Getting acquainted with TEX

TEX is well known to be the typesetting package, and a vast cult of TEX lovers has evolved. But to the beginning TEX user, or to someone wondering if they should bother changing to TEX, it is often not clear what all the fuss is about. After all, are not both WordPerfect and Ventura Publisher capable of high quality output? Newcomers have often already seen what TEX is capable of (many books, journals, letters are now prepared with TEX) and so expect to find a tremendously powerful and friendly package. In fact they do, but that fact is well hidden in one's initial TEX experiences. In this chapter we describe a little of what makes TEX great, and why other packages cannot even begin to compete. Be warned that a little patience is required—TEX's virtues are rather subtle to begin with. But when the penny drops, you will wonder how you ever put up with anything different.



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