From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Msuck: nntp://news.gmane.io/gmane.comp.tex.context/14604 Path: main.gmane.org!not-for-mail From: Mari Voipio Newsgroups: gmane.comp.tex.context Subject: Re: Windows xp user wants to begin with context Date: Thu, 22 Jan 2004 22:42:41 +0200 (EET) Sender: ntg-context-admin@ntg.nl Message-ID: References: <20040122165244.67148.qmail@web21106.mail.yahoo.com> Reply-To: ntg-context@ntg.nl NNTP-Posting-Host: deer.gmane.org Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII X-Trace: sea.gmane.org 1074804219 26735 80.91.224.253 (22 Jan 2004 20:43:39 GMT) X-Complaints-To: usenet@sea.gmane.org NNTP-Posting-Date: Thu, 22 Jan 2004 20:43:39 +0000 (UTC) Original-X-From: ntg-context-admin@ntg.nl Thu Jan 22 21:43:30 2004 Return-path: Original-Received: from ref.vet.uu.nl ([131.211.172.13] helo=ref.ntg.nl) by deer.gmane.org with esmtp (Exim 3.35 #1 (Debian)) id 1Ajlfl-0002zg-00 for ; Thu, 22 Jan 2004 21:43:29 +0100 Original-Received: from ref.ntg.nl (localhost.localdomain [127.0.0.1]) by ref.ntg.nl (Postfix) with ESMTP id EA28710B5E; Thu, 22 Jan 2004 21:42:28 +0100 (MET) Original-Received: from sirppi.helsinki.fi (sirppi.helsinki.fi [128.214.205.27]) by ref.ntg.nl (Postfix) with ESMTP id C202B10B0D for ; Thu, 22 Jan 2004 21:41:45 +0100 (MET) Original-Received: from sirppi.helsinki.fi (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by sirppi.helsinki.fi (8.12.10/8.12.10) with ESMTP id i0MKgfKN025346 for ; Thu, 22 Jan 2004 22:42:41 +0200 (EET) Original-Received: from localhost (mvoipio@localhost) by sirppi.helsinki.fi (8.12.10/8.12.10/Submit) with ESMTP id i0MKgfT1008577 for ; Thu, 22 Jan 2004 22:42:41 +0200 (EET) X-Authentication-Warning: sirppi.helsinki.fi: mvoipio owned process doing -bs Original-To: ConTeXt Mailing List In-Reply-To: <20040122165244.67148.qmail@web21106.mail.yahoo.com> Errors-To: ntg-context-admin@ntg.nl X-BeenThere: ntg-context@ntg.nl X-Mailman-Version: 2.0.13 Precedence: bulk X-Reply-To: mari.voipio@iki.fi List-Help: List-Post: List-Subscribe: , List-Id: mailing list for ConTeXt users List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: Xref: main.gmane.org gmane.comp.tex.context:14604 X-Report-Spam: http://spam.gmane.org/gmane.comp.tex.context:14604 On Thu, 22 Jan 2004, Wilfried Van Hirtum wrote: > But can anybody out there please tell me how i can start from the very > beginning. I would appreciate your advise very much. There are many versions of the same theme, but some ways do suit a Windows user quite well. I actually wouldn't know how to install ConTeXt in a linux or unix (should maybe try one day...), but I've found my way with Windows, like this: System: TeXLive. I download the ISO image, burn it on a CD (XP's native software doesn't read ISO's, but for example Nero does) and use the one and same CD to install all the computers I use (1 x XP, 2 x W2k, 2 x NT). The necessary piece of information here seems to be that only the full installation of TeXLive works out-of-the-box - standard seems to forget some parts that are very necessary to the Windows user who hasn't used any programs like this before (been there, done that, lost half a day on it). Editor: NTEmacs, comes in the TeXLive full installation. To make it work I have to add and compile context.el and fiddle a bit with the settings. Now I have a fully configured .emacs settings file which I just copy for each computer. If you are truly interested in using NTEmacs for ConTeXt work (and only that), I can set up detailed instructions with appropriate links and instructions and a ready-to-use .emacs (complete with printer settings). With the context.el (context mode) NTEmacs among others shows the ConTeXt codes in colours and uses the i-spell spell checker without getting stuck in the codes (and i-spell comes even i Finnish!). You'll get much of the same functionality with WinEdt, I just didn't like it (and couldn't figure out how to make a button to direct-compile my file) and I knew the Emacs keyboard commands from before. Setup: Windows (whichever of them) automatically opens .tex files into NTEmacs. I edit them and can compile with a menu command or keyboard shortcut (prefer the latter, hate mousework). Because I set my system that way, the file is compiled straight into .pdf and I can use another command to open the file in Acrobat reader to view it (assuming the compilation worked out). Advantages and disadvantages compared with Word (or similar): + files with umpteen large figures never ever crash and never get corrupted; the compilation may crash, but the file always survives - and takes a lot less space. + accepts pdf pictures (although this far I've always cropped them in full Acrobat; there must be an easier way), which is good when original is not in an easy vector format; jpg works perfectly, too. + table of contents, indices, references are so much easier to make and have a much higher success rate; and finding the ones that don't work is easy -> a manual I produced with ConText has a lot higher level of consistency than the earlier ones that were written with Word (and without using some of its existing reference mechanism) + our print shop loves the pdf files produced by the very default ConTeXt pdf compiling system - tables are a big pain - fonts used to be a big hassle, I think the last version of ConText makes them only a medium hassle - once in a while I go crazy because I know in Windows/Word language what I want, but cannot translate it into ConTeXt. I'm slowly learning to accept that I may never master ConTeXt the way I used to master Word (I'm a heavy-user); but the result will still be a lot better - there's some command line work involved; I've managed work around some of it by learning to make .bat files, but there's more to be done. What's different: * if you are used to Word, the way real typesetting systems move floats (like pictures and floating tables) around feels a bit weird in the beginning (and trying to explain the behaviour to your boss may be "interesting"...) * the more you've used styles (defined headings etc) in Windows text processing, the easier ConTeXt will be for you; people who are used to formatting everything by hand (i.e. don't do structural thinking) will find this kind of typesetting very difficult to understand * there's a ton of new and different options; I just haven't gotten very far yet. One day I will try to understand the module system and make it work for me, to compile printable and interactive documents from the same sources. One of my projects for a longish time has been to write detailed beginner instructions for ConTeXt in the Windows way (I used to teach beginner to intermediate Windows, I still speak the language, and Word too). If I manage to excavate my desk (probably at work) deep enough to find the new TeXLive CD I burned before Christmas, the pages should be up by mid-February. Things have changed during the 18 months since I first took up my fight with ConTeXt, so I need to check all the notes I've made before releasing anything. And I'll probably start with Windows NT, but in my experience the Windows version doesn't make any difference as long as it's Win95 or newer and the user-rights are sufficient. Greetings from the cold north (-15 centigrades!), Mari from Finland