LaTeX service
This is a very simple service for GNUstep, which returns a LaTeX rendering of a selected text as a TIFF image. For example, in Ink.app, just write something like :
This is \LaTeX
Select it, click on the "services" menu item, select "Return the LaTeX rendering". The selected text should be replaced by an image rendered via LaTeX !
site : http://www.roard.com/latexservice screenshot : http://www.roard.com/latexservice/images/latexservice1.png
DEPENDANCES
This service depends of course on a working LaTeX installation, but also on the presence of dvipng, a small tool able to very quickly renders a dvi file as png. It also uses "convert" (ImageMagick) to convert the png file as Tiff (it's a bug in GNUstep's NSImage in fact, we shouldn't need imagemagick... but as a first release, in order to have something workable, it was easier than debugging NSImage...)
dvipng site : http://www.gnu.org/directory/All_Packages_in_Directory/dvipng.html
INSTALL
You need to install GNUstep before (http://www.gnustep.org)
then simply type :
make
make install (as root)
TODO
I'm not sure I'll improve much this small service, at least for some weeks... so, feel free to hack on it ! You could also consider EquationService, a similar program and source of inspiration for this one -- it runs on MacOS X, but it's GPL, and shouldn't be too complex to port. The main reason I coded this service was simply to practice a bit service programming under GNUstep ! :-)
EquationService : http://www.esm.psu.edu/mac-tex/EquationService/
Else, what will be good to add for example :
- a small UI to test LaTeX code, choose the resolution of the rendering, etc
- add configuration files (location of the different programs, use of a template
for the LaTeX code, etc.)
- use of EPS instead of TIFF ! (but hey, the problem isn't here, it's a GNUstep
problem...)
CONTACT
For any comments, remarks, etc., please send me a mail at nicolas@roard.com