{packages} is about packages in general, e.g. about choosing, installing or using packages. For questions about writing packages, choose {package-writing} instead. If your question concerns a specific package, choose its name as tag. For {document-classes} or {templates} use the respective tag.
228
votes
22answers
46k views
LaTeX template for resume/curriculum vitae
If you have a TeX'ed resume, did you use a template or make your own? Are there any useful packages? What looks the most professional? How about special considerations for different areas of work ...
187
votes
52answers
16k views
What packages do people load by default in LaTeX?
I'm getting the impression from reading the answers written by some of the real experts here that there are quite a few little packages that just tweak LaTeX2e's default behaviour a little to make it ...
137
votes
3answers
29k views
Why should I use \usepackage[T1]{fontenc}?
As a native English speaker, I've mostly been allowed the luxury of pretending that ASCII is enough, and have been able to treat font encodings as not my problem. I've seen lots of advice that I ought ...
102
votes
15answers
14k views
Is there any way to do a correct word count of a LaTeX document?
Often assignments (or even papers) have a word count limit. That is not a big deal when using Word, but I don't know how to do that using LaTeX. My solution has been so far to compile the document and ...
84
votes
8answers
38k views
Where do I place my own .sty files, to make them available to all my .tex files?
I know how to define a package - but how do I make it available (to myself) at all times?
Say I have the package file commonstuff.sty, that I want to be able to include in any .tex file I create on ...
82
votes
11answers
5k views
LaTeX packages for use with revision control
I use revision control (Subversion, to be exact) to keep track of the edits to my LaTeX documents. Is there a LaTeX package that interfaces with revision control? Specifically, it would be nice to see ...
77
votes
3answers
9k views
Frequently loaded packages: Differences between pdfLaTeX and XeLaTeX
Until now, I have been compiling my LaTeX documents with pdfLaTeX. My standard document preamble includes the "usual suspects" for non-English speakers (inputenc, fontenc, babel) and a bunch of other ...
72
votes
9answers
4k views
Which packages should be loaded after hyperref instead of before?
The hyperref documentation says: "Make sure it comes last of your loaded packages". The reason is that it redefines many LaTeX commands. It's a rule of thumb that helps to avoid errors.
However, ...
69
votes
4answers
2k views
Techniques and packages to keep up with good practices
Question
What techniques and packages are there to keep up with good practices?
What I already know
I already know of the following packages for this kind of purpose:
...
55
votes
2answers
70k views
How can I manually install a package on MiKTeX (Windows)
I'm new to LaTeX, investigating using it for some work projects. I'm using MiKTeX on Windows. My employer's locked-down network blocks the application's automatic installation function. I can take ...
52
votes
12answers
2k views
Reducing the time it takes to write a paper
I often have situations in which I must quickly write and print a report, within a short time. Some features of TeX allow me to work quickly. For example, with BibTeX, I can quickly add a source to an ...
52
votes
4answers
3k views
Is there an easy way to have my whole document with a space between paragraphs rather than indentation?
I would like to have my whole document showing a blank line (or space) between paragraphs and no indentation. I know how to do it line by line, but is there a way to change that with just one or a few ...
51
votes
5answers
3k views
Suggest a “nice” font family for my basic LaTeX template (text and math). [I am confused]
My goal is to choose a "nice" font family (serif, sans serif, monospace, and "math") for my basic LaTeX template.
I know the default setting (Computer Modern's family) is a very good choice.
However, ...
50
votes
6answers
2k views
How to keep up with packages and know which ones are obsolete?
I'm an on and off user of LaTeX so I'm not familiar with every package out there. Having said that, whenever I use LaTeX and need to accomplish a certain goal (i.e. generate a list of appendices), I ...
49
votes
3answers
2k views
Cross-reference packages: which to use, which conflict?
Inspired by my earlier question Theorem packages: which to use, which conflict?, here is another similar question.
There are many different packages for making cross references. Among them hyperref, ...
49
votes
3answers
3k views
Theorem packages: which to use, which conflict?
As far as I know, one can create theorem environments using any of amsthm, ntheorem, thmtools and probably more.
How should I define my theorem environments? Is one package clearly superior? Which ...
48
votes
9answers
2k views
Are there other “fun” packages like the “coffee stains” package?
I'm trying to convert some friends to LaTeX and have come up against a (to me) unexpected objection: there are too few packages that support "fun" (really), to which I responded:
I know there are ...
48
votes
2answers
717 views
Detecting unused packages in LaTeX document
I have quite a bad habit of copy-and-pasting my packages from one LaTeX document to another. Is there any way we can detect unused packages (i.e. \usepackage commands) so that they can be removed from ...
47
votes
7answers
3k views
How to add some visual style and pizzazz to course notes?
LaTeX is wonderful for writing mathematical papers, but while the output is perfectly typeset it is not visually very exciting. And although it may just be "familiarity breeds contempt", I am ...
47
votes
3answers
16k views
What is a good package for displaying algorithms?
I found this page with some examples:
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/LaTeX/Algorithms_and_Pseudocode
I'm wondering which one to use. Any suggestions? I'm using other packages too so whichever is less ...
46
votes
6answers
9k views
Package for certificates
Since LaTex can produce outstanding typesetting results and excellent graphics design, I began to wonder if it can recreate certificates. With so many packages and styles out there does anyone know if ...
40
votes
4answers
2k views
document class for a restaurant menu
I'd like to typeset a restaurant menu. What would be a good document class or package to use? I'm hoping for an answer similar to this thread: Survey Document Class or Package?
35
votes
6answers
6k views
What are benefits of e-TeX for LaTeX users?
The etex package provides an interface to e-TeX features. What advantages does it offer to LaTeX users?
Are there any possible disadvantages like incompatibility to any other package or can I just ...
35
votes
5answers
1k views
How to tell people why packages become deprecated and shouldn't be used anymore?
I'm working with LaTeX for a while now. Writing more and more documents I've learned that there are packages that should not be used or got replaced by others.
Looking into files my friends or ...
35
votes
1answer
2k views
How do I install an individual package on a Linux system?
I need to install a new TeX/LaTeX/ConTeXt package on my computer. I'm running Ubuntu/Fedora/Slackware/Some-Version-Of Linux. What are the possible ways to do this?
Note: We get a ...
33
votes
6answers
1k views
How do packages work ? Why aren't they all pre-initiated?
I have been using LaTeX for about a month now and whenever I have a question, most answers involve adding new packages to the preamble.
My question is, how do these packages work? Are they all ...
33
votes
5answers
5k views
What's the difference between \RequirePackage and \usepackage?
I understand that "the convention is to use \RequirePackage in a package or
class and \usepackage in a document", but apart from that, is there any practical difference between the two commands?
(I ...
33
votes
3answers
6k views
Most useful additions in KOMA-Script?
(Background: I'm a beginner who will mostly use LaTeX for university articles and reports, but no math. Also, as I reside in Canada, the German typography conventions, which I understand KOMA-Script ...
33
votes
1answer
937 views
Frequently loaded packages: Differences between XeLaTeX and LuaLaTeX
Adding the missing member to pdfLaTeX vs. XeLaTeX and pdfLaTeX vs. LuaLaTeX, here's the last of the big three: XeLaTeX vs. LuaLaTeX.
Where would a typical template for XeLaTeX differ from one for ...
31
votes
4answers
3k views
Draw Bohr atomic model with electron shells in TeX?
This question led to a new package:
bohr
I'm making slides with beamer for my chemistry students. I would like to draw a figure in LaTeX to illustrate the electron shells in the Bohr model but ...
30
votes
3answers
3k views
What package allows Elvish in TeX?
Anyone who has read The Lord of the Rings will recognise the Elvish script at the top of the page. If this is meant to be an example of what is typesettable in TeX/related software, what package is ...
30
votes
2answers
3k views
How to create a crossword puzzle in LaTeX?
As the title already states I'd like to know how to create a crossword puzzle in LaTeX. Any ideas?
29
votes
5answers
2k views
What package supports this kind of timeline?
I found some examples of timelines on the site, but they don't seem fit for the type of graph I want to create.
Basically I'd like to create one of those timelines you see in books, where you compare ...
29
votes
5answers
1k views
Data structures for TeX
I often find myself wanting to use standard data structures in TeX. For example, lists or maps. Each time this need comes up, I reinvent the wheel. For some reason, I find myself using stacks fairly ...
29
votes
2answers
19k views
Best way to install packages for TeXLive in Ubuntu?
I want to install a package (specifically xlop). I'm using TeXLive on Ubuntu, and I don't really know my way around LaTeX.
Can apt-get install or something similar be used?
29
votes
2answers
2k views
Which package version am I using?
Is there a LaTeX command for printing the versions of the currently installed packages? I need to know the installed version of the pgfplots package.
28
votes
14answers
3k views
What does the draft mode change?
I wonder which changes are made by the draft option?
That means what will be changed by calling it as global class option (\documentclass[draft]{<class>}) or locally for a single package if it ...
28
votes
3answers
837 views
Why use .sty files?
Why is it preferable to put inclusions of commonly used packages and user defined commands in a .sty file instead of putting them in an ordinary .tex file?
28
votes
1answer
929 views
Packages that need to be included in a specific order
This isn't a real question, so I'm marking it community wiki.
When I was new to LaTeX, I thought that the \usepackage command worked much like the #include command of the C language: just put ...
27
votes
7answers
6k views
What graphics packages are there for creating graphics in LaTeX documents?
What packages do you use and recommend for creating graphics in your LaTeX documents?
As this is a community wiki post, please add your package to the accepted answer (or add a comment, and ...
26
votes
1answer
752 views
A font to typeset proofreader's marks in LaTeX?
I always overlook mistakes when I proofread documents on screen. When I proofread a printed paper I can find much more mistakes and mark them with the defined proofreader's marks – for German ...
25
votes
5answers
644 views
Barebones or Packages
As a relatively novice LaTeX user, is it OK to plunge right into using the helpful packages out there, or is it better to stick to core LaTeX primitives and packages so as learn the mechanics of ...
25
votes
5answers
713 views
Historical, stable version archive of packages
The author of marginfix / blockmargin is/was interested in a certain loss of functionality from one version of the marginfix package to the next. Out of interest and curiosity I wanted to see what ...
25
votes
5answers
2k views
Which packages can you use to improve the typographic quality?
List here which packages can be used to make text easier to read and nicer to look at. After all, the superior typographic quality is one of the main reasons to prefer LaTeX to, for example, MS Word.
25
votes
3answers
978 views
Nicely force 66 characters per line
I would like to have "something" (a package, a trick, a macro, ...?) that makes it possible for me to nicely play with the margins (or the layout) in order to set the average or typical number of ...
25
votes
5answers
1k views
How to make a standard preamble into a package
I have a preamble that I copy and paste into nearly all of my documents. Is there a nice way to turn this into a package than I can use? I would prefer to do this in a way that doesn't depend on my ...
25
votes
2answers
4k views
Which package can be used to draw automata?
I'm looking for a LaTeX package which helps drawing automata problems. I googled and found A package for drawing automata and graphs (Version 0.4). But I'm not sure is this package a standard one, or ...
25
votes
2answers
435 views
Coordinating the work of Biblatex style authors
I am not sure whether this is an admissible question. If it is not, please close it.
The problem
Biblatex opens up the realistic possibility of highly complex citation systems such as those used in ...
24
votes
3answers
2k views
Is there a good LaTeX package for generating barcodes?
I'm looking for a good LaTeX package to generate one dimensional barcodes, that has the following properties.
It doesn't require any external scripts or internet connection to work.
It easily ...
24
votes
2answers
1k views
Is hyperref really the best way to add metadata to a TeX file?
So I know one of hyperref's features is that it can add metadata to you PDFs. This is a nice feature and if you're putting stuff online, it's good to include metadata.
But is the hyperref package ...
