|
Document 538 Using LaTeX packagesVersion: 3.x, 4.x, 5.x - Scientific WorkPlace & Scientific Word Most LaTeX packages extend TeX typesetting capabilities by enabling some specific behavior for your document, such as the creation of an index, the inclusion of special bibliography lists, or the use of color, the formatting of footnotes. Package directoriesWhen you install SWP or SW, you automatically install those packages that are included with the standard LaTeX distribution. In addition, the installation includes packages from CTAN and other sources that add specific typesetting capabilities to SWP and SW documents or that support the shells designed for certain publishers or universities. Certain packages are included in the installation only for purposes of compatibility with earlier versions of the program. Packages have an .sty extension and are loaded into the TCITeX/TeX directory and its various subdirectories at installation. The directory assignments reflect TeX convention:
*Note that packages that are installed in the latex209 directory may or may not work for later implementations of LaTeX. Most of the packages included with your installation work successfully with most SWP and SW documents; that is, you can correctly compile most SWP and SW documents to which one or more of these packages have been added, whether you are creating a device independent (DVI) file or, in Version 5.x, a Portable Document Format (PDF) file. However, even though LaTeX correctly compiles a document, you may not be able to preview it. Also, certain packages require the use of different print drivers. You may need to change your driver configuration to use certain packages. Note, though, that when you change drivers, you tell LaTeX not to use the default driver configuration for the local LaTeX installation. If you subsequently try to compile your document in a different LaTeX installation, LaTeX will ignore the defaults for the new installation. Thus, you may need to make additional changes to your document to accommodate the new LaTeX setting. For the greatest portability, we recommend that you usually leave the driver configurations unchanged. Using packagesWhen you open a document with a particular shell, the program automatically adds to the document any package that are specified for the shell. If the package you want doesn't appear in the list of packages available for your document, you can go native to add it. You can determine which packages are in use for your document. Documents created with most document shells—that is, documents in most document classes—can accept additional packages. The order in which the packages are specified can, on occasion, affect typesetting behavior. The package documentation notes when package order is significant. Because document classes and packages can conflict, you should learn how each package interacts with other packages, with document classes, and with the program. You can also remove a package from your document if you don't need the capability the package provides. Note Modifying the typesetting specifications can damage your document. Don't attempt extensive modifications or remove packages specified by the shell unless you are familiar with TeX and LaTeX. Just as document classes have options, many packages have options with which you can customize document behavior still further. The options differ from package to package; you can modify the options. Although many packages are available for use with SWP and SW documents, you may be able to obtain all the typesetting capability you need by learning to use just a few of them. In particular, these packages often prove useful: caption, chapterbib , color, endnotes, fancyhdr, float, geometry, longtable, nomencl, setspace, and wrapfig. Available LaTeX packagesA-BC-DE-FG-H-I-JK-L-MN-OP-Q-RS-TU-V-WX-Y-ZLast revised 11/03/06 The information in this frame was created with Scientific WorkPlace. |