New Members ⇒ \lhd

[j0equ1nn]

I signed up for this forum to ask a particular question, though I expect I will be on here for other stuff, and will also try to help out. Since I'm new I put this post here, but I mostly want to ask my question.


I was looking up how to make a right-pointing triangle for something I was doing, and as often happens I found something online telling me what the command is for it, and what package I must use in order for it to work. And every time that happens, I wonder what the point is of all these packages. I expect this will be easy for any experienced person on LaTeX to answer, I've only been using it about a year and change.

What I mean is, what would be the harm in just having all the packages work in the first place, without requiring you to manually specify you are using them? Is there ever any instance of the same command evoking different symbols depending on what package you have in your header? If so, I've never come across that in over a year. For me, I tend to start with a template that has as many packages as I know about up top, then if I need more I stick those in too and make a new template. I've never noticed any slowing or any side effect to having a usepackage thingy for a package I'm not actually using.

If it's just a matter of more symbols being added since LaTeX came out, well then how does LaTeX know how to do them just from you typing a couple of words at the top of the document, without downloading anything?

I don't get it.

[cgnieder]

Hi j0equ1nn,

Welcome to the LaTeX community!

I signed up for this forum to ask a particular question, though I expect I will be on here for other stuff, and will also try to help out. Since I'm new I put this post here, but I mostly want to ask my question.

The »New Members« forum doesn't seem to be the right place for this, I'd say the »General« forum were a better fit.

I was looking up how to make a right-pointing triangle for something I was doing, and as often happens I found something online telling me what the command is for it, and what package I must use in order for it to work. And every time that happens, I wonder what the point is of all these packages. I expect this will be easy for any experienced person on LaTeX to answer, I've only been using it about a year and change.

What I mean is, what would be the harm in just having all the packages work in the first place, without requiring you to manually specify you are using them? Is there ever any instance of the same command evoking different symbols depending on what package you have in your header?

Interestingly a quite similar question has been asked on TeX.sx a few days ago: How do packages work ? Why aren't they all pre-initiated?. The bottom line is: there are more than 3000 packages for quite different tasks. Apart from the fact that there are incompatible packages (maybe because they're trying to do the same thing or are introducing the same command names) what would a linguist want with all the maths and chemistry packages for instance? Some packages are also quite old and have been superseded by more comprehensive packages. Should then the old package still be loaded? The answers on the linked question will give you more details on this topic.

If so, I've never come across that in over a year.

You've been lucky I guess.

For me, I tend to start with a template that has as many packages as I know about up top, then if I need more I stick those in too and make a new template. I've never noticed any slowing or any side effect to having a usepackage thingy for a package I'm not actually using.

I usually recommend the opposite: only load a package if you know what it is doing and if you know you're needing it. While in the old days this actually was a resources problem it usually isn't any more today. But it helps to learn about different packages and what they're doing and it helps (a lot) in avoiding unnecessary conflicts (and they actually happen more often then one would think) and in preparing a minimal working example if one needs help.

If it's just a matter of more symbols being added since LaTeX came out, well then how does LaTeX know how to do them just from you typing a couple of words at the top of the document, without downloading anything?

The vast majority of the packages out there is not related to symbols in any way. They help in formatting maths or chemistry, in organizing and realizing layout, in preparing glossaries, bibliographies and indeces, in creating tables, in creating figures, plots, graphs and so on and so on.

In a usual TeX installation many packages are available as files on the computer and if you do \usepackage{somepackage} LaTeX looks for a file named somepackage.sty and inputs it in the document (basically). If the file is not found on the computer you will get an error message. Run

Code: Select all

\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{coffee}
\begin{document}
foo
\end{document}

and you should get the message

Code: Select all

! LaTeX Error: File `coffee.sty' not found.

One could (with a few resctrictions and some precautions) in principle copy a package code and paste it into the document preamble and get the same result as with \usepackage{<foobar>}.

Regards