science

TeXML

TeXML is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand TeXML rather than just read about it. In short: TeXML [tɛχːml] is – as a process – a TeX-based alternative to XSL-FO. TeXML has been developed as an open-source project with the aim to automatically present XML data as PDF with sophisticated layout properties.

Key takeaways

TeXML belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect TeXML to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of TeXML from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

TeXML [tɛχːml] is – as a process – a TeX-based alternative to XSL-FO. TeXML has been developed as an open-source project with the aim to automatically present XML data as PDF with sophisticated layout properties. By means of an auxiliary structure definition, TeXML overcomes the syntax-based differences between TeX and XML. Technically, the markup elements of TeX are described by using the XML syntax.

History TeXML is a further development of a specification originally defined by Douglas Lovell at IBM, where Structure and Transformation have to be distinguished.

Structure The XML definition of the TeXML structure can be considered as being completed since 1999 (TeXML.dtd). It represents the markup link between TeX and XML. Transformation The transformation processes run smoothly since the end of 2010, a productive application of the technology is possible. The original approach of using a Java application was published by IBM at IBM alphaWorks, but is no longer present. It was presented in a paper at the 1999 annual meeting of the TeX Users Group.

Application TeXML is used to generate Technical Documentation from XML data. After the transformation TeXML → TeX, the entire LaTeX-defined range of TeX macros is available. By means of using TeX macros, it is possible to publish XML data having configurable layout options.

Specials TeXML allows automatic publication of XML data by means of a typesetting engine, which was originally designed for manual typesetting. In contrast to publication using the XSL-FO technique layout properties of XML data can be manipulated by using exception rules in the intermediate code. Exception rules are learned by the publication process, the layout properties are thus enhanced with each generation cycle. High-speed publishing processes, an increase in speed of up to 100 times compared to XSL-FO based processes, especially in the case of large documents.

TeXML structure

The Document Type Definition (DTD) of the TeXML structure consists of the XML elements:

Root element: TeXML Encoding commands: cmd Encoding environments: env Encoding groups: group Encoding math groups: math and dmath Encoding control symbols: ctrl Encoding special symbols: spec PDF literals: pdf

Composition of a TeXML document An example of an XML document, which has already been transformed into the TeXML structure:

TeXML process The TeXML process transforms XML data which are described in the auxiliary intermediate TeXML structure to TeX:

Supporting processes Works on the "Data Collection Level" (XML) and on the "Publication Level" (TeX) are supported by different tools, for example:

Data Collection Level: XML editors – Eclipse (IDE), open source – other free XML editors Publication Level: synchronization between code and generated PDF by means of pdfSync: – Windows PC: editor MiKTeX – Mac OS X: editor TeXShop

Literature Frank Mittelbach The LaTeX Companion Archived 2004-05-18 at the Wayback Machine – Tools and techniques for computer typesetting Michel Goossens The XeTeX Companion – TeX meets OpenType and Unicode

External links SGML/XML and (La)TeX – Approaches to transform XML to TeX TeXML: an XML syntax for TeX – TeXML project (Download) How to embed pdfsync into pdftex – Synchronization between Code and PDF TeXML: Typesetting XML with TEX – Original concept of the TeXML project Resurrecting TEX in the XML world - 2007 TUGboat article by Oleg Parashchenko re-motivates TeXML Generate TEX documents using pdfscript - 2010 TUGboat article by Oleg Parashchenko describes Python implementation

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with TeXML

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what TeXML claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to TeXML before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about TeXML ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of TeXML

In research: TeXML appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses TeXML in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: TeXML is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Markup languages, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for TeXML outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study TeXML in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what TeXML means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain TeXML out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is TeXML in simple terms?

Why does TeXML matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study TeXML?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on TeXML.