[OS X TeX] latex and xelatex

[David Messerschmitt]

> 
>  I don't really see how it helps anyone to have this proliferation of (la)tex implementations with differing abilities.
> 


I assume the issue here is whether merging the versions could be done transparently, that is, without breaking some people's existing documents, scripts, etc.
Of course merging would have the advantage of making document sharing smoother. It seems like one of those "rock and a hard place" issues: 
The problems that prevent smooth merging are the very same problems that get in the way of document sharing.

-dave

David Messerschmitt
Roger Strauch Professor Emeritus
Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences
University of Californa at Berkeley
    and
Visiting Professor
Helsinki University of Technology
Software Business Laboratory
   and
Visiting Researcher
SETI Institute