Debian User Reference Manual
Chapter 9 - Text Processing

author = Andreas Franzen [email protected]

topics = tex, latex, sgml, troff, lyx, etc.

Latest update to this chapter: 10th Octobre 1999

9.1 What this chapter covers

This chapter tells you how to do text processing with Debian GNU/Linux.

We assume that you are already able to write simple text files with a text editor like vi. The available text editors are described in Text Editing, Chapter 8.

9.2 Text processing

Text processing means that you write the contents of a document as simple ASCII text with additional commands which describe the structure of your document. Then you start the text processor. The text processor converts the document source into a document with layout. This document may contain mathematical formulas, tables, figures, etc.

The most important text processor in the Debian GNU/Linux system is LaTeX. Other text processors are TeX, the basis of LaTeX, and groff.

9.3 LaTeX

LaTeX is a very powerful and thus very complex macro package for the TeX typesetting system. In this section it is only possible to give a simple example of text processing with LaTeX. Our goal is to show the principle ideas and how to invoke LaTeX with Debian GNU/Linux.

To use LaTeX, you should install the packages tetex-base, tetex-bin, tetex-doc, and tetex-extra.

9.3.1 Invoking LaTeX

The following text is a simple example of a LaTeX document.

     \documentclass{article}
     \begin{document}
     This is a test text for \LaTeX .
     \LaTeX\ is a very complex macro package
     built on the \TeX -typesetting system.
     
     \TeX was created for the high quality
     typesetting of mathematical formulas 
     \begin{equation}
     c^2=a^2+b^2
     \end{equation}
     like this one.
     \end{document}

Write this text with your favourite editor and save it as Testtext.tex. Then type latex Testtext. This should create a file Testtext.dvi. This is the resulting text in a device independent file format. To view this text type xdvi Testtext. This creates the necessary text fonts, if they are not already available. These fonts are saved, so there will be no delay next time.

9.3.2 Printing dvi-files

To print the document, you can translate the dvi-file into a ps-file by typing dvips -o Testtext.ps Testtext. This creates a file Testtext.ps. This file can be inspected with gv which is included in the Debian package gv. If you have set up your printer to print ps-files, you can just type lpr Testtext.ps to get a hardcopy of our example.

How to set up your printer is described in the Debian GNU/Linux System Administrator's Manual.

9.3.3 Documentation on LaTeX

If you have installed the package tetex-doc, you will find the documentation below the directory /usr/share/doc/texmf. An excellent introduction to LaTeX which should be sufficient in many cases can be displayed by xdiv /usr/share/doc/texmf/latex/general/lshort.dvi.gz.

LaTeX supports typesetting in many different languages. This is covered by /usr/share/doc/texmf/generic/babel/user.dvi.gz.

You may also find examples of LaTeX-documents in the package diploma.

Debian User Reference Manual