157 lines
3.4 KiB
Markdown
157 lines
3.4 KiB
Markdown
# LaTex Guide For Beginners
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## Introduction
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LaTeX is a document preparation system used to produce professional-looking documents. Unlike traditional word processors, LaTeX emphasizes content over appearance by allowing the authors to focus on document structure while typesetting is handled automaticaly. LaTeX is particularly suited for creating long, structured documents and typesetting equations.
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> **Key Features of LaTeX**
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> - Produces high-qualty documents.
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> - Ideal for academic papers, documents with mathematical equations, theses, and technical documents.
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> - Typesets mathematical equations with precision.
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## Compiling LaTeX Files:
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To compile a `.text` file into a readable format like a `.pdf`, the command line or a LaTeX editor can be used.
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```Bash
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# Compile a LaTeX file to a .dvi file
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latex [filename].tex
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> output is [filename].dvi
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# Compile a LaTeX file directly to a .pdf
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pdflatex [filename].tex
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> output is [filename].pdf
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# Convert a .dvi file to a PostScript (.ps) file
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dvips -o [filename].ps [filename].dvi
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> output is [filename].ps
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# Convert a .dvi file to a .pdf
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dvipdfm [filename].dvi
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```
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--
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## Essentials of LaTeX
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### Document Structure
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Every LaTeX document starts with a `\documentclass` declaration, specifying the document type, followed by content wrapped in a `document` environment:
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```latex
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\documentclass[a4paper,12pt]{article}
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\begin{document}
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\title{My First Document}
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\author{Author Name}
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\date{\today}
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\maketitle
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\end{document}
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```
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### Sections and Labels
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Divide your document into sections for better organization:
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```latex
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\section{Introduction}
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This is the introduction.
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\section{Methods}
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\subsection{Step 1}
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The first step.
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\section{Results}
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Results are shown in Figure \ref{fig:example}.
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```
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---
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## Creating Tables
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To create a table, use the `tabular` environment:
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```latex
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\begin{tabular}{|l|c|r|}
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\hline
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Item & Quantity & Price (\$) \\
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\hline
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Nails & 500 & 0.34 \\
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Wooden boards & 100 & 4.00 \\
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Bricks & 240 & 11.50 \\
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\hline
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\end{tabular}
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```
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---
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## Adding Figures
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To include images, add the `graphicx` package in the preamble and use the `figure` environment:
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```latex
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\usepackage{graphicx}
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\begin{figure}[h]
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\centering
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\includegraphics[width=0.8\textwidth]{example.png}
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\caption{An example image}
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\label{fig:example}
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\end{figure}
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```
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---
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## Writing Equations
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LaTeX provides multiple ways to write mathematical equations:
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- **Inline equations:** `$E = mc^2$`
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- **Displayed equations:**
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```latex
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\begin{equation}
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E = mc^2
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\end{equation}
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```
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- **Equation arrays:**
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```latex
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\begin{eqnarray}
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a & = & b + c \\
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& = & y - z
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\end{eqnarray}
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```
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---
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## References
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LaTeX can manage references and citations using BibTeX. Create a `.bib` file with references:
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```bibtex
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@article{example,
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Author = {Author Name},
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Title = {Title of the Paper},
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Journal = {Journal Name},
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Year = {2021}
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}
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```
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Include the bibliography in your `.tex` file:
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```latex
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\bibliographystyle{plain}
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\bibliography{references}
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```
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---
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## Further Reading
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- [LaTeX Project](http://www.latex-project.org/)
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- [LaTeX Wikibook](http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/LaTeX/)
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- [Not So Short Introduction to LaTeX](http://ctan.tug.org/tex-archive/info/lshort/english/lshort.pdf)
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---
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*Note: This guide is based on information from the "LaTeX for Beginners Workbook" (Edition 5, March 2014) and additional command-line instructions.*
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