[tex-live] How to do the following?

[David Kastrup]

Please don't revert this thread to TeXhax without even mentioning
this.  I posted it as a question on the TeXlive list, and it is there
that it belongs.

Posted back to TeXlive.

Philip TAYLOR <P.Taylor at Rhul.Ac.Uk> writes:

> David Kastrup wrote:
>> Philip TAYLOR <P.Taylor at Rhul.Ac.Uk> writes:
>>
>>> OK, I'll test, but your scenario reads oddly to me :
>>> why would you use the verb "LaTeX", which explicitly
>>> loads the LaTeX format, when you want to load another
>>> format ?
>>
>> Because I want to use something like "mylatex.ltx" in order to shorten
>> the load time, while still getting the search paths and, necessarily,
>> executable used by LaTeX itself.
>
> Well what executable do you think it should load ?  Is there
> an "IniLaTeX" in the TeX Live 2005 distribution ?

No, but there is
latex -ini

> Is there indeed a "LaTeX" executable at all ?  Under XP, all of the
> following launch PdfeTeXK :
>
> 	TeX
> 	eTeX
> 	LaTeX
> 	PdfLaTeX

I should be surprised if "TeX" launches PdfeTeXK: that does not sound
compatible with Knuth's wishes at what may be called "TeX".

It doesn't here.  Are you sure you are using TeXLive 2005?

> and all of the following launch PdfeTeXK (IniTeX) :
>
> 	TeX -ini
> 	eTeX -ini
> 	LaTeX -ini
> 	PdfLaTeX -ini
>
> Which is not to say I can't replicate your problem, but
> I am less than convinced that "LaTeX -ini &<format>" is
> a meaningful incantation ...

Different executable names will still lead to different search paths
and possible different configurations.

-- 
David Kastrup, Kriemhildstr. 15, 44793 Bochum