[OS X TeX] TeX in Universal Binaries

[Richard Koch]

Folks,

>> I don't know how the rest of TeX is handled (in TeXShop), but it  
>> seems to me that XeTeX and gwTeX should be treated as similarly as  
>> possible. A loger term solution that I can see is to (eventually)  
>> create a universal set of tools.
>
> It is a difficult problem. Having universal binaries is easier for  
> Dick but removes the download-only-what-you-need option.
>
> What is the community's opinion?

I think it is best to keep with the TeX Live standards. The "work in  
TeXShop" is already done; when the program
first starts, it checks to see if it is running on PowerPC or Intel  
and sets the TeX binary directory
preference appropriately. So users don't have to deal with this. The  
"engine scripts" issue is
a temporary matter because XeTeX used to be PowerPC only but isn't  
any more. As others
have pointed out, we can (and will) make a simple change in these  
scripts so the scripts
will work on either architecture in the future.

My only minor suggestion is that it might make sense for i-Installer  
to create a link in /usr/local/tetex/bin called, say,
apple-darwin-current pointing to the appropriate directory for that  
machine.

Dick

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