[OS X TeX] initex formats and input search paths

[Joachim Kock]

Hello TeXsperts,

I recently upgraded to OSX 10.3.2 (from 10.2.3), and installed a new
tetex --- thanks a lot, Gerben for your wonderful work.

I seem to notice a change in the way initex finds input files.
I would like to hear some expert comments and advice.

Previously

etex --ini  "&latex" "\input somefile.tex"

would detect the &latex not only as indication of what format to
use, but also as indication of which inputs path to search.
Specifically it would search in all tex/latex trees before
searching in tex/generic.  (I.e. it uses the LATEXINPUTS variable.)

In the new installation, the same command searches tex/generic
before tex/latex, i.e. it uses TEXINPUTS for iput file searching
in spite of the &latex argument (and hence in my case found a 
standard tetex file in tex/generic that I usually override by my 
personal patch residing in tex/latex in my user's tree.  I am
aware of the fact that I could just place the file in tex/generic
to make a safer override, but this is not the issue here.).

I figured out that I can achieve the correct behaviour by

etex --ini --efmt latex "&latex" "\input somefile.tex"

so the issue is not an urgency.

But I think the old behaviour was logical and I would like to
ask if the change is a design decision or a bug or what...  
Of course it might all be a misinterpretation of my part --- there 
might be other changes I had made in my old installation that I am 
no longer aware of.  Unfortunately my old installation no longer 
exists...


Cheers,
Joachim.
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