Concepts of Mathematics - Summer II 2012

Why should you use LaTeX?

Any scholarly paper you see in the sciences, any document that contains mathematical symbols and figures, any document I give you in this course … these were all made with LaTeX! It is the best program that typesets mathematical symbols, equations, and figures, and is a great word-processing program, to boot. (Forget about MS Word's equation editor. It sucks.)

It's easy to jump right in and start programming in LaTeX! If you can't remember the code for a symbol, just Google it; you'll probably find it. (Or, consult this gigantic document of symbols and add-on packages. Or you can try drawing the symbol in Detexify.) If you can't remember how to make a particular equation format or insert a picture or anything like that … yup, just Google it! (Or ask me about it.) Once you get involved and start using it, you'll pick up all the tricks you'll need in due time.

How do you install LaTeX on my computer?

You'll need to download and install both the TeX distribution packages, as well as a handy LaTeX-specific text editing application that will help you with coding. (You can just use a basic text editor, a .pdf viewer, and command line prompts, but I don't recommend that for beginners.) If you'd prefer the "try before you buy" approach to LaTeX, there is an online editor called ScribTeX, but this is just a way to get your feet wet and isn't a long-term solution.

1. Go to the LaTeX Wikibooks page on installing a TeX distribution.
2. Download and install one of the distributions applicable to your machine (separated by Windows, Mac, Linux).
3. Go to the LaTeX Wikibooks page on getting a text editor designed specifically for LaTeX.
4. Choose and install a text editor applicable to your machine. (I used to use TeXnic Center on my Windows machine, and now use TeXShop on my Mac laptop, and they are both perfectly fine and recommended. For Linux users, command line prompts coupled with a basic text editor are fairly simple; if you are looking for a nicer GUI, though, I'd recommend Kile.)
5. Go to the course calendar and download the files preamble.tex and hw1.tex. (You will also need to download the picture file and save it in the same place as hw1.text to make sure the document compiles correctly).
6. Adjust the first line of the hw1.tex file so that it has the directory path to where you saved preamble.tex.
7. Start coding! Try compiling the document to make sure it works. Look at the .pdf output and read through the code I used to create the document. You'll learn a lot just by doing this and seeing how I've done it. Then, try typing up some of your answers and compiling the document. Adjust any coding errors, and ask me about any issues you have.

Where can you get help with coding in LaTeX?

Here are some useful resources:

• LaTeX Wikibook — This is an expansive document about the general actions you might need to accomplish in LaTeX. The "Getting Started" and "Formatting" chapters are particularly helpful for beginners, and other than those and the sub-chapters of "Techincal Texts" on "Mathematics" and "Advanced Mathematics", you shouldn't really need the other chapters, unless you're doing something crazy.
• An Intro to TeX — Written by some Harvard professors, this is similar to the Wikibook.
• LaTeX Primer — This is written by a Trinity College (Dublin) professor and is pretty well-written but not as thorough as the other links, although it is quite helpful for some basic commands you'll need to get started.
• TeX on Stack Exchange — This is a dynamic web forum where you can pose TeX-related questions and solicit answers from other readers.

As always, feel free to ask me questions about using LaTeX, too!