beausol@blake.acs.washington.edu (Ray Beausoleil) (04/09/90)
For several years, I have been trying to use the Macintosh for technical word processing with reasonable (but not complete) success. While the power and sophistication of Macintosh software has increased steadily during this time, I have not been able to build a collection of applications which has all of the features that I really need. Consequently, I am considering the TeX document processing system as a possible solution. Before I ask some basic TeX questions, I will briefly outline my current approach. I use WriteNow for word processing, Expressionist for equation editing, Igor for scientific plotting, and Canvas for drawing. The only real stumbling block continues to be the drawing application. Ideally, a Macintosh drawing package should (at least): (1) allow equations from Expressionist to be pasted into a picture without mangling them; (2) allow pictures to be transferred to WriteNow using the clipboard; and (3) use QuickDraw for screen display and ImageWriter II proofing, *as well as* PostScript for LaserWriter printing. Cricket Draw 1.1 did a fine job with (2) and (3), but not with (1). Also, according to a local mail-order store, the current publishers of Cricket Draw (Computer Associates?) are planning to discontinue its distribution. I have not tested MacDraw II, but I do not believe that it can completely satisfy (3). Canvas fulfills requirements (1) and (2), but has trouble with (3). I have been able to use the new Canvas Separator to convert drawings to EPSF format, but: the document cannot be fully proofed on the ImageWriter II because the picture has no QuickDraw representation (it also appears as a gray rectangle on the monitor); Expressionist equations are stripped out during the conversion (although this could be an Expressionist problem); and the picture is merely a PostScript rendering of a QuickDraw PICT. (In Canvas, this means that lines drawn 45 degrees from the horizontal are sqrt(2) thicker than either horizontal or vertical lines, since the QuickDraw pen is a nonrotating rectangle.) These difficulties have led me to consider TeX, even though I dread the loss of WYSIWYG. I have always been impressed with the quality of TeX output, but I have never been very impressed with the TeX interface. I am aware of two TeX packages for the Mac: Textures (approximately $500), and OzTeX (free). I'd like to receive some feedback from users of either (or both) of these systems. I don't know very much about TeX, but I do have some specific questions about the Mac TeX applications. (1) Is there an integrated text editor with reasonable features? (2) Can the document be previewed on the monitor? (If so, then the loss of WYSIWYG may become bearable!) (3) Can the document be printed on an ImageWriter II for proofing? (4) Is LaTeX available? (I hear rumors that LaTeX is the most capable environment for scientific word processing.) (5) Is drawing difficult? Can it be done at all? Can PostScript or EPSF code be embedded in the document? Does this eliminate the ability for screen and/or ImageWriter proofing? (6) Is the Macintosh TeX document transferrable to another system environment without significant modification? Thank you in advance for any and all information that you can provide. Please E-mail replies to me at either of the two addresses listed below. If you would like to receive a summary of responses, then please send me your E-mail address. If I receive more than five such requests, then I'll post a summary. This is my first attempt to post to *any* newsgroup; if I have violated any unspoken rules or failed to properly observe any rituals, I would appreciate constructive criticism. Ray Beausoleil beausoleil@ee.washington.edu beausol@blake.acs.washington.edu