Re: Equation Editor Software - thanks
Dear all, Many thanks for the useful contributions. I will edit some into, I hope, something helpful for the editor in question. Regards, Doug --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
Re: Equation Editor Software
We might be being a little unfair to Microsoft by assuming that the oddities with equations are 'all their fault'. The following Wikipedia article gives quite a good explanation of the problem and the companies involved. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equation_Editor --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
Re: Equation Editor Software
Patrick Powers [EMAIL PROTECTED] on Friday, June 20, 2008 9:00 AM wrote: Subject: Re: Equation Editor Software We might be being a little unfair to Microsoft by assuming that the oddities with equations are 'all their fault'. The following Wikipedia article gives quite a good explanation of the problem and the companies involved. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equation_Editor --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial ...but one of the articles referenced in that Wiki entry says that scientific journals Science and Nature refuse to accept Microsoft .docx documents because of their use of the proprietary OMML instead of the industry standard MathML which defines how mathematical expressions should be tagged in XML. One potential solution might be to use Open Office in place of MS Office. I have been doing so for years, although it struggles on my very low spec PC. Open Office is free but generally reckoned to be as feature-rich as MS Office. Its equation editor can, as I understand it, output MathML, though it also creates a displayable/printable image. It is easy to use and can certainly handle all the mathematical expressions I've encountered in doing sundials, though I haven't any personal experience of sending its output to publishers. Chris Lusby Taylor 51.4N 1.3W --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
Equation editor software
Slightly off topic, but I am enquiring about suggestions for a package of modest capability. The background is that I offered to assist the editor of a related publication to sundials - Horological Journal. (The British Horological Institute has just celebrated its 150th anniversary.) The editor has a journalistic training and uses Quark publishing. Material often comes to her in Word, and it seems that equations do not transfer reliably. Suggestions will be appreciated. Regards, Doug --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
Re: Equation editor software
Dear Doug, I am so riddled with prejudices about type-setting equations, and mathematics in general, that it is hard for me to give a temperate reply to your enquiry... Material often comes ... in Word, and it seems that equations do not transfer reliably. In my view, the Microsoft Equation Editor that goes with Word is an utter abomination but I'll end the rant there before I get carried away! Again, in my view, Donald Knuth was the first person really to understand the subtleties of type-setting Mathematics and it took him about 10 years to come up with a definitive answer, which is TeX and its derivatives. In the TeXbook, Knuth goes into considerable detail (albeit in a rather disconnected way) about the way Mathematical type-setting using hand-composition evolved over the centuries and the subject has a fascinating history which goes back to the earliest days of printing. This doesn't address your friend's query and we are indeed rather off topic but I share her concern because Mathematics and Word don't mix at all well. Sundials are not merely precision astronomical instruments; they should look good too. So it is with mathematics; every expression should be type-set as elegantly as humanly possible. Best wishes Frank No Microsoft products were used in the preparation or dispatch of this message. --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
Re: Equation editor software
Word uses about the most non portable format you could ever imagine, and there are actually some reasons for that. In summary, many documents use a default font, and when sent to another computer, that computer's default fonts are often used. Tabs, and page setups affect the layout, as does the choice of printer. What is ported and what is not may depend on the version of Word. Word, along with Microsoft are truly one of the many mysteries of the universe. Hence why I use acrobat distriller or whatever for my default printer. If documents are to be transmitted, then PDF is a better choice, and PDF documents are capable of being edited, and exporting back to a word processor. All my material is stored both in Word and Acrobat forms, and for Word, I use .DOC or .RTF, I do not use the latest options available, why create even more problems. These people are using the wrong tool if portability is desired, and any workarounds will generate new problems. Good luck. Simon --- Frank King [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Dear Doug, I am so riddled with prejudices about type-setting equations, and mathematics in general, that it is hard for me to give a temperate reply to your enquiry... Material often comes ... in Word, and it seems that equations do not transfer reliably. In my view, the Microsoft Equation Editor that goes with Word is an utter abomination but I'll end the rant there before I get carried away! Again, in my view, Donald Knuth was the first person really to understand the subtleties of type-setting Mathematics and it took him about 10 years to come up with a definitive answer, which is TeX and its derivatives. In the TeXbook, Knuth goes into considerable detail (albeit in a rather disconnected way) about the way Mathematical type-setting using hand-composition evolved over the centuries and the subject has a fascinating history which goes back to the earliest days of printing. This doesn't address your friend's query and we are indeed rather off topic but I share her concern because Mathematics and Word don't mix at all well. Sundials are not merely precision astronomical instruments; they should look good too. So it is with mathematics; every expression should be type-set as elegantly as humanly possible. Best wishes Frank No Microsoft products were used in the preparation or dispatch of this message. --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
Re: Equation editor software
Douglas Bateman wrote: Slightly off topic, but I am enquiring about suggestions for a package of modest capability. The background is that I offered to assist the editor of a related publication to sundials - Horological Journal. (The British Horological Institute has just celebrated its 150th anniversary.) The editor has a journalistic training and uses Quark publishing. Material often comes to her in Word, and it seems that equations do not transfer reliably. Suggestions will be appreciated. Regards, Doug --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial I agree with Frank that most scientific journals use TeX, LaTeX and their derivatives. -- Richard Mallett Eaton Bray, Dunstable South Beds. UK --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
Re: Equation editor software
Douglas Bateman wrote: Slightly off topic, but I am enquiring about suggestions for a package of modest capability. The background is that I offered to assist the editor of a related publication to sundials - Horological Journal. (The British Horological Institute has just celebrated its 150th anniversary.) The editor has a journalistic training and uses Quark publishing. Material often comes to her in Word, and it seems that equations do not transfer reliably. Suggestions will be appreciated. Regards, Doug --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial I agree with Frank that most scientific journals use TeX, LaTeX and their derivatives. -- Richard Mallett Eaton Bray, Dunstable South Beds. UK --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
Re: Equation editor software
Doug, Another option is MathType by Design Science. It claims to be an extended version of the Microsoft Equation Editor, so it may have the same problems that your editor is already encountering. It worked for me when I last used it about five years ago. Gordon At 03:02 AM 6/19/2008, Douglas Bateman wrote: Slightly off topic, but I am enquiring about suggestions for a package of modest capability. The background is that I offered to assist the editor of a related publication to sundials - Horological Journal. (The British Horological Institute has just celebrated its 150th anniversary.) The editor has a journalistic training and uses Quark publishing. Material often comes to her in Word, and it seems that equations do not transfer reliably. Suggestions will be appreciated. Regards, Doug --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
Re: Equation editor software
On Thu, Jun 19, 2008 at 12:35:21PM +0100, Frank King wrote: Dear Doug, I am so riddled with prejudices about type-setting equations, and mathematics in general, that it is hard for me to give a temperate reply to your enquiry... Material often comes ... in Word, and it seems that equations do not transfer reliably. In my view, the Microsoft Equation Editor that goes with Word is an utter abomination but I'll end the rant there before I get carried away! Again, in my view, Donald Knuth was the first person really to understand the subtleties of type-setting Mathematics and it took him about 10 years to come up with a definitive answer, which is TeX and its derivatives. If you're on a Mac you can use LaTeXiT. It takes some of the awkwardness out if you only want to set equations. http://ktd.club.fr/programmation/latexit_en.php Karl --- https://lists.uni-koeln.de/mailman/listinfo/sundial
