, the chapter number is 0. If you're doing this, it's quite likely that the \Class{article} class is for you; try it and see. Otherwise, give your sections a `superior' chapter, or do away with section numbering by using \csx{section*} instead. An alternative way of avoiding numbering is discussed in % ! line break ``\Qref*{unnumbered sections in the table of contents}{Q-secnumdep}''. \Question[Q-breaklinks]{Link text doesn't break at end line} When using the \Package{hyperref} package, you make a block of text ``active'' when you define a hyper-link (when the user clicks on that text, the reader program will divert to the \emph{target} of the link). The \Package{hyperref} package uses a \emph{driver} (in the same way as the \Package{graphics} package does), to determine how to implement all that hyper-stuff. If you use the driver for \Package{dvips} output (presumably you want to distill the resulting \PS{}), limitations in the way \ProgName{dvips} deals with the \csx{special} commands mean that \Package{hyperref} must prevent link anchors from breaking at the end of lines. Other drivers (notably those for \PDFTeX{} and for \ProgName{dvipdfm}) don't suffer from this problem. The only known solution to this problem is to use the \Package{breakurl} package. This package provides a very simple solution: in place of the single link, the \csx{burl} command produces a sequences of small pieces, between each of which a line break is permitted. Each sequence of pieces, that ends up together in one line, is converted to a single clickable link. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[breakurl.sty]\CTANref{breakurl} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-wrongpn]{Page number is wrong at start of page} This is a long story, whose sources are deep inside the workings of \TeX{} itself; it all derives from the \TeX{}'s striving to generate the best possible output. The page number is conventionally stored in \csx{count0}; \LaTeX{} users see this as the counter \texttt{page}, and may set its value using \csx{thepage}. The number (that is to say, \csx{count0}) is only updated when \TeX{} actually outputs a page. \TeX{} only even tries to do this when it detects a hint that it may be a good thing to do. From \TeX{}'s point of view, the end of a paragraph is a good time to consider outputting a page; it will output a page if it has \emph{more} than a page's worth of material to output. (Ensuring it always has something in hand makes some optimisations possible.) As a result, \csx{count0} (\csx{thepage}) is almost always wrong in the first paragraph of a page (the exception is where the page number has been ``forcibly'' changed, either by changing its value directly, or by breaking the page where \TeX{} wouldn't necessarily have chosen to break). \LaTeX{} provides a safe way of referring to the page number, by using label references. So, rather than writing: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} Here is page \thepage{}. \end{verbatim} \end{quote} you should write: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} Here is page \pageref{here}\label{here}. \end{verbatim} \end{quote} (note: no space between the \csx{pageref} and the \csx{label}, since that could potentially end up as a page-break space itself, which rather defeats the purpose of the exercise!). \subsection{Common misunderstandings} \Question[Q-include]{What's going on in my \csx{include} commands?} The original \LaTeX{} provided the \csx{include} command to address the problem of long documents: with the relatively slow computers of the time, the companion \csx{includeonly} facility was a boon. With the vast increase in computer speed, \csx{includeonly} is less valuable (though it still has its place in some very large projects). Nevertheless, the facility is retained in current \LaTeX{}, and causes some confusion to those who misunderstand it. In order for \csx{includeonly} to work, \csx{include} makes a separate \texttt{.aux} file for each included file, and makes a `checkpoint' of important parameters (such as page, figure, table and footnote numbers); as a direct result, it \emph{must} clear the current page both before and after the \csx{include} command. What's more, this mechanism doesn't work if a \csx{include} command appears in a file that was \csx{include}d itself: \LaTeX{} diagnoses this as an error. So, we can now answer the two commonest questions about \csx{include}: \begin{itemize} \item Why does \LaTeX{} throw a page before and after \csx{include} commands? Answer: because it has to. If you don't like it, replace the \csx{include} command with \csx{input}~--- you won't be able to use \csx{includeonly} any more, but you probably don't need it anyway, so don't worry. \begin{htmlversion} \end{htmlversion} \item Why can't I nest \csx{include}d files?~--- I always used to be able to under \LaTeXo{}. Answer: in fact, you couldn't, even under \LaTeXo{}, but the failure wasn't diagnosed. However, since you were happy with the behaviour under \LaTeXo{}, replace the \csx{include} commands with \csx{input} commands (with \csx{clearpage} as appropriate). \end{itemize} \Question[Q-paraparam]{Why does it ignore paragraph parameters?} When \TeX{} is laying out text, it doesn't work from word to word, or from line to line; the smallest complete unit it formats is the paragraph. The paragraph is laid down in a buffer, as it appears, and isn't touched further until the end-paragraph marker is processed. It's at this point that the paragraph parameters have effect; and it's because of this sequence that one often makes mistakes that lead to the paragraph parameters not doing what one would have hoped (or expected). Consider the following sequence of \LaTeX{}: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} {\raggedright % declaration for ragged text Here's text to be ranged left in our output, but it's the only such paragraph, so we now end the group.} Here's more that needn't be ragged... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \TeX{} will open a group, and impose the ragged-setting parameters within that group; it will then save a couple of sentences of text and close the group (thus restoring the previous value of the parameters that \csx{raggedright} set). Then \TeX{} encounters a blank line, which it knows to treat as a \csx{par} token, so it typesets the two sentences; but because the enclosing group has now been closed, the parameter settings have been lost, and the paragraph will be typeset normally. The solution is simple: close the paragraph inside the group, so that the setting parameters remain in place. An appropriate way of doing that is to replace the last three lines above with: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} end the group.\par} Here's more that needn't be ragged... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} In this way, the paragraph is completed while \csx{raggedright}'s parameters are still in force within the enclosing group. Another alternative is to define an environment that does the appropriate job for you. For the above example, \LaTeX{} already defines an appropriate one: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{flushleft} Here's text to be ranged left... \end{flushleft} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} In fact, there are a number of parameters for which \TeX{} only maintains one value per paragraph. A tiresome one is the set of upper case/lower case translations, which (oddly enough) constrains hyphenation of mutlilingual texts. Another that regularly creates confusion is \Qref*{\csx{baselineskip}}{Q-baselinepar}. \Question[Q-casechange]{Case-changing oddities} \TeX{} provides two primitive commands \csx{uppercase} and \csx{lowercase} to change the case of text; they're not much used, but are capable creating confusion. The two commands do not expand the text that is their parameter~--- the result of \cmdinvoke{uppercase}{abc} is `\texttt{ABC}', but \cmdinvoke{uppercase}{\csx{abc}} is always `\csx{abc}', whatever the meaning of \csx{abc}. The commands are simply interpreting a table of equivalences between upper- and lowercase characters. They have (for example) no mathematical sense, and \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \uppercase{About $y=f(x)$} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} will produce \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ABOUT $Y=F(X)$ \end{verbatim} \end{quote} which is probably not what is wanted. In addition, \csx{uppercase} and \csx{lowercase} do not deal very well with non-American characters, for example \cmdinvoke{uppercase}{\csx{ae}} is the same as \csx{ae}. \LaTeX{} provides commands \csx{MakeUppercase} and \csx{MakeLowercase} which fixes the latter problem. These commands are used in the standard classes to produce upper case running heads for chapters and sections. Unfortunately \csx{MakeUppercase} and \csx{MakeLowercase} do not solve the other problems with \csx{uppercase}, so for example a section title containing \cmdinvoke{begin}{tabular} \dots{} \cmdinvoke{end}{tabular} will produce a running head containing \cmdinvoke{begin}{TABULAR}. The simplest solution to this problem is using a user-defined command, for example: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\mytable}{\begin{tabular}... \end{tabular}} \section{A section title \protect\mytable{} with a table} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Note that \csx{mytable} has to be protected, otherwise it will be expanded and made upper case; you can achieve the same result by declaring it with \csx{DeclareRobustCommand}, in which case the \csx{protect} won't be necessary. David Carlisle's \Package{textcase} package addresses many of these problems in a transparent way. It defines commands \csx{MakeTextUppercase} and \csx{MakeTextLowercase} which do upper- or lowercase, with the fancier features of the \LaTeX{} standard \csx{Make*}-commands but without the problems mentioned above. Load the package with \cmdinvoke{usepackage}[overload]{textcase}, and it will redefine the \LaTeX{} commands (\emph{not} the \TeX{} primitive commands \csx{uppercase} and \csx{lowercase}), so that section headings and the like don't produce broken page headings. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[textcase.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{carlisle} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-splitfoot]{Why does \LaTeX{} split footnotes across pages?} \LaTeX{} splits footnotes when it can think of nothing better to do. Typically, when this happens, the footnote mark is at the bottom of the page, and the complete footnote would overfill the page. \LaTeX{} could try to salvage this problem by making the page short of both the footnote and the line with the footnote mark, but its priorities told it that splitting the footnote would be preferable. As always, the best solution is to change your text so that the problem doesn't occur in the first place. Consider whether the text that bears the footnote could move earlier in the current page, or on to the next page. If this isn't possible, you might want to change \LaTeX{}'s perception of its priorities: they're controlled by \csx{interfootnotelinepenalty}~--- the larger it is, the less willing \LaTeX{} is to split footnotes. Setting \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \interfootnotelinepenalty=10000 \end{verbatim} \end{quote} inhibits split footnotes altogether, which will cause `\texttt{Underfull} \csx{vbox}' messages unless you also specify \csx{raggedbottom}. The default value of the penalty is \texttt{100}, which is rather mild. An alternative technique is to juggle with the actual size of the pages. \csx{enlargethispage} changes the size of the current page by its argument (for example, you might say \cmdinvoke{enlargethispage}{\csx{baselineskip}} to add a single line to the page, but you can use any ordinary \TeX{} length such as \texttt{15mm} or \texttt{-20pt} as argument). Reducing the size of the current page could force the offending text to the next page; increasing the size of the page may allow the footnote to be included in its entirety. It may be necessary to change the size of more than one page. The \Package{fnbreak} package detects (and generates warnings about) split footnotes. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[fnbreak.sty]\CTANref{fnbreak} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-marginparside]{Getting \csx{marginpar} on the right side} In an ideal world, marginal notes would be in ``analagous'' places on every page: notes on an even-side page would be in the left margin, while those on an odd-side page would be in the right margin. A moment's thought shows that a marginal note on the left needs to be typeset differently from a marginal note on the right. The \LaTeX{} \csx{marginpar} command therefore takes two arguments in a \texttt{twoside} documents: % beware line break \cmdinvoke*{marginpar}[left text]{right text}. \LaTeX{} uses the ``obvious'' test to get the \csx{marginpar}s in the correct margin, but a booby-trap arises because \TeX{} runs its page maker asynchronously. If a \csx{marginpar} is processed while page \ensuremath{n} is being built, but doesn't get used until page \ensuremath{n}+1, then the \csx{marginpar} will turn up on the wrong side of the page. This is an instance of a general problem: see % beware line break ``\Qref*{finding if you're on an odd or an even page}{Q-oddpage}''. The solution to the problem is for \LaTeX{} to `remember' which side of the page each \csx{marginpar} \emph{should} be on. The \Package{mparhack} package does this, using label-like marks stored in the \texttt{.aux} file; the \Class{memoir} class does likewise. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[memoir.cls]\CTANref{memoir} \item[mparhack.sty]\CTANref{mparhack} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-misschar]{Where have my characters gone?} You've typed some apparently reasonable text and processed it, but the result contains no sign of some of the characters you typed. A likely reason is that the font you selected just doesn't have a representation for the character in question. For example, if I type ``that will be \pounds{}44.00'' into an ordinary \AllTeX{} document, or if I select the font |rsfs10| (which contains uppercase letters only) and type pretty much anything, the \pounds{} sign, or any lowercase letters or digits will not appear in the output. There's no actual error message, either: you have to read the log file, where you'll find cryptic little messages like \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} Missing character: There is no ^^a3 in font cmr10! Missing character: There is no 3 in font rsfs10! \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} Missing character: There is no ^^a3 in font cmr10! Missing character: There is no 3 in font rsfs10! \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} (the former demonstrating my \TeX{}'s unwillingness to deal in characters which have the eighth bit set, while the \texttt{rsfs10} example shows that \TeX{} will log the actual character in error, if it thinks it's possible). Somewhat more understandable are the diagnostics you may get from \Package{dvips} when using the \acro{OT}1 and \acro{T}1 versions of fonts that were supplied in Adobe standard encoding: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} dvips: Warning: missing glyph `Delta' \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The process that generates the metrics for using the fonts generates an instruction to \Package{dvips} to produce these diagnostics, so that their non-appearance in the printed output is less surprising than it might be. Quite a few glyphs provided in Knuth's text encodings and in the Cork encoding are not available in the Adobe fonts. In these cases, there \emph{is} a typeset sign of the character: \ProgName{dvips} produces a black rectangle of whatever size the concocted font file has specified. \Question[Q-rerun]{``Rerun'' messages won't go away} The \LaTeX{} message ``Rerun to get crossreferences right'' is supposed to warn the user that the job needs to be processed again, since labels seem to have changed since the previous run. (\LaTeX{} compares the labels it has created this time round with what it found from the previous run when it started; it does this comparison at \cmdinvoke{end}{document}.) Sometimes, the message won't go away: however often you reprocess your document, \LaTeX{} still tells you that ``Label(s) may have changed''. This can sometimes be caused by a broken package: both \Package{footmisc} (with the |perpage| option) and \Package{hyperref} have been known to give trouble, in the past: if you are using either, check you have the latest version, and upgrade if possible. However, there \emph{is} a rare occasion when this error can happen as a result of pathological structure of the document itself. Suppose you have pages numbered in roman, and you add a reference to a label on page ``ix'' (9). The presence of the reference pushes the thing referred to onto page ``x'' (10), but since that's a shorter reference the label moves back to page ``ix'' at the next run. Such a sequence can obviously not terminate. The only solution to this problem is to make a small change to your document (something as small as adding or deleting a comma will often be enough). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[footmisc.sty]\CTANref{footmisc} \item[hyperref.sty]\CTANref{hyperref} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-xspace]{Commands gobble following space} People are forever surprised that simple commands gobble the space after them: this is just the way it is. The effect arises from the way \TeX{} works, and Lamport describes a solution (place a pair of braces after a command's invocation) in the description of \LaTeX{} syntax. Thus the requirement is in effect part of the definition of \LaTeX{}. This \acro{FAQ}, for example, is written with definitions that \emph{require} one to type \cmdinvoke{fred}{\relax} % the \relax prevents {} being gobbled % in html production (sigh) for almost all macro invocations, regardless of whether the following space is required: however, this \acro{FAQ} is written by highly dedicated (and, some would say, eccentric) people. Many users find all those braces become very tedious very quickly, and would really rather not type them all. An alternative structure, that doesn't violate the design of \LaTeX{}, is to say \csx{fred}\csx{ }~--- the \csx{ } command is ``self terminating'' (like |\|{}|\|) and you don't need braces after \emph{it}. Thus one can reduce to one the extra characters one needs to type. If even that one character is too many, the package \Package{xspace} defines a command \csx{xspace} that guesses whether there should have been a space after it, and if so introduces that space. So % beware line wrap ``\texttt{fred\csx{xspace} jim}'' produces ``fred jim'', while ``\texttt{fred\csx{xspace}.\@ jim}'' produces ``fred. jim''. Which usage would of course be completely pointless; but you can incorporate \csx{xspace} in your own macros: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{xspace} ... \newcommand{\restenergy}{\ensuremath{mc^2}\xspace} ... and we find \restenergy available to us... \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{xspace} ... \newcommand{\restenergy}% {\ensuremath{mc^2}\xspace} ... and we find \restenergy available to us... \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} The \csx{xspace} command must be the last thing in your macro definition (as in the example); it's not completely foolproof, but it copes with most obvious situations in running text. The \Package{xspace} package doesn't save you anything if you only use a modified macro once or twice within your document. In any case, be careful with usage of \csx{xspace}~--- it changes your input syntax, which can be confusing, notably to a collaborating author (particularly if you create some commands which use it and some which don't). Of course, no command built into \LaTeX{} or into any ``standard'' class or package will use \csx{xspace}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[xspace.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-overfull]{\AllTeX{} makes overfull lines} When \TeX{} is building a paragraph, it can make several attempts to get the line-breaking right; on each attempt it runs the same algorithm, but gives it different parameters. You can affect the way \TeX{}'s line breaking works by adjusting the parameters: this answer deals with the ``tolerance'' and stretchability parameters. The other vital `parameter' is the set of hyphenations to be applied: see ``\Qref*[question]{my words aren't being hyphenated}{Q-nohyph}'' (and the questions it references) for advice. If you're getting an undesired ``overfull box'', what has happened is that \TeX{} has given up: the parameters you gave it don't allow it to produce a result that \emph{doesn't} overfill. In this circumstance, Knuth decided the best thing to do was to produce a warning, and to allow the user to solve the problem. (The alternative, silently to go beyond the envelope of ``good taste'' defined for this run of \TeX{}, would be distasteful to any discerning typographer.) The user can almost always address the problem by rewriting the text that's provoking the problem~--- but that's not always possible, and in some cases it's impossible to solve the problem without adjusting the parameters. This answer discusses the approaches one might take to resolution of the problem, on the assumption that you've got the hyphenation correct. The simplest case is where a `small' word fails to break at the end of a line; pushing the entire word to a new line isn't going to make much difference, but it might make things just bad enough that \TeX{} won't do it by default. In such a case on can \emph{try} the \LaTeX{} \csx{linebreak} command: it may solve the problem, and if it does, it will save an awful lot of fiddling. Otherwise, one needs to adjust parameters: to do that we need to recap the details of \TeX{}'s line breaking mechanisms. \TeX{}'s first attempt at breaking lines is performed without even trying hyphenation: \TeX{} sets its ``tolerance'' of line breaking oddities to the internal value \csx{pretolerance}, and sees what happens. If it can't get an acceptable break, \TeX{} adds the hyphenation points allowed by the current patterns, and tries again using the internal \csx{tolerance} value. If this pass also fails, and the internal \csx{emergencystretch} value is positive, \TeX{} will try a pass that allows \csx{emergencystretch} worth of extra stretchability to the spaces in each line. In principle, therefore, there are three parameters (other than hyphenation) that you can change: \csx{pretolerance}, \csx{tolerance} and \csx{emergencystretch}. Both the \texttt{tolerance} values are simple numbers, and should be set by \TeX{} primitive count assignment~--- for example \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \pretolerance=150 \end{verbatim} \end{quote} For both, an ``infinite'' tolerance is represented by the value |10|\nothtml{\,}|000|, but infinite tolerance is rarely appropriate, since it can lead to very bad line breaks indeed. \csx{emergencystretch} is a \TeX{}-internal `dimen' register, and can be set as normal for dimens in Plain~\TeX{}; in \LaTeX{}, use \csx{setlength}~--- for example: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \setlength{\emergencystretch}{3em} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The choice of method has time implications~--- each of the passes takes time, so adding a pass (by changing \csx{emergencystretch}) is less desirable than suppressing one (by changing \csx{pretolerance}). However, it's unusual nowadays to find a computer that's slow enough that the extra passes are really troublesome. In practice, \csx{pretolerance} is rarely used other than to manipulate the use of hyphenation; Plain~\TeX{} and \LaTeX{} both set its value to |100|. To suppress the first scan of paragraphs, set \csx{pretolerance} to |-1|. \csx{tolerance} is often a good method for adjusting spacing; Plain~\TeX{} and \LaTeX{} both set its value to |200|. \LaTeX{}'s \csx{sloppy} command sets it to |9999|, as does the \environment{sloppypar} environment. This value is the largest available, this side of infinity, and can allow pretty poor-looking breaks (this author rarely uses \csx{sloppy} ``bare'', though he does occasionally use \environment{sloppypar}~--- that way, the change of \csx{tolerance} is confined to the environment). More satisfactory is to make small changes to \csx{tolerance}, incrementally, and then to look to see how the change affects the result; very small increases can often do what's necessary. Remember that \csx{tolerance} is a paragraph parameter, so you need to ensure it's actually applied~--- see ``\Qref*[question]{ignoring paragraph parameters}{Q-paraparam}''. \LaTeX{} users could use an environment like: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \newenvironment{tolerant}[1]{% \par\tolerance=#1\relax }{% \par } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} enclosing entire paragraphs (or set of paragraphs) in it. \csx{emergencystretch} is a slightly trickier customer to understand. The example above set it to |3em|; the Computer Modern fonts ordinarily fit three space skips to the em, so the change would allow anything up to the equivalent of nine extra spaces in each line. In a line with lots of spaces, this could be reasonable, but with (say) only three spaces on the line, each could stretch to four times its natural width. \Question[Q-exscale]{Maths symbols don't scale up} By default, the ``large'' maths symbols stay at the same size regardless of the font size of the text of the document. There's good reason for this: the \FontName{cmex} fonts aren't really designed to scale, so that \TeX{}'s maths placement algorithms don't perform as well as they might when the fonts are scaled. However, this behaviour confounds user expectations, and can lead to slightly odd-looking documents. If you want the fonts to scale, despite the warning above, use the \Package{exscale} package~--- just loading it is enough. %% %% (Note: if you are using bitmap versions of the \FontName{cmex} fonts, %% you will find extra bitmaps are generated. The extended sizes are not %% ordinarily generated for any other purpose.) \begin{ctanrefs} \item[exscale.sty]Part of the \LaTeX{} distribution. \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-linespread]{Why doesn't \csx{linespread} work?} The command \cmdinvoke*{linespread}{factor} is supposed to multiply the current \csx{baselineskip} by \meta{factor}; but, to all appearances, it doesn't. In fact, the command is equivalent to \cmdinvoke{renewcommand}{\csx{baselinestretch}}{factor}: written that way, it somehow feels less surprising that the effect isn't immediate. The \csx{baselinestretch} factor is only used when a font is selected; a mere change of \csx{baselinestretch} doesn't change the font, any more than does the command \cmdinvoke*{fontsize}{size}{baselineskip}~--- you have to follow either command with \csx{selectfont}. So: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \fontsize{10}{12}% \selectfont \end{verbatim} \end{quote} or: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \linespread{1.2}% \selectfont \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Of course, a package such as \Package{setspace}, whose job is to manage the baseline, will deal with all this stuff~--- see ``\Qref*[question]{managing double-spaced documents}{Q-linespace}''. If you want to avoid \Package{setspace}, beware the behaviour of linespread changes within a paragraph: read % ! line break ``\Qref*[question]{\csx{baselineskip} is a paragraph parameter}{Q-baselinepar}''. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[setspace.sty]\CTANref{setspace} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-baselinepar]{Only one \csx{baselineskip} per paragraph} The \csx{baselineskip} is not (as one might hope) a property of a line, but of a paragraph. As a result, in a \texttt{10pt} (nominal) document (with a default \csx{baselineskip} of \texttt{12pt}), a single character with a larger size, as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} {\Huge A} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} will be squashed into the paragraph: \TeX{} will make sure it doesn't scrape up against the line above, but won't give it ``room to breathe'', as it does the text at standard size; that is, its size (\texttt{24.88pt}) is taken account of, but its \csx{baselineskip} (\texttt{30pt}) isn't. Similarly \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} Paragraph text ... {\footnotesize Extended interjection ... ... into the paragraph.} ... paragraph continues ... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} will look silly, since the \texttt{8pt} interjection will end up set on the \texttt{12pt} \csx{baselineskip} of the paragraph, rather than its preferred \texttt{8.5pt}. Finally, something like \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} Paragraph text ... ... paragraph body ends. {\footnotesize Short comment on paragraph.} Next paragraph starts... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} will set the body of the first paragraph on the constricted \csx{baselineskip} of the \csx{footnotesize} comment. So, how to deal with these problems? The oversized (short) section is typically corrected by a \emph{strut}: this word comes from movable metal typography, and refers to a spacer that held the boxes (that contained the metal character shapes) apart. Every time you change font size, \LaTeX{} redefines the command \csx{strut} to provide the equivalent of a metal-type strut for the size chosen. So for the example above, we would type \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} Paragraph text ... {\Huge A\strut} ... paragraph continues ... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} However, more extended insertions (whether of larger or smaller text) are always going to cause problems; while you can strut larger text, ensuring that you strut every line will be tiresome, and there's no such thing as a ``negative strut'' that pulls the lines together for smaller text. The only satisfactory way to deal with an extended insertion at a different size is to set it off as a separate paragraph. A satisfactory route to achieving this is the \environment{quote} environment, which sets its text modestly inset from the enclosing paragraph: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} Paragraph text ... \begin{quote} \footnotesize This is an inset account of something relevant to the enclosing paragraph... \end{quote} ... paragraph continues ... \end{verbatim} \end{quote} Such quote-bracketing also deals with the problem of a trailing comment on the paragraph. \Question[Q-tocloftwrong]{Numbers too large in table of contents, etc.} \LaTeX{} constructs the table of contents, list of figures, tables, and similar tables, on the basis of a layout specified in the class. As a result, they do \emph{not} react to the sizes of things in them, as they would if a \environment{tabular} environment (or something similar) was used. This arrangement can provoke problems, most commonly with deep section nesting or very large page numbers: the numbers in question just don't fit in the space allowed for them in the class. A separate answer discusses % ! line break \nothtml{re-designing the tables ---} % ! line break \Qref{re-designing the tables}{Q-tocloft}\nothtml{ ---} and those techniques can be employed to make the numbers fit. \subsection{Why shouldn't I?} \Question[Q-t1enc]{Why use \Package{fontenc} rather than \Package{t1enc}?} In the very earliest days of \LaTeXe{}, the only way to use the \acro{T}1 encoding was \Package{t1enc}; with the summer 1994 ``production'' release, the \Package{fontenc} package appeared, and provided comprehensive support for use of the encoding. Nevertheless, the \Package{t1enc} package remains (as part of the \LaTeXo{} compatibility code), but it does very little: it merely selects font encoding \acro{T}1, and leaves to the user the business of generating the character codes required. Generating such character codes could be a simple matter, \emph{if} the \acro{T}1 encoding matched any widely-supported encoding standard, since in that case, one might expect one's keyboard to generate the character codes. However, the \acro{T}1 encoding is a mix of several standard encodings, and includes code points in areas of the table which standard encodings specifically exclude, so no \acro{T}1 keyboards have been (or ever will be) manufactured. By contrast, the \Package{fontenc} package generates the \acro{T}1 code points from ordinary \LaTeX{} commands (e.g., it generates the \texttt{\'e} character codepoint from the command |\'|{}|e|). So, unless you have program-generated \acro{T}1 input, use \cmdinvoke{usepackage}[T1]{fontenc} rather than \cmdinvoke{usepackage}{t1enc}. \Question[Q-why-inp-font]{Why bother with \Package{inputenc} and \Package{fontenc}?} The standard input encoding for Western Europe (pending the arrival of Unicode) is \acro{ISO}~8859--1 (commonly known by the standard's subtitle `Latin-1'). Latin-1 is remarkably close, in the codepoints it covers, to the \AllTeX{} \acro{T}1 encoding. In this circumstance, why should one bother with \Package{inputenc} and \Package{fontenc}? Since they're pretty exactly mirroring each other, one could do away with both, and use just \Package{t1enc}, despite its \Qref*{shortcomings}{Q-t1enc}. One doesn't do this for a variety of small reasons: \begin{description} \item[Confusion] You've been happily working in this mode, and for some reason find you're to switch to writing in German: the effect of using ``\texttt{\ss}'' is somewhat startling, since \acro{T}1 and Latin-1 treat the codepoint differently. \item[Compatibility] You find yourself needing to work with a colleague in Eastern Europe: their keyboard is likely to be set to produce Latin-2, so that the simple mapping doesn't work. \item[Traditional \LaTeX{}] You lapse and write something like |\'|{}|e| rather than typing \texttt{\'e}; only \Package{fontenc} has the means to convert this \LaTeX{} sequence into the \acro{T}1 character, so an \csx{accent} primitive slips through into the output, and hyphenation is in danger. \end{description} The \Package{inputenc}--\Package{fontenc} combination seems slow and cumbersome, but it's safe. \Question[Q-eqnarray]{Why not use \environment{eqnarray}?} The environment \environment{eqnarray} is attractive for the occasional user of mathematics in \LaTeX{} documents: it seems to allow aligned systems of equations. Indeed it \emph{does} supply such things, but it makes a serious mess of spacing. In the system: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{eqnarray} a & = & b + c \\ x & = & y - z \end{eqnarray} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} the spacing around the ``='' signs is \emph{not} that defined in the metrics for the font from which the glyph comes~--- it's \csx{arraycolsep}, which may be set to some very odd value for reasons associated with real arrays elsewhere in the document. The user is far better served by the \AMSLaTeX{} bundle, which provides an \environment{align} environment, which is designed with the needs of mathematicians in mind (as opposed to the convenience of \LaTeX{} programmers). For this simple case (align is capable of far greater things), code as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{align} a & = b + c \\ x & = y - z \end{align} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[AMSLaTeX]\CTANref{amslatex} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-dolldoll]{Why use \csx{[}\,\dots{}\csx{]} in place of \texttt{\$\$}\,\dots{}\texttt{\$\$}?} \LaTeX{} defines inline- and display-maths commands, apparently analagous to those that derive from the \TeX{} primitive maths sequences bracketing maths commands with single dollar signs (or pairs of dollar signs). As it turns out, \LaTeX{}'s inline maths grouping, % !line break \csx{(}\texttt{ ... }\csx{)}, has precisely the same effect as the \TeX{} primitive version \texttt{\$ ... \$}. (Except that the \LaTeX{} version checks to ensure you don't put \csx{(} and \csx{)} the wrong way round.) In this circumstance, one often finds \LaTeX{} users, who have some experience of using Plain \TeX{}, merely assuming that \LaTeX{}'s display maths grouping \csx{[}\texttt{ ... }\csx{]} may be replaced by the \TeX{} primitive display maths \texttt{\$\$ ... \$\$}. Unfortunately, they are wrong: if \LaTeX{} code is going to patch display maths, it can only do so by patching \csx{[} and \csx{]}. The most obvious way this turns up, is that the class option \pkgoption{fleqn} simply does not work for equations coded using % beware line break \texttt{\$\$ ... \$\$}, whether you're using the standard classes alone, or using package \Package{amsmath}. Also, the \csx{[} and \csx{]} has code for rationalising vertical spacing in some extreme cases; that code is not available in \texttt{\$\$ ... \$\$}, so if you use the non-standard version, you may occasionally observe inconsistent vertical spacing . There are more subtle effects (especially with package \Package{amsmath}), and the simple rule is % ! line break \csx{[}\texttt{ ... }\csx{]} whenever unadorned displayed maths is needed in \LaTeX{}. \Question[Q-2letterfontcmd]{What's wrong with \csx{bf}, \csx{it}, etc.?} The font-selection commands of \LaTeXo{} were \csx{rm}, \csx{sf}, \csx{tt}, \csx{it}, \csx{sl}, \csx{em} and \csx{bf}; they were modal commands, so you used them as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} {\bf Fred} was {\it here\/}. \end{verbatim} \end{quote} with the font change enclosed in a group, so as to limit its effect; note the italic correction command \csx{/} that was necessary at the end of a section in italics. At the release of \LaTeXe{} in summer 1994, these simple commands were deprecated, but recognising that their use is deeply embedded in the brains of \LaTeX{} users, the commands themselves remain in \LaTeX{}, \emph{with their \LaTeXo{} semantics}. Those semantics were part of the reason they were deprecated: each |\|\emph{\texttt{xx}} overrides any other font settings, keeping only the size. So, for example, \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} {\bf\it Here we are again\/} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} ignores \csx{bf} and produces text in italic, medium weight (and the italic correction has a real effect), whereas \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} {\it\bf happy as can be\/} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} ignore \csx{it} and produces upright text at bold weight (and the italic correction has nothing to do). The same holds if you mix \LaTeXe{} font selections with the old style commands: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \textbf{\tt all good friends} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} ignores the \csx{textbf} that encloses the text, and produces typewriter text at medium weight. So why are these commands deprecated?~--- it is because of confusions such as that in the last example. The alternative (\LaTeXe{}) commands are discussed in the rest of this answer. \LaTeXe{}'s font commands come in two forms: modal commands and text-block commands. The default set of modal commands offers weights \csx{mdseries} and \csx{bfseries}, shapes \csx{upshape}, \csx{itshape}, \csx{scshape} and \csx{slshape}, and families \csx{rmfamily}, \csx{sffamily} and \csx{ttfamily}. A font selection requires a family, a shape and a series (as well as a size, of course). A few examples \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} {\bfseries\ttfamily and jolly good company!} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} {\bfseries\ttfamily and jolly good company!} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} produces bold typewriter text (but note the lack of a % ! line break, big time \begin{narrowversion} % non hyper version bold typewriter font~--- \Qref{}{Q-bold-extras}~--- \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \Qref{bold typewriter font}{Q-bold-extras} \end{wideversion} in the default Computer Modern fonts), or \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} {\slshape\sffamily Never mind the weather\/} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} {\slshape\sffamily Never mind the weather\/} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} (note the italic correction needed on slanted fonts, too). \LaTeXe{}'s text block commands take the first two letters of the modal commands, and form a \csx{text}\emph{\texttt{xx}} command from them. Thus \csx{bfseries} becomes \cmdinvoke*{textbf}{text}, \csx{itshape} becomes \cmdinvoke*{textit}{text}, and \csx{ttfamily} becomes \cmdinvoke*{texttt}{text}. Block commands may be nested, as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \textit{\textbf{Never mind the rain}} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} to produce bold italic text (note that the block commands supply italic corrections where necessary), and they be nested with the \LaTeXe{} modal commands, too: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \texttt{\bfseries So long as we're together} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \texttt{\bfseries So long as we're together} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} for bold typewriter, or \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} {\slshape\textbf{% Whoops! she goes again}\/} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} {\slshape \textbf{Whoops! she goes again}\/} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} for a bold slanted instance of the current family (note the italic correction applied at the end of the modal command group, again). The new commands (as noted above) override commands of the same type. In almost all cases, this merely excludes ludicrous ideas such as ``upright slanted'' fonts, or ``teletype roman'' fonts. There are a couple of immediate oddities, though. The first is the conflict between \csx{itshape} (or \csx{slshape}) and \csx{scshape}: while many claim that an italic small-caps font is typographically unsound, such fonts do exist. Daniel Taupin's \Package{smallcap} package enables use of the instances in the \Qref*{\acro{EC} fonts}{Q-ECfonts}, and similar techniques could be brought to bear on many other font sets. The second is the conflict between \csx{upshape} and \csx{itshape}: Knuth actually offers an upright-italic font which \LaTeX{} uses for the ``\pounds{}'' symbol in the default font set. The combination is sufficiently weird that, while there's a defined font shape, no default \LaTeX{} commands exist; to use the shape, the (eccentric) user needs \LaTeX{}'s simplest font selection commands: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} {\fontshape{ui}\selectfont Tra la la, di dee} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} {\fontshape{ui}\selectfont Tra la la, di dee} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[smallcap.sty]\CTANref{smallcap} \end{ctanrefs} %*****************************************quote environments up to here %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{The joy of \TeX{} errors} \Question[Q-erroradvice]{How to approach errors} Since \TeX{} is a macroprocessor, its error messages are often difficult to understand; this is a (seemingly invariant) property of macroprocessors. Knuth makes light of the problem in the \TeX{}book, suggesting that you acquire the sleuthing skills of a latter-day Sherlock Holmes; while this approach has a certain romantic charm to it, it's not good for the `production' user of \AllTeX{}. This answer (derived, in part, from an article by Sebastian Rahtz in \TUGboat{} 16(4)) offers some general guidance in dealing with \TeX{} error reports, and other answers in this section deal with common (but perplexing) errors that you may encounter. There's a long list of ``hints'' in Sebastian's article, including the following: \begin{itemize} \item Look at \TeX{} errors; those messages may seem cryptic at first, but they often contain a straightforward clue to the problem. See \Qref[question]{the structure of errors}{Q-errstruct} for further details. \item Read the |.log| file; it contains hints to things you may not understand, often things that have not even presented as error messages. \item Be aware of the amount of context that \TeX{} gives you. The error messages gives you some bits of \TeX{} code (or of the document itself), that show where the error ``actually happened''; it's possible to control how much of this `context' \TeX{} actually gives you. \LaTeX{} (nowadays) instructs \TeX{} only to give you one line of context, but you may tell it otherwise by saying \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \setcounter{errorcontextlines}{999} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} in the preamble of your document. (If you're not a confident macro programmer, don't be ashamed of cutting that 999 down a bit; some errors will go on and \emph{on}, and spotting the differences between those lines can be a significant challenge.) \item As a last resort, tracing can be a useful tool; reading a full \AllTeX{} trace takes a strong constitution, but once you know how, the trace can lead you quickly to the source of a problem. You need to have read the \TeX{}book (see % beware line break \Qref[question]{books about \TeX{}}{Q-books}) in some detail, fully to understand the trace. The command \csx{tracingall} sets up maximum tracing; it also sets the output to come to the interactive terminal, which is somewhat of a mixed blessing (since the output tends to be so vast~--- all but the simplest traces are best examined in a text editor after the event). The \LaTeX{} \Package{trace} package (first distributed with the 2001 release of \LaTeX{}) provides more manageable tracing. Its \csx{traceon} command gives you what \csx{tracingall} offers, but suppresses tracing around some of the truly verbose parts of \LaTeX{} itself. The package also provides a \csx{traceoff} command (there's no ``off'' command for \csx{tracingall}), and a package option (|logonly|) allows you to suppress output to the terminal. \end{itemize} The best advice to those faced with \TeX{} errors is not to panic: most of the common errors are plain to the eye when you go back to the source line that \TeX{} tells you of. If that approach doesn't work, the remaining answers in this section deal with some of the odder error messages you may encounter. You should not ordinarily need to appeal to the \nothtml{wider public (}% \Qref[question]{wider public}{Q-maillists}\nothtml{)} for assistance, but if you do, be sure to report full backtraces (see |errorcontextlines| above) and so on. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[trace.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-errstruct]{The structure of \TeX{} error messages} \TeX{}'s error messages are reminiscent of the time when \TeX{} itself was conceived (the 1970s): they're not terribly user-friendly, though they do contain all the information that \TeX{} can offer, usually in a pretty concise way. \TeX{}'s error reports all have the same structure: \begin{itemize} \item An error message \item Some `context' \item An error prompt \end{itemize} The error message will relate to the \emph{\TeX{}} condition that is causing a problem. Sadly, in the case of complex macro packages such as \LaTeX{}, the underlying \TeX{} problem may be superficially difficult to relate to the actual problem in the ``higher-level'' macros. Many \LaTeX{}-detected problems manifest themselves as `generic' errors, with error text provided by \LaTeX{} itself (or by a \LaTeX{} class or package). The context of the error is a stylised representation of what \TeX{} was doing at the point that it detected the error. As noted in \Qref[question]{approaching errors}{Q-erroradvice}, a macro package can tell \TeX{} how much context to display, and the user may need to undo what the package has done. Each line of context is split at the point of the error; if the error \emph{actually} occurred in a macro called from the present line, the break is at the point of the call. (If the called object is defined with arguments, the ``point of call'' is after all the arguments have been scanned.) For example: \begin{verbatim} \blah and so on \end{verbatim} produces the error report \begin{verbatim} ! Undefined control sequence. l.4 \blah and so on \end{verbatim} while: \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\blah}[1]{\bleah #1} \blah{to you}, folks \end{verbatim} produces the error report \begin{verbatim} ! Undefined control sequence. \blah #1->\bleah #1 l.5 \blah{to you} , folks \end{verbatim} If the argument itself is in error, we will see things such as \begin{verbatim} \newcommand{\blah}[1]{#1 to you} \blah{\bleah}, folks \end{verbatim} producing \begin{verbatim} ! Undefined control sequence. \bleah l.5 \blah{\bleah} , folks \end{verbatim} The prompt accepts single-character commands: the list of what's available may be had by typing |?|\@. One immediately valuable command is |h|, which gives you an expansion of \TeX{}s original pr\'ecis message, sometimes accompanied by a hint on what to do to work round the problem in the short term. If you simply type `return' (or whatever else your system uses to signal the end of a line) at the prompt, \TeX{} will attempt to carry on (often with rather little success). \Question[Q-extrabrace]{An extra `\texttt{\cbracesymbol{}}'??} \keywords{caption heading} You've looked at your \LaTeX{} source and there's no sign of a misplaced \texttt{\cbracesymbol{}} on the line in question. Well, no: this is \TeX{}'s cryptic way of hinting that you've put a \begin{wideversion} % hyper \Qref{fragile command}{Q-protect} in a moving argument. \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} fragile command in a moving argument (\Qref{}{Q-protect}). \end{narrowversion} For example, \csx{footnote} is fragile, and if we put that in the moving argument of a \csx{section} command, as \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \section{Mumble\footnote{% I couldn't think of anything better}} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \section{Mumble\footnote{I couldn't think of anything better}} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} we get told \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ! Argument of \@sect has an extra }. \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The same happens with captions (the following is a simplification of a \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex} post): \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \caption{Energy: \[e=mc^2\]} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} giving us the error message \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ! Argument of \@caption has an extra }. \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The solution is usually to use a robust command in place of the one you are using, or to force your command to be robust by prefixing it with \csx{protect}, which in the \csx{section} case would show as \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \section{Mumble\protect\footnote{% I couldn't think of anything better}} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \section{Mumble\protect\footnote{I couldn't think of anything better}} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} In both the \csx{section} case and the \csx{caption} case, you can separate the moving argument, as in \cmdinvoke*{section}[moving]{static}; this gives us another standard route~--- simply to omit (or otherwise sanitise) the fragile command in the moving argument. So, one might rewrite the \csx{caption} example as: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \caption[Energy: $E=mc^2$]% {Energy: \[E=mc^2\]} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \caption[Energy: $E=mc^2$]{Energy: \[E=mc^2\]} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} for, after all, even if you want display maths in a caption, you surely don't want it in the list of figures. The case of footnotes is somewhat more complex; ``\Qref[question]{footnotes in \LaTeX{} section headings}{Q-ftnsect}'' deals specifically with that issue. \Question[Q-semanticnest]{Capacity exceeded [semantic nest\,\dots{}]} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} ! TeX capacity exceeded, sorry [semantic nest size=100]. ... If you really absolutely need more capacity, you can ask a wizard to enlarge me. \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} ! TeX capacity exceeded, sorry [semantic nest size=100]. ... If you really absolutely need more capacity, you can ask a wizard to enlarge me. \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} Even though \TeX{} suggests (as always) that enlargement by a wizard may help, this message usually results from a broken macro or bad parameters to an otherwise working macro. The ``semantic nest'' \TeX{} talks about is the nesting of boxes within boxes. A stupid macro can provoke the error pretty easily: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\silly{\hbox{here's \silly being executed}} \silly \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \def\silly{\hbox{here's \silly being executed}} \silly \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} The extended traceback % beware of filling this line... (see \Qref{\emph{general advice} on errors}{Q-erroradvice}) \emph{does} help, though it does rather run on. In the case above, the traceback consists of \begin{verbatim} \silly ->\hbox { here's \silly being executed} \end{verbatim} followed by 100 instances of \begin{verbatim} \silly ->\hbox {here's \silly being executed} \end{verbatim} The repeated lines are broken at exactly the offending macro; of course the loop need not be as simple as this~--- if \csx{silly} calls \csx{dopy} which boxes \csx{silly}, the effect is just the same and alternate lines in the traceback are broken at alternate positions. There are in fact two items being consumed when you nest boxes: the other is the grouping level. Whether you exhaust your % !line wrap \emph{semantic nest} or your permitted \emph{grouping levels} first is controlled entirely by the relative size of the two different sets of buffers in your \AllTeX{} executable. \Question[Q-noroom]{No room for a new `\emph{thing}'} The technology available to Knuth at the time \TeX{} was written is said to have been particularly poor at managing dynamic storage; as a result much of the storage used within \TeX{} is allocated as fixed arrays, in the reference implementations. Many of these fixed arrays are expandable in modern \TeX{} implementations, but size of the arrays of ``registers'' is written into the specification as being 256 (usually); this number may not be changed if you still wish to call the result \TeX{} %% beware line wrap (see \Qref[question]{testing \TeX{} implementations}{Q-triptrap}). If you fill up one of these register arrays, you get a \TeX{} error message saying \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ! No room for a new \. \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The \csx{thing}s in question may be \csx{count} (the object underlying \LaTeX{}'s \csx{newcounter} command), \csx{skip} (the object underlying \LaTeX{}'s \csx{newlength} command), \csx{box} (the object underlying \LaTeX{}'s \csx{newsavebox} command), or \csx{dimen}, \csx{muskip}, \csx{toks}, \csx{read}, \csx{write} or \csx{language} (all types of object whose use is ``hidden'' in \LaTeX{}; the limit on the number of \csx{read} or \csx{write} objects is just 16). There is nothing that can directly be done about this error, as you can't extend the number of available registers without extending \TeX{} itself. \begin{htmlversion} Of course, \Qref{\eTeX{}}{Q-NTS} and \Qref{Omega}{Q-omega} \end{htmlversion} \htmlignore % beware line wrap here Of course, \ensuremath{\Omega} and \eTeX{}~--- \Qref[see questions]{}{Q-omega} \Qref[and]{}{Q-NTS} respectively~--- \endhtmlignore both do this, as does \Qref*{MicroPress Inc's V\TeX{}}{Q-commercial}. The commonest way to encounter one of these error messages is to have broken macros of some sort, or incorrect usage of macros (an example is discussed in \Qref[question]{epsf problems}{Q-epsf}). However, sometimes one just \emph{needs} more than \TeX{} can offer, and when this happens, you've just got to work out a different way of doing things. An example is the % beware line wrap \Qref*{difficulty of loading \PiCTeX{} with \LaTeX{}}{Q-usepictex}. In cases like \PiCTeX{}, it may be possible to use \Qref*{\eTeX{}}{Q-NTS} (all modern distributions provide it). The \LaTeX{} package \Package{etex} modifies the register allocation mechanism to make use of \eTeX{}'s extended register sets (it's a derivative of the Plain \TeX{} macro file \Package{etex.src}, which is used in building the \eTeX{} Plain format; both files are part of the \eTeX{} distribution). Unfortunately, \eTeX{} doesn't help with \csx{read} or \csx{write} objects. \Question[Q-epsf]{\texttt{epsf} gives up after a bit} Some copies of the documentation of \File{epsf.tex} seem to suggest that the command \begin{verbatim} \input epsf \end{verbatim} is needed for every figure included. If you follow this suggestion too literally, you get an error \begin{verbatim} ! No room for a new \read . \end{verbatim} after a while; this is because each time \File{epsf.tex} is loaded, it allocates itself a \emph{new} file-reading handle to check the figure for its bounding box, and there just aren't enough of these things (see \Qref[question]{no room for a new thing}{Q-noroom}). The solution is simple~--- this is in fact an example of misuse of macros; one only need read \File{epsf.tex} once, so change \begin{verbatim} ... \input epsf \epsffile{...} ... \input epsf \epsffile{...} \end{verbatim} (and so on) with a single \begin{verbatim} \input epsf \end{verbatim} somewhere near the start of your document, and then decorate your \csx{epsffile} statements with no more than adjustments of \csx{epsfxsize} and so on. \Question[Q-badhyph]{Improper \csx{hyphenation} will be flushed} For example \begin{verbatim} ! Improper \hyphenation will be flushed. \'#1->{ \accent 19 #1} <*> \hyphenation{Ji-m\'e -nez} \end{verbatim} (in Plain \TeX{}) or \begin{verbatim} ! Improper \hyphenation will be flushed. \leavevmode ->\unhbox \voidb@x <*> \hyphenation{Ji-m\'e -nez} \end{verbatim} in \LaTeX{}. As mentioned in \Qref[question]{``hyphenation failures''}{Q-nohyph}, words with accents in them may not be hyphenated. As a result, any such word is deemed improper in a \csx{hyphenation} command. The solution is to use a font that contains the character in question, and to express the \csx{hyphenation} command in terms of that character; this ``hides'' the accent from the hyphenation mechanisms. \LaTeX{} users can be achieved this by use of the \Package{fontenc} package (part of the \LaTeX{} distribution). If you select an 8-bit font with the package, as in \cmdinvoke{usepackage}[T1]{fontenc}, accented-letter commands such as the |\'||e| in |\hyphenation{Ji-m\'||e-nez}| automatically become the single accented character by the time the hyphenation gets to look at it. \Question[Q-tmupfl]{``Too many unprocessed floats''} If \LaTeX{} responds to a \cmdinvoke{begin}{figure} or \cmdinvoke{begin}{table} command with the error message \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} ! LaTeX Error: Too many unprocessed floats. See the LaTeX manual or LaTeX Companion for explanation. \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} \htmlignore \ifpdf \begin{verbatim} ! LaTeX Error: Too many unprocessed floats. See the LaTeX manual or LaTeX Companion for explanation. \end{verbatim} \else \begin{verbatim} ! LaTeX Error: Too many unprocessed floats. See the LaTeX manual or LaTeX Companion ... for explanation. \end{verbatim} \fi \endhtmlignore your figures (or tables) are failing to be placed properly. \LaTeX{} has a limited amount of storage for `floats' (figures, tables, or floats you've defined yourself with the \Package{float} package); if you don't let it ever actually typeset any floats, it will run out of space. This failure usually occurs in extreme cases of % beware line break \nothtml{floats moving ``wrongly'' (see }% \Qref[question]{floats moving ``wrongly''}{Q-floats}\latexhtml{);}{;} \LaTeX{} has found it can't place a float, and floats of the same type have piled up behind it. \LaTeX{}'s idea is to ensure that caption numbers are sequential in the document: the caption number is allocated when the figure (or whatever) is created, and can't be changed, so that placement out of order would mean figure numbers appearing out of order in the document (and in the list of figures, or whatever). So a simple failure to place a figure means that no subsequent figure can be placed; and hence (eventually) the error. Techniques for solving the problem are discussed in the \nothtml{floats question (}% \Qref[\htmlonly]{floats question}{Q-floats}\nothtml{)} already referenced. The error also occurs in a long sequence of \environment{figure} or \environment{table} environments, with no intervening text. Unless the environments will fit ``here'' (and you've allowed them to go ``here''), there will never be a page break, and so there will never be an opportunity for \LaTeX{} to reconsider placement. (Of course, the floats can't all fit ``here'' if the sequence is sufficiently prolonged: once the page fills, \LaTeX{} won't place any more floats, leading to the error. Techniques for resolution may involve redefining the floats using the \Package{float} package's \texttt{[H]} float qualifier, but you are unlikely to get away without using \csx{clearpage} from time to time. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[float.sty]\CTANref{float} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-atvert]{\csx{spacefactor} complaints} The errors \begin{verbatim} ! You can't use `\spacefactor' in vertical mode. \@->\spacefactor \@m \end{verbatim} or \begin{verbatim} ! You can't use `\spacefactor' in math mode. \@->\spacefactor \@m \end{verbatim} or simply \begin{verbatim} ! Improper \spacefactor. ... \end{verbatim} bites the \LaTeX{} programmer who uses an internal command without taking ``precautions''. The problem is discussed in detail in % beware line wrap ``\Qref*[question]{\texttt{@} in macro names}{Q-atsigns}'', together with solutions. \Question[Q-endingroup]{\csx{end} occurred inside a group} The actual error we observe is: \nothtml{\noindent}% |(\end occurred inside a group at level <|\texttt{\emph{n}}|>)| \nothtml{\noindent}% and it tells us that something we started in the document never got finished before we ended the document itself. The things involved (`groups') are what \TeX{} uses for restricting the scope of things: you see them, for example, in the ``traditional'' font selection commands: |{\it stuff\/}|~--- if the closing brace is left off such a construct, the effect of \csx{it} will last to the end of the document, and you'll get the diagnostic. \TeX{} itself doesn't tell you where your problem is, but you can often spot it by looking at the typeset output in a previewer. Otherwise, you can usually find mismatched braces using an intelligent editor (at least |emacs| and \ProgName{winedt} offer this facility). However, groups are not \emph{only} created by matching |{| with |}|: other grouping commands are discussed elsewhere in these \acro{FAQ}s, and are also a potential source of unclosed group. \cmdinvoke{begin}{\meta{environment}} encloses the environment's body in a group, and establishes its own diagnostic mechanism. If you end the document before closing some other environment, you get the `usual' \LaTeX{} diagnostic \htmlignore \begin{dviversion} \begin{verbatim} ! LaTeX Error: \begin{blah} on input line 6 ended by \end{document}. \end{verbatim} \end{dviversion} \begin{pdfversion} \begin{verbatim} ! LaTeX Error: \begin{blah} on input line 6 ended by \end{document}. \end{verbatim} \end{pdfversion} \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} ! LaTeX Error: \begin{blah} on input line 6 ended by \end{document}. \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} which (though it doesn't tell you which \emph{file} the \cmdinvoke{begin}{blah} was in) is usually enough to locate the immediate problem. If you press on past the \LaTeX{} error, you get one or more repetitions of the ``occurred inside a group'' message before \LaTeX{} finally exits. The \Package{checkend} package recognises other unclosed \cmdinvoke{begin}{blob} commands, and generates an ``ended by'' error message for each one, rather than producing the ``occurred inside a group'' message, which is sometimes useful (if you remember to load the package). In the absence of such information from \LaTeX{}, you need to use ``traditional'' binary search to find the offending group. Separate the preamble from the body of your file, and process each half on its own with the preamble; this tells you which half of the file is at fault. Divide again and repeat. The process needs to be conducted with care (it's obviously possible to split a correctly-written group by chopping in the wrong place), but it will usually find the problem fairly quickly. \eTeX{} (and \elatex{}~--- \LaTeX{} run on \eTeX{}) gives you further diagnostics after the traditional infuriating \TeX{} one~--- it actually keeps the information in a similar way to \LaTeX{}: \htmlignore \begin{dviversion} \begin{verbatim} (\end occurred inside a group at level 3) ### semi simple group (level 3) entered at line 6 (\begingroup) ### simple group (level 2) entered at line 5 ({) ### simple group (level 1) entered at line 4 ({) ### bottom level \end{verbatim} \end{dviversion} \begin{pdfversion} \begin{verbatim} (\end occurred inside a group at level 3) ### semi simple group (level 3) entered at line 6 (\begingroup) ### simple group (level 2) entered at line 5 ({) ### simple group (level 1) entered at line 4 ({) ### bottom level \end{verbatim} \end{pdfversion} \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} (\end occurred inside a group at level 3) ### semi simple group (level 3) entered at line 6 (\begingroup) ### simple group (level 2) entered at line 5 ({) ### simple group (level 1) entered at line 4 ({) ### bottom level \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} The diagnostic not only tells us where the group started, but also the \emph{way} it started: \csx{begingroup} or |{| (which is an alias of \csx{bgroup}, and the two are not distinguishable at the \TeX{}-engine level). \begin{ctanrefs} \item[checkend.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{bezos} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-nonum]{``Missing number, treated as zero''} In general, this means you've tried to assign something to a count, dimension or skip register that isn't (in \TeX{}'s view of things) a number. Usually the problem will become clear using the \Qref*{ordinary techniques of examining errors}{Q-erroradvice}. Two \LaTeX{}-specific errors are commonly aired on the newsgroups. The commonest arises from attempting to use an example from the \Qref*{\emph{The \LaTeX{} Companion} (first edition)}{Q-books}, and is exemplified by the following error text: \begin{verbatim} ! Missing number, treated as zero. \relax l.21 \begin{Ventry}{Return values} \end{verbatim} The problem arises because, in its first edition, the \emph{Companion}'s examples always assumed that the \Package{calc} package is loaded: this fact is mentioned in the book, but often not noticed. The remedy is to load the \Package{calc} package in any document using such examples from the \emph{Companion}. (The problem does not really arise with the second edition; copies of all the examples are available on the accompanying \CDROM{}, or on \acro{CTAN}.) The other problem, which is increasingly rare nowadays, arises from misconfiguration of a system that has been upgraded from \LaTeXo{}: the document uses the \Package{times} package, and the error appears at \cmdinvoke{begin}{document}. The file search paths are wrongly set up, and your \cmdinvoke{usepackage}{times} has picked up a \LaTeXo{} version of the package, which in its turn has invoked another which has no equivalent in \LaTeXe{}. The obvious solution is to rewrite the paths so that \LaTeXo{} packages are chosen only as a last resort so that the startlingly simple \LaTeXe{} \Package{times} package will be picked up. Better still is to replace the whole thing with something more modern still; current \Package{psnfss} doesn't provide a \Package{times} package~--- the alternative \Package{mathptmx} incorporates \FontName{Times}-like mathematics, and a sans-serif face based on \FontName{Helvetica}, but scaled to match \FontName{Times} text rather better. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[calc.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}Examples for \nothtml{\upshape}\LaTeX{} Companion]\CTANref{tlc2} \item[The psnfss bundle]\CTANref{psnfss} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-typend]{``Please type a command or say \csx{end}''} Sometimes, when you are running \AllTeX{}, it will abruptly stop and present you with a prompt (by default, just a |*| character). Many people (including this author) will reflexively hit the `return' key, pretty much immediately, and of course this is no help at all~--- \TeX{} just says: \begin{verbatim} (Please type a command or say `\end') \end{verbatim} and prompts you again. What's happened is that your \AllTeX{} file has finished prematurely, and \TeX{} has fallen back to a supposed including file, from the terminal. This could have happened simply because you've omitted the \csx{bye} (Plain~\TeX{}), \cmdinvoke{end}{document} (\LaTeX{}), or whatever. Other common errors are failure to close the braces round a command's argument, or (in \LaTeX{}) failure to close a verbatim environment: in such cases you've already read and accepted an error message about encountering end of file while scanning something. If the error is indeed because you've forgotten to end your document, you can insert the missing text: if you're running Plain~\TeX{}, the advice, to ``say \csx{end}'' is good enough: it will kill the run; if you're running \LaTeX{}, the argument will be necessary: \cmdinvoke{end}{document}. However, as often as not this isn't the problem, and (short of debugging the source of the document before ending) brute force is probably necessary. Excessive force (killing the job that's running \TeX{}) is to be avoided: there may well be evidence in the |.log| file that will be useful in determining what the problem is~--- so the aim is to persuade \TeX{} to shut itself down and hence flush all log output to file. If you can persuade \TeX{} to read it, an end-of-file indication (control-|D| under Unix, control-|Z| under Windows) will provoke \TeX{} to report an error and exit immediately. Otherwise you should attempt to provoke an error dialogue, from which you can exit (using the |x| `command'). An accessible error could well be inserting an illegal character: what it is will depend on what macros you are running. If you can't make that work, try a silly command name or two. \Question[Q-unkgrfextn]{``Unknown graphics extension''} The \LaTeX{} graphics package deals with several different types of \acro{DVI} (or other) output drivers; each one of them has a potential to deal with a different selection of graphics formats. The package therefore has to be told what graphics file types its output driver knows about; this is usually done in the \meta{driver}|.def| file corresponding to the output driver you're using. The error message arises, then, if you have a graphics file whose extension doesn't correspond with one your driver knows about. Most often, this is because you're being optimistic: asking \ProgName{dvips} to deal with a |.png| file, or \PDFTeX{} to deal with a |.eps| file: the solution in this case is to transform the graphics file to a format your driver knows about. If you happen to \emph{know} that your device driver deals with the format of your file, you are probably falling foul of a limitation of the file name parsing code that the graphics package uses. Suppose you want to include a graphics file \File{home.bedroom.eps} using the \ProgName{dvips} driver; the package will conclude that your file's extension is \File{.bedroom.eps}, and will complain. To get around this limitation, you have three alternatives: \begin{itemize} \item Rename the file~--- for example \File{home.bedroom.eps}\arrowhyph{}% \File{home-bedroom.eps} \item Mask the first dot in the file name: \begin{verbatim} \newcommand*{\DOT}{.} \includegraphics{home\DOT bedroom.eps} \end{verbatim} \item Tell the graphics package what the file is, by means of options to the \csx{includegraphics} command: \htmlignore \begin{pdfversion} \begin{verbatim} \includegraphics[type=eps,ext=.eps,read=.eps]{home.bedroom} \end{verbatim} \end{pdfversion} \begin{dviversion} \begin{verbatim} \includegraphics [type=eps,ext=.eps,read=.eps]% {home.bedroom} \end{verbatim} \end{dviversion} \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} \includegraphics[type=eps,ext=.eps,read=.eps]{home.bedroom} \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} \end{itemize} \Question[Q-nodollar]{``Missing \texttt{\$} inserted''} There are certain things that \emph{only} work in maths mode. If your document is not in maths mode and you have an |_| or a |^| character, \TeX{} (and by inheritance, \LaTeX{} too) will say \begin{verbatim} ! Missing $ inserted \end{verbatim} as if you couldn't possibly have misunderstood the import of what you were typing, and the only possible interpretation is that you had commited a typo in failing to enter maths mode. \TeX{}, therefore, tries to patch things up by inserting the \texttt{\$} you `forgot', so that the maths-only object will work; as often as not this will land you in further confusion. It's not just the single-character maths sub- and superscript operators: anything that's built in or declared as a maths operation, from the simplest lower-case \csx{alpha} through the inscrutable \csx{mathchoice} primitive, and beyond, will provoke the error if misused in text mode. \LaTeX{} offers a command \csx{ensuremath}, which will put you in maths mode for the execution of its argument, if necessary: so if you want an \csx{alpha} in your running text, say \cmdinvoke{ensuremath}{\csx{alpha}}; if the bit of running text somehow transmutes into a bit of mathematics, the \csx{ensuremath} will become a no-op, so it's pretty much always safe. \Question[Q-fontunavail]{Warning: ``Font shape \dots{}\ not available''} \LaTeX{}'s font selection scheme maintains tables of the font families it has been told about. These tables list the font families that \LaTeX{} knows about, and the shapes and series in which those font families are available. In addition, in some cases, the tables list the sizes at which \LaTeX{} is willing to load fonts from the family. When you specify a font, using one of the \LaTeX{} font selection commands, \LaTeX{} looks for the font (that is, a font that matches the encoding, family, shape, series and size that you want) in its tables. If the font isn't there at the size you want, you will see a message like: \htmlignore \begin{dviversion} \begin{verbatim} LaTeX Font Warning: Font shape `OT1/cmr/m/n' in ... size <11.5> not available (Font) size <12> substituted on ... input line ... \end{verbatim} (All the message texts in this answer have been wrapped so that they will fit in the narrow columns of this version of the \acro{FAQ}. The continuation marker is |...| at the start of the broken-off portion of the line.) \end{dviversion} \begin{pdfversion} \begin{verbatim} LaTeX Font Warning: Font shape `OT1/cmr/m/n' in size <11.5> not available (Font) size <12> substituted on input line ... \end{verbatim} \end{pdfversion} \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} LaTeX Font Warning: Font shape `OT1/cmr/m/n' in size <11.5> not available (Font) size <12> substituted on input line ... \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} There will also be a warning like: \htmlignore \begin{dviversion} \begin{verbatim} LaTeX Font Warning: Size substitutions with ... differences (Font) up to 0.5pt have occurred. \end{verbatim} \end{dviversion} \begin{pdfversion} \begin{verbatim} LaTeX Font Warning: Size substitutions with differences (Font) up to 0.5pt have occurred. \end{verbatim} \end{pdfversion} \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} LaTeX Font Warning: Size substitutions with differences (Font) up to 0.5pt have occurred. \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} after \LaTeX{} has encountered \cmdinvoke{end}{document}. The message tells you that you've chosen a font size that is not in \LaTeX{}'s list of ``allowed'' sizes for this font; \LaTeX{} has chosen the nearest font size it knows is allowed. In fact, you can tell \LaTeX{} to allow \emph{any} size: the restrictions come from the days when only bitmap fonts were available, and they have never applied to fonts that come in scaleable form in the first place. Nowadays, most of the fonts that were once bitmap-only are also available in scaleable (Adobe Type~1) form. If your installation uses scaleable versions of the Computer Modern or European Computer Modern (\acro{EC}) fonts, you can tell \LaTeX{} to remove the restrictions; use the \Package{type1cm} or \Package{type1ec} package as appropriate. If the combination of font shape and series isn't available, \LaTeX{} will usually have been told of a fall-back combination that may be used, and will select that: \htmlignore \begin{dviversion} \begin{verbatim} LaTeX Font Warning: Font shape `OT1/cmr/bx/sc' ... undefined (Font) using `OT1/cmr/bx/n' ... instead on input line 0. \end{verbatim} \end{dviversion} \begin{pdfversion} \begin{verbatim} LaTeX Font Warning: Font shape `OT1/cmr/bx/sc' undefined (Font) using `OT1/cmr/bx/n' instead on input line 0. \end{verbatim} \end{pdfversion} \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} LaTeX Font Warning: Font shape `OT1/cmr/bx/sc' undefined (Font) using `OT1/cmr/bx/n' instead on input line 0. \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} Substitutions may also be ``silent''; in this case, there is no more than an ``information'' message in the log file. For example, if you specify an encoding for which there is no version in the current font family, the `default family for the encoding' is selected. This happens, for example, if you use command \csx{textbullet}, which is normally taken from the maths symbols font, which is in |OMS| encoding. My test log contained: \htmlignore \begin{dviversion} \begin{verbatim} LaTeX Font Info: Font shape `OMS/cmr/m/n' in ... size <10> not available (Font) Font shape `OMS/cmsy/m/n' ... tried instead on input ... line ... \end{verbatim} \end{dviversion} \begin{pdfversion} \begin{verbatim} LaTeX Font Info: Font shape `OMS/cmr/m/n' in size <10> not available (Font) Font shape `OMS/cmsy/m/n' tried instead on input line ... \end{verbatim} \end{pdfversion} \endhtmlignore \begin{htmlversion} \begin{verbatim} LaTeX Font Info: Font shape `OMS/cmr/m/n' in size <10> not available (Font) Font shape `OMS/cmsy/m/n' tried instead on input line ... \end{verbatim} \end{htmlversion} In summary, these messages are not so much error messages, as information messages, that tell you what \LaTeX{} has made of your text. You should check what the messages say, but you will ordinarily not be surprised at their content. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[type1cm.sty]\CTANref{type1cm} \item[type1ec.sty]\CTANref{type1ec} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-buffovl]{Unable to read an entire line} \TeX{} belongs to the generation of applications written for environments that didn't offer the sophisticated string and i/o manipulation we nowadays take for granted (\TeX{} was written in Pascal, and the original Pascal standard made no mention of i/o, so that anything but the most trivial operations were likely to be unportable). When you overwhelm \TeX{}'s input mechanism, you get told: \begin{verbatim} ! Unable to read an entire line---bufsize=3000. Please ask a wizard to enlarge me. \end{verbatim} (for some value of `3000'~--- the quote was from a \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex} posting by a someone who was presumably using an old \TeX{}). As the message implies, there's (what \TeX{} thinks of as a) line in your input that's ``too long'' (to \TeX{}'s way of thinking). Since modern distributions tend to have tens of thousands of bytes of input buffer, it's somewhat rare that these messages occur ``for real''. Probable culprits are: \begin{itemize} \item A file transferred from another system, without translating record endings. With the decline of fixed-format records (on mainframe operating systems) and the increased intelligence of \TeX{} distributions at recognising other systems' explicit record-ending characters, this is nowadays rather a rare cause of the problem. \item A graphics input file, which a package is examining for its bounding box, contains a binary preview section. Again, sufficiently clever \TeX{} distributions recognise this situation, and ignore the previews (which are only of interest, if at all, to a \TeX{} previewer). \end{itemize} The usual advice is to ignore what \TeX{} says (i.e., anything about enlarging), and to put the problem right in the source. If the real problem is over-long text lines, most self-respecting text editors will be pleased to automatically split long lines (while preserving the ``word'' structure) so that they are nowhere any longer than a given length; so the solution is just to edit the file. If the problem is a ridiculous preview section, try using \ProgName{ghostscript} to reprocess the file, outputting a ``plain |.eps|'' file. (\ProgName{Ghostscript} is distributed with a script \ProgName{ps2epsi} which will regenerate the preview if necessary.) Users of the shareware program \ProgName{GSview} will find buttons to perform the required transformation of the file being displayed. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[ghostscript]Browse \CTANref{ghostscript} \item[GSview]Browse \CTANref{gsview} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-formatstymy]{``Fatal format file error; I'm stymied''} \AllTeX{} applications often fail with this error when you've been playing with the configuration, or have just installed a new version. The format file contains the macros that define the system you want to use: anything from the simplest (Plain~\TeX{}) all the way to the most complicated, such as \LaTeX{} or \CONTeXT{}. From the command you issue, \TeX{} knows which format you want. The error message \begin{verbatim} Fatal format file error; I'm stymied \end{verbatim} means that \TeX{} itself can't understand the format you want. Obviously, this could happen if the format file had got corrupted, but it usually doesn't. The commonest cause of the message, is that a new binary has been installed in the system: no two \TeX{} binaries on the same machine can understand each other's formats. So the new version of \TeX{} you have just installed, won't understand the format generated by the one you installed last year. Resolve the problem by regenerating the format; of course, this depends on which system you are using. \begin{itemize} \item On a te\TeX{}-based system, run \begin{verbatim} fmtutil --all \end{verbatim} or \begin{verbatim} fmtutil --byfmt= \end{verbatim} to build only the format that you are interested in. \item On a MiK\TeX{} system, click \texttt{Start}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{Programs}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{MiKTeX \emph{version}}\arrowhyph{}% \texttt{MiKTeX Options}, and in the options window, click \texttt{Update now}. \end{itemize} \Question[Q-nonpdfsp]{Non-\acro{PDF} special ignored!} This is a \PDFTeX{} error: \PDFTeX{} is running in \acro{PDF} output % beware line break at end line mode, and it has encountered a \nothtml{\csx{special} command (}% \Qref{\csx{special}}{Q-specials}\latexhtml{)}{ command}. \PDFTeX{} is able to generate its own output, and in this mode of operation has no need of \csx{special} commands (which allow the user to pass information to the driver being used to generate output). Why does this happen? \LaTeX{} users, nowadays, hardly ever use \csx{special} commands on their own~--- they employ packages to do the job for them. Some packages will generate \csx{special} commands however they are invoked: \Package{pstricks} is an example (it's very raison d'\^etre is to emit \PS{} code in a sequence of \csx{special} commands). \Package{Pstricks} may be dealt with by other means (the \Package{pdftricks} package offers a usable technique). More amenable to correction, but more confusing, are packages (such as \Package{color}, \Package{graphics} and \Package{hyperref}) that specify a ``driver''. These packages have plug-in modules that determine what \csx{special} (or other commands) are needed to generate any given effect: the |pdftex| driver for such packages knows not to generate \csx{special} commands. In most circumstances, you can let the system itself choose which driver you need; in this case everything will act properly when you switch to using \PDFLaTeX{}. If you've been using \ProgName{dvips} (and specifying the |dvips| driver) or \ProgName{dvipdfm} (for which you have to specify the driver), and decide to try \PDFLaTeX{}, you \emph{must} remove the |dvips| or |dvipdfm| driver specification from the package options, and let the system recognise which driver is needed. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[pdftricks.sty]\CTANref{pdftricks} \item[pstricks.sty]\CTANref{pstricks} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-8000]{Mismatched mode ljfour and resolution 8000} You're running \ProgName|dvips|, and you encounter a stream of error messages, starting with ``\texttt{Mismatched mode}''. The mode is the default used in your installation~--- it's set in the \ProgName{dvips} configuration file, and \texttt{ljfour} is commonest (since it's the default in most distributions), but not invariable. The problem is that \ProgName|dvips| has encountered a font for which it must generate a bitmap (since it can't find it in Type~1 format), and there is no proforma available to provide instructions to give to \MF{}. So what to do? The number 8000 comes from the `\texttt{-Ppdf}' option to \ProgName{dvips}, which you might have found from the answer \nothtml{``wrong type of fonts'' (}% beware % beware line breaks \Qref{``wrong type of fonts''}{Q-fuzzy-type3}\nothtml{)}. The obvious solution is to switch to the trivial substitute `\texttt{-Pwww}', which selects the necessary type~1 fonts for \acro{PDF} generation, but nothing else: however, this will leave you with undesirable bitmap fonts in your \acro{PDF} file. The ``proper'' solution is to find a way of expressing what you want to do, using type~1 fonts. \Question[Q-toodeep]{``Too deeply nested''} This error appears when you start a \LaTeX{} list. \LaTeX{} keeps track of the nesting of one list inside another. There is a set of list formatting parameters built-in for application to each of the list nesting levels; the parameters determine indentation, item separation, and so on. The \environment{list} environment (the basis for list environments like \environment{itemize} and \environment{enumerate}) ``knows'' there are only 6 of these sets. There are also different label definitions for the \environment{enumerate} and \environment{itemize} environments at their own private levels of nesting. Consider this example: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{enumerate} \item first item of first enumerate \begin{itemize} \item first item of first itemize \begin{enumerate} \item first item of second enumerate ... \end{enumerate} ... \end{itemize} ... \end{enumerate} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} In the example, \begin{itemize} \item the first \environment{enumerate} has labels as for a first-level \environment{enumerate}, and is indented as for a first-level list; \item the first \environment{itemize} has labels as for a first level \environment{itemize}, and is indented as for a second-level list; and \item the second \environment{enumerate} has labels as for a second-level \environment{enumerate}, and is indented as for a third-level list. \end{itemize} Now, as well as \LaTeX{} \emph{knowing} that there are 6~sets of parameters for indentation, it also \emph{knows} that there are only 4~types of labels each, for the environments \environment{enumerate} and \environment{itemize} (this ``knowledge'' spells out a requirement for class writers, since the class supplies the sets of parameters). From the above, we can deduce that there are several ways we can run out of space: we can have 6~lists (of any sort) nested, and try to start a new one; we can have 4~\environment{enumerate} environments somewhere among the set of nested lists, and try to add another one; and we can have 4~\environment{itemize} environments somewhere among the set of nested lists, and try to add another one. What can be done about the problem? Not much, short of rewriting \LaTeX{}~--- you really need to rewrite your document in a slightly less labyrinthine way. \Question[Q-inputlev]{Capacity exceeded~--- input levels} The error \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} ! TeX capacity exceeded, sorry [text input levels=15]. \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} ! TeX capacity exceeded, sorry [text input levels=15]. \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} is caused by nesting your input too deeply. You can provoke it with the trivial (Plain \TeX{}) file \File{input.tex}, which contains nothing but: \begin{verbatim} \input input \end{verbatim} In the real world, you are unlikely to encounter the error with a modern \TeX{} distribution. Te\TeX{} (used to produce the error message above) allows 15 files open for \TeX{} input at any one time, which is improbably huge for a document generated by real human beings. However, for those improbable (or machine-generated) situations, some distributions offer the opportunity to adjust the parameter |max_in_open| in a configuration file. \Question[Q-hyperdupdest]{\PDFTeX{} destination \dots{} ignored} The warning: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} ! pdfTeX warning (ext4): destination with the same identifier (name{page.1}) has been already used, duplicate ignored \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} ! pdfTeX warning (ext4): destination with the same identifier (name{page.1}) has been already used, duplicate ignored \end{verbatim} {\small NB: message text wrapped to fit in the column} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} arises because of duplicate page numbers in your document. The problem is usually soluble: see % beware line break \Qref*[question]{\acro{PDF} page destinations}{Q-pdfpagelabels}~-- which answer also describes the problem in more detail. \Question[Q-altabcr]{Alignment tab changed to \csx{cr}} This is an error you may encounter in \LaTeX{} when a tabular environment is being processed. ``Alignment tabs'' are the \texttt{\&} signs that separate the columns of a tabular; so the error message \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} ! Extra alignment tab has been changed to \cr \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} ! Extra alignment tab has been changed to \cr \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} could arise from a simple typo, such as: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{ll} hello & there & jim \\ goodbye & now \end{tabular} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} where the second |&| in the first line of the table is more than the two-column \texttt{ll} column specification can cope with~--- an extra ``\texttt{l}'' in that solves the problem. (As a result of the error, ``\texttt{jim}'' will be moved to a row of his own.) Rather more difficult to spot is the occurrence of the error when you're using alignment instructions in a ``\texttt{p}'' column: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \usepackage{array} ... \begin{tabular}{l>{\raggedright}p{2in}} here & we are again \\ happy & as can be \end{tabular} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} the problem here (as explained in % ! line break \Qref[question]{tabular cell alignment}{Q-tabcellalign}) is that the \csx{raggedright} command in the column specification has overwritten \environment{tabular}'s definition of \texttt{\bsbs }, so that ``\texttt{happy}'' appears in a new line of the second column, and the following \texttt{\&} appears to \LaTeX{} just like the second \texttt{\&} in the first example above. Get rid of the error in the way described in % ! linebreak \Qref[question]{tabular cell alignment}{Q-tabcellalign}~--- either use \csx{tabularnewline} explicitly, or use the \csx{RBS} trick described there. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[array.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-divzero]{Graphics division by zero} While the error \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ! Package graphics Error: Division by 0. \end{verbatim} \end{quote} can actually be caused by offering the package a figure which claims to have a zero dimension, it's more commonly caused by rotation. Objects in \TeX{} may have both height (the height above the baseline) and depth (the distance the object goes below the baseline). If you rotate an object by 180\,degrees, you convert its height into depth, and vice versa; if the object started with zero depth, you've converted it to a zero-height object. Suppose you're including your graphic with a command like: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \includegraphics[angle=180,height=5cm]{myfig.eps} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \includegraphics[angle=180,% height=5cm]{myfig.eps} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} In the case that \File{myfig.eps} has no depth to start with, the scaling calculations will produce the division-by-zero error. Fortunately, the \Package{graphicx} package has a keyword \pkgoption{totalheight}, which allows you to specify the size of the image relative to the sum of the object's \pkgoption{height} and \pkgoption{depth}, so \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \includegraphics[angle=180,totalheight=5cm]{myfig.eps} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \includegraphics[angle=180,% totalheight=5cm]{myfig.eps} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} will resolve the error, and will behave as you might hope. If you're using the simpler \Package{graphics} package, use the \texttt{*} form of the \csx{resizebox} command to specify the use of \pkgoption{totalheight}: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \resizebox*{!}{5cm}{% \rotatebox{180}{% \includegraphics{myfig.eps}% }% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[graphics.sty,graphicx.sty]Both parts of the \CTANref{graphics} bundle \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-missbegdoc]{Missing \csx{begin}\marg{document}} Give it a file of plain text, or a \LaTeX{} file that really does have no \cmdinvoke{begin}{document} command in it, and \LaTeX{} will produce this error, quite correctly. \LaTeX{} \emph{needs} \cmdinvoke{begin}{document} so as to know when to execute the commands that finish off the document preamble. Other than that, the error can occur as a result of an error of yours, of a corrupt \texttt{.aux} file, or of a buggy class or package. The errors you might commit are absent-mindedly typing a document command (such as \csx{section}) in the preamble of your document, missing the comment marker from the beginning of a line, or giving too many arguments to one of the setup commands related to the class or a package that you have loaded. A corrupt \texttt{.aux} file might be due to any number of things; delete the file and to run \LaTeX{} again, twice. If the error recurs, it's probably due to a buggy class or package. If the error occurs while \LaTeX{} is reading a class or package, then there's probably a bug in the file. The author of the class or package stands the best chance of finding the bug, but with luck you (or someone you ask on a mailing list or on \Newsgroup{comp.text.tex}) will be able to spot the problem and provide a work-around. Always report such bugs, even if you have found a work-around. \Question[Q-normalszmiss]{\csx{normalsize} not defined} The \LaTeX{} error: \begin{quote} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} The font size command \normalsize is not defined: there is probably something wrong with the class file. \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} The font size command \normalsize is not defined: there is probably something wrong with the class file. \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \end{quote} is reporting something pretty fundamental (document base font size not set up). While this \emph{can}, as the message implies, be due to a broken class file, the more common cause is that you have simply forgotten to put a \csx{documentclass} command in your document. \Question[Q-manymathalph]{Too many math alphabets} \TeX{} mathematics is one of its most impressive features, yet the internal structure of the mechanism that produces it is painfully complicated and (in some senses) pathetically limited. One area of limitation is that one is only allowed 16~''maths alphabets'' \LaTeX{} offers the user quite a lot of flexibility with allocating maths alphabets, but few people use the flexibility directly. Nevertheless, there are many packages that provide symbols, or that manipulate them, which allocate themselves one or more maths alphabet. If you can't afford to drop any of these packages, there's still hope if you're using the \Package{bm} package to support \Qref*{bold maths}{Q-boldgreek}: \Package{bm} is capable of gobbling alphabets as if there is no tomorrow. The package defines two limiter commands: \csx{bmmax} (for \emph{bold} symbols; default~4) and \csx{hmmax} (for \emph{heavy} symbols, if you have them; default~3), which control the number of alphabets to be used. Any reduction of the \csx{\emph{xx}max} variables will slow \Package{bm} down~--- but that's surely better than the document not running at all. So unless you're using maths fonts (such as \FontName{Mathtime Plus}) that feature a heavy symbol weight, suppress all use of heavy families by \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand{\hmmax}{0} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} and then steadily reduce the bold families, starting with \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \renewcommand{\bmmax}{3} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} until (with a bit of luck) the error goes away. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[bm.sty]Distributed as part of \CTANref{2etools} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-ouparmd]{Not in outer par mode} The error: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} ! LaTeX Error: Not in outer par mode. \end{verbatim} \end{quote} comes when some ``main'' document feature is shut up somewhere it doesn't like. The commonest occurrence is when the user wants a figure somewhere inside a table: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{|l|} \hline \begin{figure} \includegraphics{foo} \end{figure} \hline \end{tabular} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} a construction that was supposed to put a frame around the diagram, but doesn't work, any more than: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \framebox{\begin{figure} \includegraphics{foo} \end{figure}% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The problem is, that the \environment{tabular} environment, and the \csx{framebox} command restrain the \environment{figure} environment from its natural m\'etier, which is to float around the document. The solution is simply not to use the \environment{figure} environment here: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{tabular}{|l|} \hline \includegraphics{foo} \hline \end{tabular} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} What was the float for?~--- as written in the first two examples, it serves no useful purpose; but perhaps you actually wanted a diagram and its caption framed, in a float. It's simple to achieve this~--- just reverse the order of the environments (or of the \environment{figure} environment and the command): \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{figure} \begin{tabular}{|l|} \hline \includegraphics{foo} \caption{A foo} \hline \end{tabular} \end{figure} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The same goes for \environment{table} environments (or any other sort of float you've defined for yourself) inside tabulars or box commands; you \emph{must} get the float environment out from inside, one way or another. \Question[Q-errmissitem]{Perhaps a missing \csx{item}?} Sometimes, the error \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} Something's wrong--perhaps a missing \item \end{verbatim} \end{quote} actually means what it says: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \begin{itemize} boo! \end{itemize} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} produces the error, and is plainly in need of an \csx{item} command. However, the error regularly appears when you would never have thought that a \csx{item} command might be appropriate. For example, the seemingly innocent: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \fbox{% \begin{alltt} boo! \end{alltt}% } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} produces the error (the same happens with \csx{mbox} in place of \csx{fbox}, or with either of their ``big brothers'', \csx{framebox} and \csx{makebox}). This is because the \environment{alltt} environment uses a ``trivial'' list, hidden inside their definition. (The \environment{itemize} environment also has this construct inside itself, in fact, so \cmdinvoke{begin}{itemize} won't work inside an \csx{fbox}, either.) The list construct wants to happen between paragraphs, so it makes a new paragraph of its own. Inside the \csx{fbox} command, that doesn't work, and subsequent macros convince themselves that there's a missing \csx{item} command. To solve this rather cryptic error, one must put the \environment{alltt} inside a paragraph-style box. The following modification of the above \emph{does} work: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \fbox{% \begin{minipage}{0.75\textwidth} \begin{alltt} hi, there! \end{alltt} \end{minipage} } \end{verbatim} \end{quote} The code above produces a box that's far too wide for the text. One may want to use something that allows % ! line break \Qref*{variable size boxes}{Q-varwidth} in place of the \environment{minipage} environment. Oddly, although the \environment{verbatim} environment wouldn't work inside a \csx{fbox} command argument (see % ! line break \Qref[question]{verbatim in command arguments}{Q-verbwithin}), you get an error that complains about \csx{item}: the environment's internal list bites you before \environment{verbatim} has even had a chance to create its own sort of chaos. Another (seemingly) obvious use of \csx{fbox} also falls foul of this error: \begin{quote} \begin{verbatim} \fbox{\section{Boxy section}} \end{verbatim} \end{quote} This is a case where you've simply got to be more subtle; either you write your own macros to replace the insides of \LaTeX{}'s sectioning macros, or you should look for some alternative in the packages discussed in ``\Qref*{The style of section headings}{Q-secthead}''. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% \section{Current \TeX{}-related projects} \Question[Q-LaTeX3]{The \LaTeX{}3 project} The \LaTeX{}3 project team (see \URL{http://www.latex-project.org/latex3.html}) is a small group of volunteers whose aim is to produce a major new document processing system based on the principles pioneered by Leslie Lamport in the current \LaTeX{}. It will remain freely available and it will be fully documented at all levels. The \LaTeX{}3 team's first product (\LaTeXe{}) was delivered in 1994 (it's now properly called ``\LaTeX{}'', since no other version is current). \LaTeXe{} was intended as a consolidation exercise, unifying several sub-variants of \LaTeX{} while changing nothing whose change wasn't absolutely necessary. This has permitted the team to support a single version of \LaTeX{}, in parallel with development of \LaTeX{}3. Some of the older discussion papers about directions for \LaTeX{}3 are to be found on \acro{CTAN}; other (published) articles are to be found on the project web site (see \URL{http://www.latex-project.org/articles.html}), as is some of the project's experimental code (\URL{http://www.latex-project.org/experimental}). You can participate in discussions of the future of \LaTeX{} through the mailing list \texttt{latex-l}. Subscribe to the list by sending a message `\texttt{subscribe latex-l <\emph{your name}>}' to \mailto{listserv@urz.Uni-Heidelberg.de} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\LaTeX{} project publications]\CTANref{ltx3pub} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-omega]{The Omega project} Omega \htmlignore (\ensuremath{\Omega}) \endhtmlignore is a program built by extension of the \TeX{} sources which works internally with `wide' characters (it is capable of dealing with all of Unicode version 3); this allows it to work with most scripts in the world with few difficulties from coding schemes. \latexhtml{\ensuremath\Omega}{Omega} also has a powerful concept of input and output filters to allow the user to work with existing transliteration schemes, \emph{etc}. A part of the project is to develop a version of \LaTeX{} to work with \latexhtml{\ensuremath{\Omega}}{Omega}, styled \latexhtml{``Lambda'' (\ensuremath{\Lambda})}{``Lambda''}. %% An email discussion list is available: subscribe by sending a message %% `\texttt{subscribe}' to \mailto{omega-request@omega.cse.unsw.edu.au} \latexhtml{\ensuremath\Omega}{Omega} was first released in November 1996 by the project originators, John Plaice and Yannis Haralambous; a recent version is maintained on \acro{CTAN}. General project information, as well as copies papers, are available via the \begin{narrowversion}% i.e. non-hyper version project's web site (\URL{http://omega.enstb.org}). \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} \href{http://omega.enstb.org}{project's web site}. \end{wideversion} Implementations of \latexhtml{\ensuremath\Omega}{Omega} are available as part of the te\TeX{}, mik\TeX{}, fp\TeX{} and \acro{C}Mac\TeX{} distributions (see \Qref[question]{\TeX{} systems}{Q-TeXsystems}), as well as in \Qref*{\TeX{}~Live}{Q-CD}. A related project, \Qref*{Aleph}{Q-aleph}, has merged a version of \latexhtml{\ensuremath\Omega}{Omega} with the facilities of \Qref*{\eTeX{}}{Q-NTS}, as a pathfinder for potential future Omega development. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[CTAN distribution]\CTANref{omega} (not up-to-date: use the version in your \AllTeX{} distribution) \end{ctanrefs} \nothtml{\begingroup\ifboldmathavail\boldmath\fi} \Question[Q-NTS]{The \NTS{} project} \nothtml{\afterquestion} The \NTS{} project was established in 1992, to produce a typesetting system that's even better than \TeX{}. The project is not simply enhancing \TeX{}, for two reasons: first, that \TeX{} itself has been frozen by Knuth (see \Qref[question]{the future of \TeX{}}{Q-TeXfuture}), and second, even if they \emph{were} allowed to develop the program, some members of the \NTS{} team feel that \TeX{} in its present form is simply unsuited to further development. While all those involved in the project are committed to \TeX{}, they recognise that the end product may very well have little in common with \TeX{} other than its philosophy. The group's first product was nevertheless a set of extensions and enhancements to \TeX{}, implemented through the standard medium of a change-file. The extended system is known \eTeX{}, and is 100\textpercent\ compatible with \TeX{}; furthermore, \eTeX{} can construct a format that \emph{is} ``\TeX{}'', with no extensions or enhancements present. The most recent base source of \eTeX{} (i.e., the Web change file) is available on \acro{CTAN}. Following a suggestion from the \Qref*{\LaTeX{} project}{Q-LaTeX3}, most \AllTeX{} distributions now make \emph{all} their \LaTeX{} executables with the \eTeX{} extensions (that is, \ProgName{latex} is really \elatex{}, \ProgName{pdflatex} is really \acro{PDF}e-\LaTeX{}, and so on). In this context, some of the newer \LaTeX{} packages are designed to require the \eTeX{} extensions. The project has now produced a \ensuremath{\beta}-version of \TeX{} written (from scratch) in Java. Since it \emph{isn't} \TeX{} (it remains slightly incompatible in microscopic ways), it's known as \NTS{}. As might be expected, this first re-implementation runs rather slowly, but its operation \emph{has} been demonstrated in public, and the \ensuremath{\beta}-release is available on \acro{CTAN}. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[e-TeX]Browse \CTANref{e-TeX} \item[NTS]\CTANref{nts} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-pdftex]{The \PDFTeX{} project} \PDFTeX{} (formerly known as \TeX{}2\acro{PDF}) arose from \latexhtml{H\'an \The{} Th\'anh's}{Han The Thanh's} post-graduate research at Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic. The basic idea is very simple: to provide a version of \TeX{} that can output \acro{PDF} as an alternative format to \acro{DVI}. \PDFTeX{} implements a small number of new primitives, to switch to \acro{PDF} output, and to control various \acro{PDF} features. \latexhtml{H\'an \The{} Th\'anh}{Han The Thanh} worked on \PDFTeX{} throughout his Ph.D.\ research into typesetting, and the latest release includes facilities he wrote to support novel typesetting techniques that he was studying. Since he completed his studies, Han has had little time to work on \PDFTeX{}, and day-to-day support is provided by a team of experts (mostly in Europe). The latest sources are available on \acro{CTAN}, and implementations are available as part of Web2C, as well as in the te\TeX{}, mik\TeX{}, fp\TeX{}, \acro{C}Mac\TeX{} and \TeX{}~live distributions A version (by the author of \acro{C}Mac\TeX{}) for use with Oz\TeX{} is also available on \acro{CTAN}. A mailing list discussing \PDFTeX{} is available; \begin{narrowversion} % non-hyper version subscribe via the \acro{TUG} \ProgName{mailman} interface at \URL{http://www.tug.org/mailman/listinfo/pdftex} \end{narrowversion} \begin{wideversion} subscribe via the \href{http://www.tug.org/mailman/listinfo/pdftex}{\acro{TUG} \ProgName{mailman} interface}. \end{wideversion} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[pdftex]\CTANref{pdftex} \item[pdftex for OzTeX]\CTANref{pdftex-oztex} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-mathml]{Future \acro{WEB} technologies and \AllTeX{}} An earlier answer % ! line break (\Qref[number]{``converting to \acro{HTML}''}{Q-LaTeX2HTML}) addresses the issue of converting existing \AllTeX{} documents for viewing on the Web as \acro{HTML}. All the present techniques are somewhat flawed: the answer explains why. However, things are changing, with better font availability, cunning \acro{HTML} programming and the support for new Web standards. \begin{description} \item[Font technologies] Direct representation of mathematics in browsers has been hampered up to now by the limited range of symbols in the fonts one can rely on being available. Some existing \AllTeX{} to \acro{HTML} converters provide maths symbols by hitching them to alternate font face specifications for standard code points in a non-standard way. This does nothing for the universality of the \acro{HTML} so generated. In the near future, we can expect rather wide availability of Unicode fonts with good coverage of symbols, which should make life easier for those who need to represent mathematics. \item[\acro{XML}] The core of the range of new standards is \acro{XML}, which provides a framework for better structured markup; limited support for it has already appeared in some browsers. Conversion of \AllTeX{} source to \acro{XML} is already available (through \TeX{}4ht at least), and work continues in that arena. The alternative, authoring in \acro{XML} (thus producing documents that are immediately Web-friendly, if not ready) and using \AllTeX{} to typeset is also well advanced. One useful technique is \Qref*{\emph{transforming} the \acro{XML} to \LaTeX{}}{Q-SGML2TeX}, using an \acro{XSLT} stylesheet or code for an \acro{XML} library, and then simply using \LaTeX{}; alternatively, one may \Qref*{typeset direct from the \acro{XML} source}{Q-readML}. \item[Direct represention of mathematics] Math\acro{ML} is a standard for representing maths on the Web; its original version was distinctly limited, but version 2 of Math\acro{ML} has had major browser support since 2002 with richness of mathematical content for online purposes approaching that of \TeX{} for print. Browser support for Math\acro{ML} is provided by \ProgName{amaya}, the `Open Source' browser \ProgName{mozilla} (and its derivatives including \ProgName{NetScape}, \ProgName{Firefox} and \ProgName{Galeon}) and \ProgName{Internet Explorer} when equipped with a suitable plugin such as \ProgName{MathPlayer}. There's evidence that \AllTeX{} users are starting to use such browsers. Some believe that \acro{XHTML}+Math\acro{ML} now provides better online viewing than \acro{PDF}. Work to produce \acro{XHTML}+Math\acro{ML} is well advanced in both the \TeX{}4ht and \ProgName{TtH} projects for \AllTeX{} conversion. %% Such conversion, however, has limits of soundness unless one %% is very much aware of the needs of one's conversion program %% and adapts one's usage of \AllTeX{} accordingly. An approach different from \AllTeX{} conversion is taken by the \href{http://www.albany.edu/~hammond/gellmu/}{\emph{GELLMU} Project}. Its \emph{article} \acro{XML} document type, which has a markup vocabulary close to \LaTeX{} that can be edited using \LaTeX{}-like markup (even though it is not \LaTeX{}~--- so far), comes with translators that make both \acro{PDF} (via \emph{pdflatex}) and \acro{XHTML}+Math\acro{ML}. Such an approach avoids the inherent limitations of the ``traditional'' \AllTeX{} translation processes, which have traps that can be sprung by unfettered use of \AllTeX{} markup. \item[Graphics] \acro{SVG} is a standard for graphics representation on the web. While the natural use is for converting existing figures, representations of formulas are also possible, in place of the separate bitmaps that have been used in the past (and while we wait for the wider deployment of Math\acro{ML}). Browser plug-ins, that deal with \acro{SVG} are already available (Adobe offer one, for example). More recently, the open source graphics editor \href{http://www.inkscape.org/}{\ProgName{Inkscape}} has appeared, and has been reported to be useful for \acro{SVG}-related work in at least one \TeX{}-related project. Be aware that the developers of \ProgName{Inkscape} have no illusions about being able to replace commercial software, yet\dots{} \item[Direct use of \TeX{} markup] Some time back, \acro{IBM} developed a browser plug-in called TechExplorer, which would display \AllTeX{} documents direct in a browser. Over the years, it developed into a Math\acro{ML} browser plug-in, while still retaining its \AllTeX{} abilities, but it's now distributed (free for Linux and Windows platforms) by \href{http://www.integretechpub.com/}{Integre Technical Publishing}. The disadvantage of the TechExplorer approach is that it places the onus on the browser user; and however technically proficient \emph{you} are, it's never safe to assume too much of your readers. An interesting alternative is \href{http://www.forkosh.com/mimetex.html}{Mime\TeX{}}, which sits on your server as a \acro{CGI} script, and you use it to include your \TeX{}, in your \acro{HTML}, as if it were an image: \begin{quote} \begin{wideversion} \begin{verbatim} \end{verbatim} \end{wideversion} \begin{narrowversion} \begin{verbatim} \end{verbatim} \end{narrowversion} \end{quote} \end{description} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[GELLMU]\CTANref{gellmu} \item[MimeTeX]\CTANref{MimeTeX} \item[TeX4HT]\CTANref{tex4ht} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-textrace]{Making outline fonts from \MF{}} \ProgName{TeXtrace}, originally developed by P\'eter Szab\'o, is a bundle of Unix scripts that use Martin Weber's freeware boundary tracing package \href{http://autotrace.sourceforge.net}{\ProgName{autotrace}} to generate Type~1 outline fonts from \MF{} bitmap font outputs. The result is unlikely ever to be of the quality of the commercially-produced Type~1 font, but there's always the \href{http://fontforge.sourceforge.net/}{\ProgName{FontForge}} font editor to tidy things. Whatever, there remain fonts which many people find useful and which fail to attract the paid experts, and auto-tracing is providing a useful service here. Notable sets of fonts generated using \ProgName{TeXtrace} are P\'eter Szab\'o's own \acro{EC}/\acro{TC} font set \FontName{tt2001} and Vladimir Volovich's \acro{CM}-Super set, which covers the \acro{EC}, \acro{TC}, and the Cyrillic \acro{LH} font sets (for details of both of which sets, see \Qref[answer]{``8-bit'' type 1 fonts}{Q-type1T1}). Another system, which arrived slightly later, is \href{http://www.cs.uu.nl/~hanwen/mftrace/}{\ProgName{mftrace}}: this is a small \ProgName{Python} program that does the same job. \ProgName{Mftrace} may use either \ProgName{autotrace} (like \ProgName{TeXtrace}) or Peter Selinger's \href{http://potrace.sourceforge.net}{\ProgName{potrace}} to produce the initial outlines to process. \ProgName{Mftrace} is said to be more flexible, and easier to use, than is \ProgName{TeXtrace}, but both systems are increasingly being used to provide Type~1 fonts to the public domain. The \ProgName{MetaType1} system aims to use \MF{} font sources, by way of \MP{} and a bunch of scripts and so on, to produce high-quality Type~1 fonts. The first results, the % ! line break \Qref*{\Package{Latin Modern} fonts}{Q-type1T1}, are pretty impressive, and it is known that the team that produced the system are developing new work using the system. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[MetaType1]\CTANref{metatype1} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-WYGexpts]{The \TeX{} document preparation environment} ``\Qref*{Why \TeX{} is not \WYSIWYG{}}{Q-notWYSIWYG}'' outlines the reasons (or excuses) for the huge disparity of user interface between ``typical'' \TeX{} environments and commercial word processors. Nowadays, at last, there is a range of tools available that try either to bridge or to close the gap. One range modestly focuses on providing the user with a legible source document. At the other extreme we have \href{http://www.texmacs.org}{\ProgName{TeXmacs}}, a~document processor using \TeX{}'s algorithms and fonts for both editor display and printing. \ProgName{TeXmacs} does not use the \TeX{} language itself (though among other formats, \LaTeX{} may be exported and imported). A bit closer to \LaTeX{} is \href{http://www.lyx.org/}{LyX}, which has its own editor display and file formats as well, but does its print output by exporting to \LaTeX{}. The editor display merely resembles the printed output, but you have the possibility of entering arbitrary \LaTeX{} code. If you use constructs that LyX does not understand, it will just display them as source text marked red, but will properly export them. Since a lot of work is needed to create an editor from scratch that actually is good at editing (as well as catering for \TeX{}), it is perhaps no accident that several approaches have been implemented using the extensible \ProgName{emacs} editor. The low end of the prettifying range is occupied by syntax highlighting: marking \TeX{} tokens, comments and other stuff with special colours. Many free editors (including \ProgName{emacs}) can cater for \TeX{} in this way. Under Windows, one of the more popular editors with such support is the Shareware product \href{http://www.winedt.com/}{\ProgName{winedt}}. Continuing the range of tools prettifying your input, we have the \ProgName{emacs} package \href{http://x-symbol.sourceforge.net}{\Package{x-symbol}}, which does the \WYSIWYG{} part of its work by replacing single \TeX{} tokens and accented letter sequences with appropriate-looking characters on the screen. A different type of tool focuses on making update and access to previews of the typeset document more immediate. A recent addition in several viewers, editors and \TeX{} executables are so-called `source specials' for cross-navigation. When \TeX{} compiles a document, it will upon request insert special markers for every input line into the typeset output. The markers are interpreted by the \acro{DVI} previewer which can be made to let its display track the page corresponding to the editor input position, or to let the editor jump to a source line corresponding to a click in the preview window. An \ProgName{emacs} package that combines this sort of editor movement tracking with automatic fast recompilations (through the use of dumped formats) is \href{http://pauillac.inria.fr/whizzytex/}{\Package{WhizzyTeX}} which is best used with a previewer by the same author. A simpler package in a similar spirit is called \href{http://www.activetex.org/}{\Package{InstantPreview}} and makes use of a continuously running copy of \TeX{} (under the moniker of \texttt{TeX daemon}) instead of dumping formats to achieve its speed. Another \ProgName{emacs} package called \href{http://preview-latex.sourceforge.net}{\Package{preview-latex}} tries to solve the problem of visual correlation between source and previews in a more direct way: it uses a \LaTeX{} package to chop the document source into interesting fragments (like figures, text or display math) which it runs through \LaTeX{} and replaces the source text of those fragments with the corresponding rendered output images. Since it does not know about the structure of the images, at the actual cursor position the source text is displayed while editing rather than the preview. This approach is more or less a hybrid of the source prettifying and fast preview approaches since it works in the source buffer but uses actual previews rendered by \LaTeX{}. A more ambitious contender is called \TeX{}lite. This system is only available on request from its author; it continuously updates its screen with the help of a special version of \TeX{} dumping its state in a compressed format at each page and using hooks into \TeX{}'s line breaking mechanism for reformatting paragraphs on the fly. That way, it can render the output from the edited \TeX{} code with interactive speed on-screen, and it offers the possibility of editing directly in the preview window. That many of these systems occupy slightly different niches can be seen by comparing the range of the \ProgName{emacs}-based solutions ranging from syntax highlighting to instant previewing: all of them can be activated at the same time without actually interfering in their respective tasks. The different approaches offer various choices differing in the immediacy of their response, the screen area they work on (source or separate window), degree of correspondance of the display to the final output, and the balance they strike between visual aid and visual distraction. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[preview-latex]Browse \CTANref{preview-latex} \item[texmacs]Browse \CTANref{texmacs} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-ant]{The \textsf{ANT} typesetting system} Achim Blumensath's \textsf{ANT} project, in contrast to \NTS{}, aims not to replicate \TeX{} with a different implementation technique, but rather to provide a replacement for \TeX{} which uses \TeX{}-like typesetting algorithms in a very different programming environment. \textsf{ANT} remains under development, but it is now approaching the status of a usable typesetting system. \textsf{ANT}'s markup language is immediately recognisable to the \AllTeX{} user, but the scheme of implementing design in \textsf{ANT}'s own implementation language (presently \ProgName{OCaml}) comes as a pleasant surprise to the jaded \acro{FAQ} writer. This architecture holds the promise of a system that avoids a set of serious problems with \TeX{}'s user interface: those that derive from the design language being the same as the markup language. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\textsf{ANT} downloads]% \URL{http://www-mgi.informatik.rwth-aachen.de/~blume/Download.html} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-aleph]{The Aleph project} The Aleph \nothtml{(\ensuremath\aleph)} project aims to build a ``usable'' version of \nothtml{Omega (\ensuremath\Omega~--- }% ! line break \Qref{Omega}{Q-omega}\nothtml{)}, incorporating \eTeX{} extensions from the \Qref*{\NTS{} project}{Q-NTS}. Two sets of concerns have provided impetus to the project: first, that many users need the \eTeX{} extensions, and they're not on the \latexhtml{\ensuremath\Omega}{Omega} development path; and second, that the \latexhtml{\ensuremath\Omega}{Omega} project is currently immersed in radical restructuring of \latexhtml{\ensuremath\Omega}{Omega}, and is not able to be particularly responsive to user requirements in the short term. In the longer term, the \latexhtml{\ensuremath\aleph}{Aleph} project hope that their work will be rendered irrelevant by the development of \latexhtml{\ensuremath\Omega}{Omega} proper. The current pre-release snapshot of \latexhtml{\ensuremath\aleph}{Aleph} resides on \acro{CTAN} with the rather modest name of e-Omega. Follow development by subscribing to the project mailing list via \URL{http://www.ntg.nl/mailman/listinfo/aleph} \begin{ctanrefs} \item[e-omega]Browse \CTANref{aleph} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-extex]{The \ExTeX{} project} \href{http://www.dante.de/projects/extex/}{The \ExTeX{} project} is building on the experience of the many existing \TeX{} development and extension projects, to develop a new \TeX{}-like system. The system is to be developed in Java, but will not necessarily use the code of \Qref*{\NTS{}}{Q-NTS}. While \ExTeX{} will implement all of \TeX{}'s primitives, some may be marked as obsolete, and ``modern'' alternatives provided (an obvious example is the primitive \csx{input} command, whose syntax inevitably makes life difficult for users of modern operating system file paths). Desirable extensions from \Qref*{\eTeX{}}{Q-NTS}, \Qref*{\PDFTeX{}}{Q-pdftex} and \Qref*{\ensuremath{\Omega}}{Q-omega} have been identified. Usability will be another focus of the work: debugging support and log filtering mechanisms will please those who have long struggled with \TeX{} macros. \ExTeX{} will accept Unicode input, from the start. In the longer term, drawing primitives are to be considered. \Question[Q-xetex]{The XeTeX project} XeTeX (by Jonathan Kew) is a successor to the shareware \TeX{}/\acro{GX} program. It is a Unicode-based (\acro{UTF}-8) TeX implementation which is able to make use of Mac~\acro{OS}~X \acro{AAT} (Apple Advanced Typography) \texttt{.dfonts} and OpenType fonts. It uses Apple's Quartz system (which facilitates the afore-mentioned font access) to generate \acro{PDF} output. XeTeX requires Mac~\acro{OS}~{X} 10.3 ``Panther'' or later (although there has been some success using earlier versions). It is especially oriented towards multi-lingual typography, taking advantage of Apple's keyboard input systems and system font support for various languages. The system is able to make use of Gerben Wierda's \TeX{} for Mac~\acro{OS}~X setup, but a minimal set of \TeX{} support files is also available, making an attractive proposition for those with limited bandwidth who are inclined to use Plain \TeX{}. It can be installed using Apple's Installer, or as an i-Installer package. The project has a \href{http://scripts.sil.org/xetex}{web site} for the user who wants more than this simple answer, and you can also sign up to a \href{http://www.tug.org/mailman/listinfo/xetex}{mailing list}. %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%% % % This is the last section, and is to remain the last section... \section{You're still stuck?} \Question[Q-noans]{You don't understand the answer} While the \acro{FAQ} maintainers don't offer a `help' service, they're very keen that you understand the answers they've already written. They're (almost) written ``in a vacuum'', to provide something to cover a set of questions that have arisen; it's always possible that they're written in a way that a novice won't understand them. Which is where you can help the community. Mail the \href{mailto:faq@tex.ac.uk}{maintainers} to report the answer that you find unclear. Time permitting (the team is small and all its members are busy), we'll try and clarify the answer. This way, with a bit of luck, we can together improve the value of this resource to the whole community. (We need hardly say that we look forward to hearing from none of you: but we're not so arrogant as to be confident that we won't!) \Question[Q-newans]{Submitting new material for the \acro{FAQ}} The \acro{FAQ} will never be complete, and we always expect that there will be people out there who know better than we do about something or other. We always need to be put right about whatever we've got wrong, and suggestions for improvements, particularly covering areas we've missed, are always needed: mail anything you have to the \href{mailto:faq@tex.ac.uk}{maintainers}. If you have actual material to submit, your contribution is more than ever welcome. Submission in plain text is entirely acceptable, but if you're really willing, you may feel free to mark up your submission in the form needed for the \acro{FAQ} itself. The markup is a strongly-constrained version of \LaTeX{}~--- the constraints come from the need to translate the marked-up text to \acro{HTML} on the fly (and hence pretty efficiently). There is a file \File{markup-syntax} in the \acro{FAQ} distribution that describes the structure of the markup, but there's no real substitute for reading at least some of the source (\File{faqbody.tex}) of the \acro{FAQ} itself. If you understand \ProgName{Perl}, you may also care to look at the translation code in \File{texfaq2file} and \File{sanitize.pl} in the distribution: this isn't the code actually used on the Web site, but it's a close relation and is kept up to date for development purposes. \begin{ctanrefs} \item[\nothtml{\rmfamily}\acro{FAQ} distribution]\CTANref{faq} \end{ctanrefs} \Question[Q-latexbug]{Reporting a \LaTeX{} bug} The \LaTeX{} team supports \LaTeX{}, and will deal with % beware line wrap \emph{bona fide} bug reports. However, you need to be slightly careful to produce a bug report that is usable by the team. The steps are: \nothtml{\noindent}\textbf{1.} Are you still using current \LaTeX{}? Maintenance is only available for sufficiently up-to-date versions of \LaTeX{}~--- if your \LaTeX{} is more than two versions out of date, the bug reporting mechanisms will reject your report. \nothtml{\noindent}\textbf{2.} Has your bug already been reported? Browse the % beware line break \href{http://www.latex-project.org/cgi-bin/ltxbugs2html?introduction=yes}{\LaTeX{} bugs database}, to find any earlier instance of your bug. In many cases, the database will list a work-around. \nothtml{\noindent}\textbf{3.} Prepare a % ! line break \Qref*{``minimum'' file}{Q-minxampl} that exhibits the problem. Ideally, such a file should contain no contributed packages~--- the \LaTeX{} team as a whole takes no responsibility for such packages (if they're supported at all, they're supported by their authors). The ``minimum'' file should be self-sufficient: if a member of the team should run it in a clean directory, on a system with no contributed packages, it should replicate your problem. \nothtml{\noindent}\textbf{4.} Run your file through \LaTeX{}: the bug system needs the |.log| file that this process creates. You now have two possible ways to proceed: either create a mail report to send to the bug processing mechanism (5, below), or submit your bug report via the web (7, below). \nothtml{\noindent}\textbf{5.} Process the bug-report creation file, using \LaTeX{} itself: \begin{verbatim} latex latexbug \end{verbatim} \File{latexbug} asks you some questions, and then lets you describe the bug you've found. It produces an output file \File{latexbug.msg}, which includes the details you've supplied, your ``minimum'' example file, and the log file you got after running the example. (I always need to edit the result before submitting it: typing text into \File{latexbug} isn't much fun.) \nothtml{\noindent}\textbf{6.} Mail the resulting file to \Email{latex-bugs@latex-project.org}; the subject line of your email should be the same as the bug title you gave to \File{latexbug}. The file \File{latexbug.msg} should be included into your message in-line: attachments are likely to be rejected by the bug processor. \nothtml{\noindent}\textbf{7.} Connect to the % beware line break \href{http://www.latex-project.org/bugs-upload.html}{latex bugs processing web page} and enter details of your bug~--- category, summary and full description, and the two important files (source and log file); note that members of the \LaTeX{} team \emph{need} your name and email address, as they may need to discuss the bug with you, or to advise you of a work-around. \htmlignore \par \endhtmlignore \Question[Q-bug]{What to do if you find a bug} \htmlignore \par \endhtmlignore % % This here isn't a reference to a question... \label{lastquestion} For a start, make entirely sure you \emph{have} found a bug. Double-check with books about \TeX{}, \LaTeX{}, or whatever you're using; compare what you're seeing against the other answers above; ask every possible person you know who has any \TeX{}-related expertise. The reasons for all this caution are various. If you've found a bug in \TeX{} itself, you're a rare animal indeed. Don Knuth is so sure of the quality of his code that he offers real money prizes to finders of bugs; the cheques he writes are such rare items that they are seldom cashed. If \emph{you} think you have found a genuine fault in \TeX{} itself (or \MF{}, or the \acro{CM} fonts, or the \TeX{}book), don't immediately write to Knuth, however. He only looks at bugs once or twice a year, and even then only after they are agreed as bugs by a small vetting team. In the first instance, contact Barbara Beeton at the \acro{AMS} (\Email{bnb@math.ams.org}), or contact \Qref*{\acro{TUG}}{Q-TUG*}. If you've found a bug in \LaTeXe{}, \Qref*{report it}{Q-latexbug} using mechanisms supplied in the \LaTeX{} distribution. If you've found a bug in \LaTeXo{}, or some other such unsupported software, there's not a lot you can do about it. You may find help or \emph{de facto} support on a newsgroup such as \Newsgroup{comp.tex.tex} or on a mailing list such as \mailto{texhax@tug.org}, but posting non-bugs to any of these forums can lay you open to ridicule! Otherwise you may need to pay for help~--- \acro{TUG} maintains a % ! line break \href{http://www.tug.org/consultants.html}{register of \TeX{} consultants}.