Wither TeX? (was Re:Last typewriter factory in the world shuts its doors)

[phiscock-g851W1bGYuGnS0EtXVNi6w at public.gmane.org]

> On Wed, 11 May 2011 17:20:09 -0400
> Evan Leibovitch <evan-ieNeDk6JonTYtjvyW6yDsg at public.gmane.org> wrote:
>
>> Sorry for the late entry.
>>
>> At one point I really loved TeX. Well, LaTeX to be certain -- I wrote my
>> own
>> macros and found it a very nice way to create pretty print versions of
>> database reports, etc. The DVI creation process was certainly familiar
>> to
>> those who were used to compiling code. I was a card--carrying member of
>> TUG. But I always REALLY detested Computer Modern as a font from a
>> graphic
>> design PoV and I could never wrap my head around Metafont.
>>
>> ...
>
>     I still use LaTeX for a few things, for example, the Linux install
> instructions on my website.  Latex2html and pdflatex mean that your
> LaTeX document can be converted to alternate formats.  The purpose of
> DVI is to print stuff on paper.  I don't think latex2html controls the
> font.
>
>     In the distant past, I created pretty documents using LaTeX.
> OpenOffice is much better for this.  LaTeX is at it best creating
> standardised, formatted documents.  Donald Knuth's whole point in
> creating TeX is that he did not like the way people were typesetting
> his documents.  He had no interest in how _you_ want his documents
> formatted.
>
Having done a couple of books using Latex, I've found it quite workable
and the results very satisfactory. It justifies type and typesets
mathematics beautifully. It interfaces well with diagram and images.

The thing it does not do well, as Evan observed, is flow text around
images. It can be done (see wrapfig.sty), but it requires a certain amount
of manual intervention to work correctly. And I never did figure out how
to change fonts, but I'm happy with Times.

It depends on the application. For a one-page specification sheet with
diagrams and lots of frames, OpenOffice is great. Latex would be a
nightmare. Conversely, for an academic text (Analog Circuit Design, 1100
pages, http://www.syscompdesign.com/index.html) I found Latex just
excellent in things like indexing, cross-referencing and generally
debugging the manuscript.

Oh, and you can use whatever editor you like...

Peter

-- 
Peter Hiscocks
Syscomp Electronic Design Limited, Toronto
http://www.syscompdesign.com
USB Oscilloscope and Waveform Generator
647-839-0325

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