[OS X TeX] Custom LaTeX Formats

[Ross Moore]

On 18/02/2005, at 12:28 AM, Will Robertson wrote:

> On 17 Feb 2005, at 8:49 PM, Joachim Kock wrote:
>
>>> How can I create custom LaTeX formats?
>>
>> This has been explained several times on this mialing list.
>> Tha most recent couple of explanations were more complicated
>> than necessary though...  (It should never be necessary to
>> modify the standard latex source files, I think...)
>
> Does this make things HEAPS faster?

Yes sometimes, ...

> If so, it should be better known!

   ... but it can be fraught with danger.

> (It doesn't appear to be in the index of TLC2.)
>

The dangers are not immediately obvious and are
not easy to document. You need to understand a bit
more than just "using LaTeX" to cope properly.

You have to be very careful about just where the  \dump
command occurs. Also you need to be very careful with
commands and packages that require auxiliary files to
perform their function.
Furthermore, you need to make sure that LaTeX can find
all the resources that it needs, when running with the
format loaded. This may mean editing  texmf.cnf .


These difficulties are such as to make the technique
not suitable for general use, so not normally
included in the books on LaTeX.


> If not, what is it used for?

Parts of the preamble can be made to *load* faster,
so the real work starts sooner.

For small jobs this is good.
It's great for a production-job, driven via the web, say.

But for larger jobs, where most of the work
is in the page-building, the relative saving
is much less.

There's a package  ldump  that is designed to help
get the maximum into the \dump'd format.

I'll need to search out the documentation for
this package, which describes how to cope with
the above-mentioned problems.

>
> Curious,


Hope this helps,

	Ross


> Will
>
> --------------------- Info ---------------------
> Mac-TeX Website: http://www.esm.psu.edu/mac-tex/
>           & FAQ: http://latex.yauh.de/faq/
> TeX FAQ: http://www.tex.ac.uk/faq
> List Post: <mailto:MacOSX-TeX at email.esm.psu.edu>
>
>
>
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ross Moore                                         ross at maths.mq.edu.au
Mathematics Department                             office: E7A-419
Macquarie University                               tel: +61 +2 9850 8955
Sydney, Australia                                  fax: +61 +2 9850 8114
------------------------------------------------------------------------

--------------------- Info ---------------------
Mac-TeX Website: http://www.esm.psu.edu/mac-tex/
           & FAQ: http://latex.yauh.de/faq/
TeX FAQ: http://www.tex.ac.uk/faq
List Post: <mailto:MacOSX-TeX at email.esm.psu.edu>