Tell me more ×
TeX - LaTeX Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for users of TeX, LaTeX, ConTeXt, and related typesetting systems. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 36 down vote favorite
2

Just a (simple) short question:

Why is the LaTeX root directory called texmf?

Is there a meaning of the mf ending?

share|improve this question

3 Answers

up vote 30 down vote accepted

It is short for TeX and Metafont.

share|improve this answer
2  
+1 can you make it shorter? – mozartstraße Oct 15 '12 at 12:02
6  
I'd prefer a longer answer. – egreg Oct 15 '12 at 12:14
1  
@ガベージコレクタ: How about: 'TeX & Metafont' ? :) – Count Zero Oct 15 '12 at 12:15
up vote 46 down vote

From A Directory Structure for TeX files, 2.2 Rooting the tree:

In this document, we shall designate the root TDS directory by texmf (for “TEX and METAFONT”). We recommend using that name where possible, but the actual name of the directory is up to the installer.

share|improve this answer
up vote 15 down vote

This name was in fact used as a possible name in the very first message to the Tex directory structure list

http://tug.org/mailman/htdig/twg-tds/1994-October/000001.html

So I think it must have been the existing name in web2c-TeX/kpathsea but I can't recall exactly.

share|improve this answer

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.