LaTeX

(main course page)

Although you may use any method to type your homework I strongly encourage you to learn LaTeX. Although it may be harder at first, the benefits pay off quickly. The following LaTeX options have been compiled by math department faculty.

Instructions for online users

Online Option 1 - https://www.overleaf.com/

• Pros of Overleaf:  Free. Several nice editor feature like the rich text editor option. User friendly. Video tutorials.
• Cons of Overleaf: Requires internet connection. Previewer looks blurry. Automatic compiling is often slow. Requires internet connection. Awkward to use on a small screen computer.

Online Option 2 - https://www.sharelatex.com

• Pros of ShareLaTeX:  Free. Several nice features. Previewer looks crisp. Manual compiling.
• Cons of ShareLaTeX: Requires internet connection. Sometimes compiler is slow. Awkward to use on a small screen computer.

Windows Simple Option 1

http://www.miktex.org/

• MiKTeX comes with TeXworks, which is a built in-text editor and previewer a lot like the online options.
• Pros:  Better than either online option. Fast Compiling.  No dependency on internet connection.  Easier to use on a small screen than the online editors. You should turn on syntax highlighting and line numbers.
• Note: You can download other free tex editors that are better than TeXworks that will still use the MiKTeX compiling engine.

Mac users

http://www.tug.org/mactex/

• You will use MacTeX.  Go to the website and follow the instructions to download and install the latest version.  MacTeX is very similar to TeXworks except that it runs on Mac.

Fancier LaTeX Editors (try after using simpler options)
Usually a very simple editor like TeXworks is best for beginners.  After you have been creating LaTeX files for a while you might start wanting some additional editing features. There are many good text editors and it is mostly a matter of preference which one you choose.  You should install the TeX system before installing any of these extra editors. Here is a short list:

• TeXstudio (Windows, Mac, Linux) - A freeware LaTeX editor.  It has graphical palettes to help you if you don't remember all of the LaTeX command and environments. You need to install a TeX/LaTeX system first before installing this.  This is a good freeware option!
• WinEdt +MiKTeX+Sumatra PDF (Windows only - license required)  WinEdt is the best and most mature LaTeX editor on the Windows platform for serious users. To take advantage of its more powerful features, there is a learning curve. You should also install the freeware SumatraPDF PDF viewer. Configure WinEdt and SumatraPDF to work together for forward/inverse PDF search.  Read enough documentation to learn the basics.  Also read a book like A (not so short) introduction to LaTeX so that you will use LaTeX properly.
• LyX (Windows, Mac, Linux) - A freeware graphical front end for LaTeX.  This editor has a lot of potential.  LyX is difficult to use if you don't already understand basic LaTeX. Learn LaTeX using a simple editor first, then give LyX a try.

Using LaTex

You may look at files example1.tex (or example1.pdf) and example2.tex (or example2.pdf) to see some examples of typical commands.

The file template.tex contains a template for your homework assignments.

LaTex Resources

The file ltxprimer.pdf contains a primer for LaTex. Another primer is located at http://www.maths.tcd.ie/~dwilkins/LaTeXPrimer/.

The file Texmaker.pdf contains an overview of TexMaker. The file WinEdtOverview.pdf contains an overview of WinEdt.

For a list of common symbols go to http://web.ift.uib.no/Fysisk/Teori/KURS/WRK/TeX/symALL.html. The file symbols-letter.pdf contains a comprehensive list of symbols. The website Detexify lets you draw a symbol and gives LaTeX suggestions for typesetting it.

When all else fails, try the advice here.