[NTG-context] Re: context not producing synctex output that my synctex program can use

[Jim <zlists+context@jdvb.ca>]

Henning and Hans,

thanks for the replies.  I have two follow-up questions below, as well as
some other comments which other synctex users might find useful.

On Sun, Nov 12, 2023 at 10:26 (+0100), Henning Hraban Ramm wrote:

> Am 12.11.23 um 00:59 schrieb Jim:
>> Hi,

>> I've read the wiki, looked at workflows-synctex.tex, searched the web, and
>> scratched my head, all to no avail.  So here I am, cap in hand...

>> When I run context, I get a .synctex file which has some information in it,
>> but I can't find any invocation of synctex to return anything useful.  Nor
>> does the okular example in the wiki (https://wiki.contextgarden.net/SyncTeX)
>> work for me.  Ocular starts, but always on the first page, regardless of
>> what line number I give it.

>> On the other hand, pdftex creates a .synctex file which my copy of synctex
>> find useful.

>> I am using the synctex from the current version of texlive:
>> This is SyncTeX command line utility, version 1.5

>> Can anyone either
>> (a) enlighten me on what I am doing wrong; or
>> (b) definitively confirm that context is not currently playing nicely with
>> synctex (the wiki notwithstanding) and I should give up this quest for
>> now.

> ConTeXt doesn’t work with the synctex binary, but with
> mtxrun --script synctex

Thanks for that pointer.

Q1: Should that be in the wiki (https://wiki.contextgarden.net/SyncTeX)
    somewhere?

When I try that out, for example with
        mtxrun --script synctex --edit --name=a.tex --line=222 a.tex 
I am rewarded with
        sandbox         | variable 'linenumber' has no checker
(I tried various variations on that line I won't bore you with, but I keep
getting that error message.)

I also tried
        mtxrun --script synctex --goto --page=4 --x=100 --y=100 a.synctex 
and that silently returns without apparently doing anything.  (While I
don't have a 'scite' editor, I created a program called 'scite' that pops a
message up on the screen if it is called.)

Similar to --edit,
        mtxrun --script synctex --goto --page=19 --x=400 --y=180 --tolerance=99 --editor=scite  a.synctex
complains
        sandbox         | variable 'tolerance' has no checker

Although I don't know lua, the code is easy enough to read, but a short
dive in to mtx-synctex.lua did not enlighten me.

Q2: any enlightening comments on why I am getting these complaints.

In any case, --find and --report (appear to) give meaningful results, so I
can work with those.

> Unfortunately, it’s not a drop-in replacement, so it doesn’t work with most
> editors. (I was thinking about a translating wrapper script, but didn’t do
> anything yet.)

So much code to write, so little time ...    :-)

My immediate concern is forward search (i.e., editor tells viewer which
page to display) and that one should be easy for me to create a wrapper.
(I use emacs + auctex, which calls the synctex program, so writing my own
synctex wrapper looks easy.  Hopefully I won't regret using the word "easy"
later.)


> AFAIK TeXshop (MacOS) is the only TeX editor that supports ConTeXt’s
> workflow.

I've been thinking of patching some of evince's more annoying features,
if I do, maybe I should look into making it work with context.

> ConTeXt’s synctex format is much simpler than the “standard” LaTeX one and
> should be at least as good, but alas it needs support from the editors.

Indeed!




On Sun, Nov 12, 2023 at 12:00 (+0100), Hans Hagen wrote:

> On 11/12/2023 10:26 AM, Henning Hraban Ramm wrote:
>> Am 12.11.23 um 00:59 schrieb Jim:
>>> Hi,

>>> <second copy of my text elided>

>> ConTeXt doesn’t work with the synctex binary, but with
>> mtxrun --script synctex

> afaik there is no binary ... there is a library that has to be compiled into
> a pdf viewer that intercept some 'goto the text file' command and then
> launches an editor (afik the library has some heuristics build in wrt boxes
> and nesting and so); at the tex end there is also a library that kicks in
> addiional code for nodes and the backend (which is why enabling synctex will
> have an impact on runtime)

> wrt the synctex file, that one is generated by context (so we don't use the
> synctex code in luatex and as luametatex has no backend there it's even
> completely absent ... context generates the file itself which is also a bit
> more efficient)

>> Unfortunately, it’s not a drop-in replacement, so it doesn’t work with
>> most editors. (I was thinking about a translating wrapper script, but
>> didn’t do anything yet.)

>> AFAIK TeXshop (MacOS) is the only TeX editor that supports ConTeXt’s
>> workflow.

> indeed texshop uses the approach that avoids the library and just calls
> mtxrun to figure out the file/line that relates to the position; this is
> more reliable because there is no need to recompile a viewer when synctex
> updates

I just looked at the code of evince, and there is a fair bit of code there
to parse synctex files.  The virtue of just calling mtxrun is clear to me.

> you can run

> mtxrun --script synctex

> on the synctex file and check what areas are there

>> ConTeXt’s synctex format is much simpler than the “standard” LaTeX one
>> and should be at least as good, but alas it needs support from the
>> editors.

> simpler in the sense that we only output what is needed for the
> synchronization to work reliable; fwiw, my collegue already for many years
> uses context with synctex enabled with sumatra pdf in pretty complex setups:
> a mix of tex and xml files with deeply nested inputs and it works ok (so we
> also get to the right spot in an (included) xml file)

> for synctex to work one has to call context with --synctex or put a
> directive on the topline of the file. Otherwise you won't get the right
> jobname. Of course it then still depends on the pdf viewer + lib used if
> things work out as expected.

> there isn't much we can do about the viewer part unless tit is not locked
> into the binary but as flexible like the texshop viewer is

Thanks for your comments as well.  It seems evince has a compile-time
option to either build its own internal synctex or to use an external one.
With the latter and a wrapper script (or maybe even an option to evince to
use some alternate program to get synctex info) it might not be too hard
(*cough*) to get evince to play nicely with context.

Cheers.

                                Jim
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