[OT] LaTeX

On Nov 25, 2007 4:12 PM, Michael Pobega wrote:
> I'd like to begin writing my coursework for college in LaTeX, but I've
> no clue where to start. I began by installing the vim-latexsuite
> package, but that didn't seem to really work too well (The help pages
> are both missing), and I have no clue where to start to learn LaTeX.
>
> Any point in the right direction would really help!
>
> Also, for the Debian related question; What package would people out
> there recommend for compiling and viewing LaTeX?

You didn't say which release you're using, so if "texlive" is
available, install that. If not, install "tetex". texlive is a
meta-package, and suggests texlive-doc-en, which contains
/usr/share/doc/texlive-doc-en/english/lshort-english/lshort.pdf

--
Michael A. Marsh
http://www.umiacs.umd.edu/~mmarsh
http://mamarsh.blogspot.com
http://36pints.blogspot.com

--

On Sun, Nov 25, 2007 at 11:12:38AM -0500, Michael Pobega wrote:
> Hello DU
>
> I'd like to begin writing my coursework for college in LaTeX, but I've
> no clue where to start. I began by installing the vim-latexsuite
> package, but that didn't seem to really work too well (The help pages
> are both missing), and I have no clue where to start to learn LaTeX.
>
> Any point in the right direction would really help!
>
> Also, for the Debian related question; What package would people out
> there recommend for compiling and viewing LaTeX?
>

LaTex is a superset of Tex and as such is installed in the TexLive
packages. You'll want the texdoc and texdoctk programs. Texdoctk is
the easiest to use. It gives you a GUI-based menu of all the
documentation. Click on a piece of documentation and it starts up the
correct viewer for it (i.e. depending on if the file is pdf, dvi, ps,
text, html, whatever).

The first document to read would be the "not so short introduction to
latex". Basically, spend a day reading all the docs that are general
(not esoteric to a use you don't need). Then try to write something.

As for "compiling and viewing LaTex", I write it in vim, compile it
with latex on the command line and view it in xdvi, gv, kpdf, lynx, or
konqueror (depending on the format I've made). I get help in vim with:
:help latex

As an example LaTex document, here's my letterhead template:

\documentclass[letterpaper,12pt]{article}
%preamble here
\begin{document}
% no page number on this first page
\thispagestyle{empty}
\begin{flushleft}
Douglas A. Tutty\\
160 McQuay St, RR. 3\\
Yarker, ON K0K 3N0\\
Ph: (613) 358--5861\\
Email: \\
\end{flushleft}

\noindent \today

\bigskip

\noindent Dear:

\bigskip

\begin{flushleft}
Yours truly,

\vspace{2cm}

Douglas A. Tutty.
\end{flushleft}

\end{document}

---

As an alternative or suppliment, you could install lyx. Its a qt-based
wysiwyg editor that produces tex and can export latex. It has gread
documentation that gives you a head-start on tex concepts. I used it
for about 2 days before I went to vim and straight latex.

Doug.

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On Sun, Nov 25, 2007 at 11:12:38AM -0500, Michael Pobega wrote:
> Hello DU
>
> I'd like to begin writing my coursework for college in LaTeX, but I've
> no clue where to start. I began by installing the vim-latexsuite
> package, but that didn't seem to really work too well (The help pages
> are both missing), and I have no clue where to start to learn LaTeX.
>
> Any point in the right direction would really help!
>
> Also, for the Debian related question; What package would people out
> there recommend for compiling and viewing LaTeX?

The best tutorial is probably the Not-So-Short Introduction to LaTeX2e:

www.ctan.org/tex-archive/info/lshort/english/lshort.pdf

As for Debian packages, you'll want some subset of the texlive-* packages. Try
just the 'texlive' package for starters, which pulls in some of the LaTeX
stuff.

--
Benjamin A'Lee ::
Subvert Technologies :: http://subvert.org.uk/

As others have said, the not-so-short guide it good. If you want
something short and quick, there's plenty on the net such as:
http://polishlinux.org/tex/latex-the-basics-part-i/
http://www.electronics.oulu.fi/latex/index.html
I usually process it with pdftex and view with a pdf viewer.
--
swk

--

On Sun, 2007-11-25 at 11:12 -0500, Michael Pobega wrote:
> I'd like to begin writing my coursework for college in LaTeX, but I've
> no clue where to start. I began by installing the vim-latexsuite
> package, but that didn't seem to really work too well (The help pages
> are both missing), and I have no clue where to start to learn LaTeX.
>
> Any point in the right direction would really help!
>
> Also, for the Debian related question; What package would people out
> there recommend for compiling and viewing LaTeX?

Hi Michael, how much do you know about LaTeX so far?

Installing texlive typically gives you what you need for compiling.
Depending on the content of your work you may find xdvi sufficient for
displaying the finished result. When I have documents with graphs, xdvi
does not always handle the result properly and so often use dvips to
create a ps file that can be view with any postscript viewer.

I typically write LaTeX in a text file using emacs. Have a .emacs file
and have auctex installed allows helpful automatic colouring of text so
commands show up separately to regular text, etc.

http://www.gnu.org/software/auctex/preview-latex.html

HTH, Bob
--
Dr. Robert J. Jerrard, Professor of Mathematics,
Concordia University College of Alberta,
7128 Ada Blvd., Edmonton, Alberta, T5B 4E4, Canada.
Phone: (780) 479-9291, Fax: (780) 474-1933.

--

On Sun, 25 Nov 2007 11:12:38 -0500
Michael Pobega wrote:

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> Hash: SHA1
>
> Hello DU
>
> I'd like to begin writing my coursework for college in LaTeX, but I've
> no clue where to start. I began by installing the vim-latexsuite
> package, but that didn't seem to really work too well (The help pages
> are both missing), and I have no clue where to start to learn LaTeX.
>
> Any point in the right direction would really help!
>
> Also, for the Debian related question; What package would people out
> there recommend for compiling and viewing LaTeX?
>

under testing/unstable you want texlive, for stable, possibly tetex if I recall
correctly.

I never worked with the vim extension. I use emacs with auctex and lyx (a
mostly WYSIWYG latex editor). You may also want to have a look at texmaker
which is rather nice.

As for learning latex,
look with google (it's also probably in some debian package) for the not so
short introduction to latex. As for books, the classics are
latex: a document preparation system by leslie lamport
and the latex companion

> - --
> If programmers deserve to be rewarded for creating innovative
> programs, by the same token they deserve to be punished if they
> restrict the use of these programs.
> - Richard Stallman
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--

Michael Pobega wrote:
> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
> Hash: SHA1
>
> Hello DU
>
> I'd like to begin writing my coursework for college in LaTeX, but I've
> no clue where to start. I began by installing the vim-latexsuite
> package, but that didn't seem to really work too well (The help pages
> are both missing), and I have no clue where to start to learn LaTeX.
>
> Any point in the right direction would really help!
>
> Also, for the Debian related question; What package would people out
> there recommend for compiling and viewing LaTeX?
>

I find hyperlatex really handy (http://packages.debian.org/sid/hyperlatex)

That creates an html page from a LaTeX document. So whatever you write
in LaTeX you get it both as an html document and as a printable doc.

Some restrictions apply.

Hugo

--

On Sun, Nov 25, 2007 at 11:12:38AM -0500, Michael Pobega wrote:

> Hello DU
>
> I'd like to begin writing my coursework for college in LaTeX, but I've
> no clue where to start. I began by installing the vim-latexsuite
> package, but that didn't seem to really work too well (The help pages
> are both missing), and I have no clue where to start to learn LaTeX.
>
> Any point in the right direction would really help!
>
> Also, for the Debian related question; What package would people out
> there recommend for compiling and viewing LaTeX?

I found Texmaker a wonderful tool when I first started on latex. In fact
I still use texmaker when I am feeling lazy. (And/or Kile, almost
identical, but uses some KDE stuff and so loads more slowly first time).
The Latex guide in the help menu is a great beginner's resource and the
easy tools for most common latex markup are a quick way to get familiar
with the structure of Latex. You can also compile and view either dvi
ps of pdf from inside the editor. Vim Latexsuite does these things too,
but you need some vim skills to enjoy it.

--
richard

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