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arabtex.faq 17.11.1993
What ArabTeX is NOT
===================
From some enquiries following the release of ArabTeX Version 1 we learned
there are many possible misconceptions about what ArabTeX can and cannot
do. ArabTeX is
- NOT a convenient, simple text system for everyday use. As with TeX and
LaTeX, it needs some practicing to work with it efficiently, and you
have to understand what you are writing.
- NOT a WYSIWYG system. You need some text editor to produce the ASCII
input file it reads, and you have to format your document off-line in
order to look at its final form. However, the input should be fairly
readable, and you can make a good guess what the output it produces will
look like.
- NOT a preprocessor to produce input for TeX. It will directly extend
your TeX system's capabilities IFF your TeX system can be extended by
loading additional macros and fonts, AND is large enough not to
overflow.
- NOT a substitute for a calligrapher. A competent human will do a much
better job, as also will a good printing shop. However, we found not all
printing shops are good, and at least outside the arabic world a good
calligrapher is hard to find.
- NOT an automatic translator between Arabic and any other language. That
possibility is probably still very far off. However, ArabTeX may help
you by observing numerous schematic rules about writing, transliteration
and transcription of Arabic text.
- NOT using any Artificial Intelligence techniques. The rules it observes
are frozen into its algorithm, and as there are many rules and special
cases, it is complicated (and slow).
- NOT depending on special hardware and/or a special keyboard. It will run
on any PC or work station in conjunction with a TeX implementation that
is easily extensible and large enough.
- NOT perfect and not free of errors (alas!). We will consider any bug
report and any suggestion for new features and other changes. However,
we cannot promise to fix every bug as our resources (primarily time) are
limited, and we reserve the right to use our own judgment concerning
possible changes.
- NOT particularly efficient up to now. We concentrated on getting it
running correctly first, and tuning should (and will) come later. There
is ample opportunity for improvements but they could take some time.
- NOT terribly expensive. In fact, it is free for scientific and strictly
private, noncommercial use. For commercial purposes you need a license
agreement; inquire at the author's address.
Prof. Klaus Lagally
Institut fuer Informatik
Universitaet Stuttgart
Breitwiesenstrasse 20-22
D-70565 Stuttgart
GERMANY
lagally@informatik.uni-stuttgart.de
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Copyright (c) 1990 - 1993, Klaus Lagally
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