Fine-tuning LaTeX documents

Proofreading is the end of the process of creating a document. This final stage includes spell checking, wordsmithing, and fine tuning the layout. LaTeX is a platform-independent system, so users doing proofreads together can easily exchange documents. The LaTeX user who installs the correct software will not have to do without standard text editing functions such as spellcheck and markups.

Checking It Off

Spellchecking while proofreading LaTeX files under Linux uses the built-in spellcheck capability, which includes programs like GNU Hunspell [1] and Aspell  [2]. These programs can be downloaded from the Internet. Ubuntu users can install GNU Aspell via:

sudo apt-get install aspell

and Hunspell via

sudo apt-get install hunspell

Both of these programs can be initiated from the command line, and dictionaries are available in many languages [3]. The program even has its own special option for LaTeX files.

With the command

aspell -t -c flatland.tex

you can proofread the LaTeX file flatland.tex . When the program starts, the terminal shows each word of the designated file that does not appear in the designated dictionary. Where possible, the program also makes a suggestion for replacing the word with a substitute (Figure 1). You can either accept or ignore the suggestion, and you can include the unrecognized word in your own user dictionary. This user dictionary is located as a hidden file in the home directory (e.g., under ~/.aspell.en.pws ).

Figure 1: GNU Aspell is easily operated in the terminal. Misspelled words can be replaced, ignored, or stored in the user dictionary.

Dictionaries in numerous languages can be found for Hunspell, and technical dictionaries are available for things like medical terminology. Additionally, the program includes its own option for LaTeX files. A spellcheck feature can combine multiple dictionaries. For example, you could combine a general use dictionary with a technical dictionary.

The command

hunspell -d en_GB,en_med -t dissertation.tex

proofreads the LaTex file dissertation.tex using a British English dictionary combined with a technical dictionary for English medical terminology. After the program starts, it will display via the terminal each word in the designated file that does not also appear in the designated dictionaries. Again, if possible, the program suggests replacements.

Suggestions can be accepted or ignored, and the unrecognized term can be stored in the user dictionary. A user dictionary is created as a hidden file in the home directory, for example, in this case, in ~/.hunspell_en_GB .

Not only can you use Hunspell via the command line, you can also integrate it into assorted programs including LibreOffice and Scribus; browsers such as Firefox, Chrome, and Opera; email programs such as Thunderbird and The Bat; text editors such as Gedit and Emacs; and various LaTeX editors such as LyX, Texmaker, and TeXstudio.

This broad scope of possibilities for integration means you can rely on a single user dictionary for a variety of tasks, including proofreading LaTeX files, LibreOffice documents, and email. As with Office, the LaTeX Editor handles an entire LaTeX file, and spellchecking is done during input. Incorrect spellings are underlined in red. A right-click on the mouse lets you select from various spelling suggestions (Figure 2).

Figure 2: Hunspell can be integrated into a LaTeX editor; in this case, it is Texmaker.

An issue that arises during the spellcheck of a LaTeX file is that commands and text are checked equally. This means commands are displayed as misspellings. Initially, therefore, you're confronted with a large number of error messages. This issue resolves itself over time as you gradually add commands to the user dictionary. Other issues include the masked and tagged word breaks, both of which are displayed as misspellings. You can get around these issues by immediately entering umlauts with the correct character encoding and waiting until the spellcheck is complete before tagging word breaks.

Modified

Besides spellchecking, the proofreading phase in document preparation also includes finalizing wording. When multiple authors contribute suggestions for modifications to wording, knowing who has changed what becomes important. Office programs have a feature that tracks changes to a document. Under LaTeX, the changes [4] package assumes this task. Listing 1 shows an example.

01 % Preamble:
02 \usepackage
03 %[final]
04 {changes}
05 \definechangesauthor[name={Daniel Tibi}, color=red]{dti}
06 \definechangesauthor[name={editor}, color=blue]{E}
07 \definechangesauthor[name={technical editing}, color=orange]{TE}
08 % body of the document:
09 % ...
10 Only a few of the offspring of our best and \deleted[id=dti]{and} most prominent families can spend the money, which for\added[id=FK]{m master} is necessary for this great and well known art.
11 % ...
12 \listofchanges

The typical procedure is for the package to be loaded in the preamble (lines 2 to 4). Next, the option inside the square brackets gets commented out via the preceding percentage sign, % . This turns on the highlight function for marking any changes. Once you have worked through all of the modifications, the percentage sign should be removed.

LaTeX will then make the colored markings of the changes disappear and generate the document with the modifications that have been inserted. Then, it lists the authors (lines 5 to 7). An abbreviation for the author should be designated inside the curly brackets of the command. The abbreviation appears with every modification made by the author.

Additionally, you can enter a complete name and define a color in the square brackets. This would then appear with the modifications to the text that have been made by each author. There are predefined colors for you to select, and you can define colors using the xcolor package [5].

Three commands are available in the main part, which can be used for highlighting passages (line 10). These commands act to delete, add, or modify. Passages to be deleted or added are found in the single curly braces of the corresponding command. Modifications are found between the first set of curly braces, and the original text is found between the second set. The author ID, which has been defined in the preamble, and any comments can be added in the square brackets.

All of the changes to the document will appear in the color that was assigned to the author in the preamble. Deleted passages are shown as struck through. Additionally, the author ID appears as a superscript with each modification; comments are displayed as footnotes. Figure 3 illustrates how this can look. Using your own command (line  12), you can have LaTeX generate a list of all changes together with a reference to the page in the document where each appears.

Figure 3: Modifications are displayed with colors in the document. You can also generate a list of all modifications.

To reject a modification, the corresponding command should be deleted. Commands with modifications that you would like to accept should be left untouched. To generate a final version of the document with all of the accepted modifications, the package option final should be added to the preamble. In case you already have a commented-out version of the final option in the file, the preceding comment character should simply be removed (line 3).