https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/ Recent content in The Not So Short Introduction to LaTeX on TeXPage Docs Hugo -- gohugo.io en-us https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-0/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-0/ How to Use This Guide # LaTeX is a system for turning structured text into a typeset document. It is especially useful for scientific writing, but its tools for headings, references, tables, and page layout also work for reports, books, and presentations. The chapters build from basic documents to more advanced layouts: LaTeX Basics: source files, commands, document structure, and compilation. Real World LaTeX: text, languages, lists, code, tables, images, and large projects. https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-1/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-1/ 1. LaTeX Basics # 1.1 A Bit of History # TeX, created by Donald E. Knuth, is the underlying typesetting engine. It decides how to assemble characters, lines, and pages, and is particularly strong at mathematical typesetting. LaTeX, originally developed by Leslie Lamport, provides a document-oriented layer on top of TeX. Instead of specifying the position of every heading, you write \section{Introduction} and let the document class choose its appearance. https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-2/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-2/ 2. Real World LaTeX # Use the document skeleton from Chapter 1. Load the packages mentioned in each section in its preamble; put the remaining examples in the body. 2.1 Line Breaking and Page Breaking # LaTeX normally justifies paragraphs by choosing word spacing and line breaks for the entire paragraph. It also hyphenates words according to the active language. Command Effect A blank line or \par End a paragraph. https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-3/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-3/ 3. Typesetting Mathematical Formulae # 3.1 Modern Mathematics # For the examples in this chapter, combine mathtools, which extends and loads amsmath, with unicode-math for OpenType mathematical fonts. Use XeLaTeX or LuaLaTeX, not pdfLaTeX: \documentclass{article} \usepackage{mathtools} \usepackage[ math-style=ISO, warnings-off={mathtools-colon,mathtools-overbracket} ]{unicode-math} \begin{document} The Pythagorean theorem is \(a^2+b^2=c^2\). \end{document} The math-style=ISO option makes the variable-letter style consistent, including uppercase Greek letters. The warning options acknowledge the overlapping colon and bracket definitions in these two packages. https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-4/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-4/ 4. Bibliographies # A citation points to a source; the bibliography describes that source. LaTeX can connect them automatically. This chapter covers two approaches: a small manually formatted list and a structured database processed with biblatex and Biber. 4.1 The thebibliography Environment # For a short self-contained document, no extra package is necessary: \documentclass{article} \begin{document} Knuth describes the underlying typesetting system in The TeXbook~\cite{knuth1984}. \begin{thebibliography}{9} \bibitem{knuth1984} Donald E. Knuth. \emph{The TeXbook}. https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-5/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-5/ 5. Specialities # 5.1 Indexing # An index maps terms to the pages where they are discussed. It is different from a table of contents, which follows headings. Load makeidx and enable indexing in the preamble. Add index entries beside the relevant words, then print the index: \documentclass{article} \usepackage{makeidx} \makeindex \begin{document} A matrix\index{matrix} contains rows and columns. A diagonal matrix\index{matrix!diagonal} has a special structure. \clearpage \printindex \end{document} The \index command does not print the term in the body. https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-6/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-6/ 6. Graphics in Your Document # 6.1 Overview # Choose the representation to match the image: Material Suitable format Photographs JPEG, with a suitable quality setting. Screenshots, flat-colour raster drawings PNG, which avoids lossy compression artefacts. Diagrams, plots, and geometric drawings Vector graphics, commonly PDF when included in LaTeX. Use graphicx for existing images. Use TikZ, built on PGF, when it is useful to describe a diagram in the document’s source: labels can use the same fonts and mathematics as the surrounding text, and repeated elements can share styles. https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-7/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/chapter-7/ 7. Customising LaTeX # Customisation works best when it supports the document’s structure. Define a command for a concept, change the settings in one place, and check a representative page before applying the result throughout a long document. 7.1 New Commands, Environments, and Packages # New commands # The modern interface is: \NewDocumentCommand{\commandname}{argument specification}{definition} References to arguments inside the definition use #1, #2, and so on. Specification Argument m Required argument. https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/appendix-b/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/appendix-b/ B. Older Syntax and Modern Alternatives # LaTeX preserves substantial compatibility with old documents. Code can still compile even when a newer interface is clearer or gives better output. The table below compares common older constructs with alternatives for new documents. These choices assume the XeLaTeX or LuaLaTeX setup used in this guide; they do not mean every older construct is invalid. A publisher’s class may require a traditional interface. https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/sources/ Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000 https://www.texpage.com/docs/en/learning/sources/ Sources and Licence # Original work # This course is adapted from The Not So Short Introduction to LaTeX, A5 edition, by Tobias Oetiker, Marcin Serwin, Hubert Partl, Irene Hyna, Elisabeth Schlegl, and contributors. The consulted PDF identifies itself as nightly version 7.0, revision 357b1a686cf242f03b80a4720c8fcde03876adf3, dated 12 May 2025. It contains 357 PDF pages. The upstream project and its source are available in the lshort repository. Original copyright notice: