Re: beginner's questions

[siepo@client44-3.kabelA.oprit.rug.nl]

On  9 Nov, Ed L Cashin wrote:
> Hans Hagen <pragma@wxs.nl> writes:
> 
>> >- Most of the work I plan to make with context are small (<20pages)
>> >  reports. Mostly text with some tables and pictures, and a few
>> >  graphs. Is context the program to handle this, or should I choose
>> >  latex? After a quick look at the docs, it seems context is easier
>> >  to do most things. Is this correct?
>> 
>> that's for others to answer -) 
> 
> The possible conditions for choosing LaTeX over ConTeXt that come to
> mind are these:
> 
>   * if your publisher requires it
> 
>   * if you must collaborate with latex users on a document
> 
>   * if you do no unusual documents, only math papers and physics
>     papers (then you won't notice the incompatibilities and
>     limitations as much)
> 
> ... but then again, there are a lot of LaTeX features that I don't
> use, since I only produce English-language documents, so I don't know
> about much of the LaTeX world.  But from what I've heard here, ConTeXt
> is happy being multi-lingual, and I wouldn't guess that LaTeX has an
> advantage.
> 
> But using ConTeXt is much more fun.  When I ask, "can I do this?" the
> answer is "Yes."  With LaTeX the answer was often, "No."

A dissenting voice: I don't think Context is easier than LaTeX. One
stumbling block is the documentation - there is a lot of it, but I find
it hard to find my way around in it - another is the sheer mass of
Context, which makes it hard to find things and to debug problems.
Debugging is hampered even more by the multilingual interface and by all
the internal space-eating dummy parameters.

In practice, I need to write just as much plain TeX with Context as with
LaTeX, and I need to ask a lot more questions in order to get the job
done. And in Context I encounter just as many mysterious goings-on as in
LaTeX.

I use Context when I have to, but in general I much prefer LaTeX.

Two things in favour of Context: other than LaTeX, it is capable of
producing a tight column layout. Also, Hans is very responsive and
helpful when you have a problem.

-- 
Siep Kroonenberg