13. For the experienced LaTeX user (++)

13.1 Some words about compatibility

If you are familiar with TeX/LaTeX, you certainly noticed that I did not always tell the total truth in the preceding sections. You know that

• "groups" do not necessarily have to start with "{" and end with "}",
• "\em" does not always switch to italic face,
• the blank after an Informator command can be deleted, e.g. if another command follows immediately.

But sometimes, a little inaccuracy saves tons of explanations ;-).

As mentioned in the introduction to ChessTask, it is a frontend for LaTeX. Everything you enter in one of the text fields is directly passed to the generated LaTeX file without any changes! So if you want, you can use all the commands that TeX/LaTeX offers, including mathematical formulas, tables, graphics a.s.o.

Unfortunately, these constructs will not be visible in the HTML output. ChessTask is not LaTeX2HTML and it will never be! Thus, if you intend to produce LaTeX and HTML output from a single ChessTask file, you should only use the commands described in this manual.

13.2 The \latexhtml{}{} command

Another option is the command `\latexhtml{}{}'. It can be entered in any of the text fields and takes two arguments. The first argument---within the leading pair of braces---is directly passed to the LaTeX output only, the second argument to the HTML output likewise.

After substituting the `\latexhtml{}{}' command, the HTML text is parsed in the normal way, i.e. the used LaTeX commands are replaced by their HTML equivalents as far as ChessTask knows them. If you export to LaTeX, the rest of the text is left untouched and written to the output immediately.

So if you write

in\latexhtml{describabl}{dependenc}e

you get `indescribable' in the LaTeX output and `independence' in the exported HTML file.

Since ChessTask looks for the "matching" brace while scanning the first or second argument of `\latexhtml{}{}' you can also use braces within them, e.g.

\latexhtml{\begin{itemize}
\item one
\item two
\end{itemize}}{
<UL>
<LI> one
<LI> two
</UL>}

Please, regard the following rules:

• The string `\latexhtml{' may not be separated! It has to be written as one word in a line.
• The "ending brace" of the first and the "starting brace" of the second argument may not be separated! Do not split the string `}{' by inserting a space or a newline between the braces.
• Both arguments, i.e. brace pairs, have to be provided, even if they are empty!

13.3 Special German characters and inter-word spaces

However, if you only want to enter special German characters like "ä" you do not have to use complicated constructions. ChessTask---if switched to "German"---uses the package

\usepackage[latin1]{inputenc}

in the exported LaTeX file, such that the user can enter these characters (äöüÄÖÜß) directly in the text fields.

Additionally, the LaTeX inter-word space commands

\-,\ ,~,\/,\_,\@,\,

are recognized and automatically replaced by an appropriate equivalent during the HTML output.

13.4 Nested text environments

Back in version 1.3 of ChessTask it was not possible to "nest" text environments like in:

From normal {\em to italic, {\bf to bold text}}.

The LaTeX output would have been correct, of course, but in HTML the words `to bold text' would still have been printed in "italic".

Now, ChessTask can handle arbitrarily nested text environments and always delivers the correct HTML output. ChessTask even recognizes the text environments `{\it }' and `{\rm }', although they are not accessible via a "text command" button like the others.

So you can write:

The generation {\it of random {\it numbers is\ {\bf too important 
{\em to be}\/} {\em left} to chance}}.

and get

The generation of random numbers is too important to be left to chance.

in HTML although you will never need this, probably.