1 #LyX 1.4.0cvs created this file. For more info see http://www.lyx.org/
10 \paperfontsize default
17 \paperorientation portrait
20 \paragraph_separation indent
22 \quotes_language english
26 \paperpagestyle default
27 \tracking_changes false
44 \begin_layout Standard
46 Principal maintainer of this file is
51 If you have comments or error corrections, please send them to the LyX
52 Documentation mailing list, <lyx-docs@lists.lyx.org>.
60 \begin_layout Standard
63 \begin_inset LatexCommand \tableofcontents{}
78 \begin_inset Quotes eld
81 Uncle Cosmo, why do they call this a word processor?
82 \begin_inset Quotes erd
91 \begin_inset Quotes eld
95 You've seen what food processors do to food, right?
96 \begin_inset Quotes erd
107 \begin_inset Quotes eld
111 \begin_inset Quotes erd
117 \begin_layout Section
122 \begin_layout Standard
124 LyX is a document preparation system.
125 It excels at letting you create complex technical and scientific articles
126 with mathematics, cross-references, bibliographies, indices, etc.
127 It is very good at documents of any length in which the usual processing
128 abilities are required: automatic sectioning and pagination, spellchecking,
130 It can also be used to write a letter to your mom, though granted, there
131 are probably simpler programs available for that.
132 It is definitely not the best tool for creating banners, flyers, or advertiseme
133 nts (we'll explain why later), though with some effort all these can be
135 Some examples of what it is used for: memos, letters, dissertations and
136 theses, lecture notes, seminar notebooks, conference proceedings, software
137 documentation, books (on PostgreSQL, remote sensing, cryptology, fictional
138 novels, poetry, and even a children's book or two), articles in refereed
139 scientific journals, scripts for plays and movies, business proposals \SpecialChar \ldots{}
144 \begin_layout Standard
146 LyX is a program that provides a modern approach to writing documents with
147 a computer by using a markup language paradigm, an approach that breaks
148 with the obsolete tradition of the
149 \begin_inset Quotes eld
153 \begin_inset Quotes erd
156 It is designed for authors who want professional output quickly with a
157 minimum of effort without becoming specialists in typesetting.
158 The job of typesetting is done mostly by the computer, not the author;
159 with LyX, the author can concentrate on the contents of her writing.
162 \begin_layout Standard
164 Part of the initial challenge of using LyX comes from the change in thinking
165 that you, the user, must make.
166 At one time, all we had for creating documents were typewriters, so we
167 all learned certain tricks to get around their limitations.
168 Underlining, which is little more than overstriking with the
169 \begin_inset Quotes eld
173 \begin_inset Quotes erd
176 character, became a way to emphasize text.
177 You were forced to figure out column sizes and tab stops, and set them,
178 before creating a table.
179 The same applied for letters and other right justified text.
180 Hyphenation at the end of a line required a careful eye and a lot of foresight.
183 \begin_layout Standard
185 In other words, we've all been trained to worry about the little details
186 of which character goes where.
187 Consequently, almost all word processors have this mentality.
188 They still use tab stops for adding whitespace.
189 You still need to worry about exactly where on the page something will
191 Emphasizing text means changing a font, similar to changing the typewriter
193 This is the underlying philosophy of a WYSIWYG word processor:
194 \begin_inset Quotes eld
197 What You See Is What You Get
198 \begin_inset Quotes erd
202 Unfortunately, that paradigm often results in
203 \begin_inset Quotes eld
206 What You See Is All You Get
207 \begin_inset Quotes erd
213 \begin_layout Standard
215 This is where LyX differs from an ordinary word processor.
216 You don't concern yourself with what character goes where.
221 and LyX takes care of the rest, following a set of rules called a
229 \begin_layout Standard
231 To be fair, most recent versions of the most popular office suites now have
232 some sort of style sheets which follow a similar markup method.
233 However, our experience is that they are still rarely used in practice.
238 Let's look at a little example:
241 \begin_layout Standard
243 Suppose you are writing a report.
244 To begin your report, you want a section called
245 \begin_inset Quotes eld
248 Introduction\SpecialChar \@.
250 \begin_inset Quotes erd
253 So, you go into whatever menu it is in your word processor that changes
254 font sizes and decide on a new font size.
255 Then you turn on bold face.
257 \begin_inset Quotes eld
263 \begin_inset Quotes erd
267 Of course, if you later decide that this section belongs someplace else
268 in the document, or if you insert a new section before it, you need to
269 change the numbering for this and all following sections, as well as any
270 entry in the table of contents.
274 \begin_layout Standard
276 In LyX, you go to the pull-down on the far left of the button bar and select
282 \begin_inset Quotes eld
285 Introduction\SpecialChar \@.
287 \begin_inset Quotes erd
293 \begin_layout Standard
296 If you cut and paste the section, it will automatically be renumbered ---
298 And if you enter references to that section correctly (by inserting cross-refer
299 ence tags), LyX will automatically update them all throughout the file so
300 that you never, ever type a section number.
303 \begin_layout Standard
305 Now let's look at the problem of consistency.
306 Five days later, you reopen your report and start Section\InsetSpace ~
308 However, you forget that you were using 18pt bold instead of 16pt, so you
309 type in the heading for Section\InsetSpace ~
310 4 in a different font that what you used
311 for Section\InsetSpace ~
313 That problem doesn't even exist in LyX.
314 The computer takes care of all that silly bookkeeping about which thing
315 has what size font, not you.
316 After all, that's what a computer is good at.
319 \begin_layout Standard
321 Here's another example.
322 Suppose you're making a list.
323 In other word processors, a list is just a bunch of tab stops and newlines.
324 You need to figure out where to put the label for each list item, what
325 that label should be, how many blank lines to put between each item, and
327 Under LyX, you have only two concerns: what kind of list is this, and what
328 do I want to put in it.
332 \begin_layout Standard
334 So, the basic idea behind LyX is: specify
344 \begin_inset Quotes eld
347 What You See Is What You Get,
348 \begin_inset Quotes erd
352 \begin_inset Quotes eld
355 What You See Is What You
360 \begin_inset Quotes erd
364 \begin_inset Quotes eld
368 \begin_inset Quotes erd
371 It's a powerful idea that greatly simplifies the mechanics of writing documents.
372 This is also why LyX isn't so good for creating posters and flyers---in
377 want to specify exactly where everything goes, because there are no functional
378 units like paragraphs, sections, etc.
379 This doesn't mean LyX is missing some cool function.
380 It simply means that it isn't the right tool for the job --- you don't
381 use a screwdriver to drive in nails (unless your screwdriver comes with
382 a lifetime warranty).
385 \begin_layout Section
387 Differences between LyX and Other Word
393 \begin_layout Standard
395 LyX and Other Word Processors
404 \begin_layout Standard
406 No, we're not trying to start (or win) a word processor holy war here.
407 But we do think it's important to describe LyX's features.
408 And one of LyX's main features, WYSIWYM, is a fundamentally different concept
409 than the one that most of people have about word processing.
417 \begin_layout Standard
419 Here's a list of things you won't find in LyX:
422 \begin_layout Itemize
427 \begin_layout Itemize
432 \begin_layout Itemize
434 Extra whitespace (i.e.
446 \begin_layout Standard
448 Tab stops, along with a ruler showing you the position of things on the
449 page, are useless in LyX.
450 The program worries about where things go on the page, not you.
451 Extra whitespace is similar; LyX adds them where necessary, depending on
453 Not being able to type two blank lines in a row will be annoying at first,
454 but it makes more sense once you're thinking in WYSIWYM terms.
457 \begin_layout Standard
459 Here are some things that exist in LyX, but aren't used as you might think:
462 \begin_layout Itemize
467 \begin_layout Itemize
472 \begin_layout Itemize
475 single spaced, double spaced, etc.)
478 \begin_layout Itemize
480 Whitespace, horizontal and vertical
483 \begin_layout Itemize
488 \begin_layout Itemize
490 Typefaces (bold, italic, underline, etc.)
493 \begin_layout Standard
495 Although they exist in LyX, you generally don't need them.
496 LyX will take care of these things for you, depending on what you're doing.
497 Different parts of the document are automatically set in a different typeface
499 Paragraph indenting is context dependent; different types of paragraphs
500 get indented differently.
501 Page breaks get handled automatically, as well.
502 In general, the space between lines, between words, and between paragraphs
503 is variable, set by LyX.
507 \begin_layout Standard
509 There are ways to adjust all of these (only some of which require knowledge
510 of LaTeX), either for a whole document or for a specific location in a
528 \begin_layout Standard
530 Lastly, there are a few areas where we believe LyX (and LaTeX) surpasses
531 many word processors:
534 \begin_layout Itemize
539 \begin_layout Itemize
544 \begin_layout Itemize
549 \begin_layout Itemize
554 \begin_layout Itemize
559 \begin_layout Standard
561 Granted, many modern word processors can handle mathematical symbols, tables,
562 and hyphenation, and many have moved towards style definitions and the
564 However, they've only recently been able to do so, whereas LyX is built
565 upon the LaTeX document preparation system.
566 LaTeX has been around for over 15 years, and
573 \begin_layout Section
579 LaTeX (and why do I care)?
582 \begin_layout Standard
584 LaTeX is a document preparation system designed by Leslie Lamport in 1985.
588 \begin_layout Standard
590 The source for the info in this section is
591 \begin_inset Quotes eld
599 \begin_inset Quotes erd
602 by Helmut Kopka and Patrick Daly, which has an entry in the bibliography
613 It, in turn, was built up from a typesetting language called TeX, created
614 by Donald Knuth in 1984.
616 \begin_inset Quotes eld
620 \begin_inset Quotes erd
624 \begin_inset Quotes eld
628 \begin_inset Quotes erd
631 which is how many people feel about it.
632 However, most folks don't understand just what TeX is.
633 TeX takes a sequence of typesetting commands, written in a script in an
634 ASCII file, and executes them.
635 It's a bit more complicated than a typewriter, but not nearly as involved
636 as an actual printing press; however, many of the
637 \begin_inset Quotes eld
641 \begin_inset Quotes erd
644 of the printing trade were modeled by Knuth as computer algorithms and
645 incorporated into TeX, thus its excellent printed appearance.
646 In any case, what comes directly out of TeX is the so-called
647 \begin_inset Quotes eld
651 \begin_inset Quotes erd
659 You can then feed the
663 file to anything that understands
671 to other formats like PostScript®, PDF, etc.
675 \begin_layout Standard
677 If it weren't for one other feature, all TeX would be is a typesetting engine.
678 However, TeX also allows you to define macros.
679 This is where the action begins.
682 \begin_layout Standard
684 Most people who use TeX are actually using a macro package which Knuth created
685 to hide a lot of the typesetting details.
686 This is what most people think of when they think of TeX\SpecialChar \@.
688 don't work with raw TeX, which are the bare-bones typesetting commands.
689 People creating new macro-packages do that.
690 This is where Leslie Lamport enters our story.
691 He wanted a macro package that was more user-oriented and less typesetter-orien
692 ted, a set of commands that consistently typeset things like sections or
693 tables or math formulae in a uniform, consistent fashion with as little
695 This is how LaTeX was born.
698 \begin_layout Standard
700 Now, in parallel with the development and growth of LaTeX, other folks were
701 creating their own custom macro packages for TeX, ones to make slides or
702 articles for math journals and so on.
703 Some used the raw TeX facilities to do this, others began modifying LaTeX.
704 To try and unify this mess, a team of LaTeX-nicians (including Lamport,
705 of course) began to work on LaTeX2e, the current version of LaTeX, during
707 This new version of LaTeX has commands which provide an easier-to-use interface
708 to TeX's macro-creating commands (remember TeX?), aid in the use of new
710 In fact, LaTeX is quite an extensive language in its own right! Users around
711 the world have been creating their own add-ons for LaTeX beyond the standard
715 \begin_layout Standard
717 There are two ways to extend LaTeX: classes and styles.
722 is a set of LaTeX (and TeX) macros describing a new type of document, like
723 a book, or an article.
724 There are classes for slides, for physics and math journals\SpecialChar \ldots{}
726 even have a class for their thesis format! A
730 differs from a class in that it doesn't define a new type of document,
731 but a different type of
735 that any document can use.
736 For example, LyX controls page margins and line spacing using two different
737 LaTeX style-files designed for these purposes.
738 There are style-files for a whole slew of things: printing labels or envelopes,
739 changing indentation behavior, adding new fonts, manipulating graphics,
740 designing fancy page headings, customizing bibliographies, altering the
741 location and appearance of footnotes, tables, and figures, customizing
745 \begin_layout Standard
751 \labelwidthstring 00.00.0000
753 TeX: Typesetting language with macro capability.
757 \labelwidthstring 00.00.0000
759 LaTeX: Macro package built upon TeX\SpecialChar \@.
764 \labelwidthstring 00.00.0000
766 classes: Descriptions of a type of document, using LaTeX\SpecialChar \@.
771 \labelwidthstring 00.00.0000
773 styles: Alters the default behavior of LaTeX in some way.
777 \labelwidthstring 00.00.0000
779 LyX: Visual, WYSIWYM word-processor that uses LaTeX in all its glory to
783 \begin_layout Standard
785 The idea of this section was to try and explain
789 LyX works somewhat differently from other word processors.
790 The reason is simple: LyX uses LaTeX as its printing backend.
791 Just like LaTeX, LyX focuses on the context of your writing ---
796 The computer then handles how it should look.
799 \begin_layout Standard
801 Oh --- one last thing.
802 LaTeX is pronounced like TeX is.
804 \begin_inset Quotes eld
808 \begin_inset Quotes erd
815 \begin_layout Standard
818 \begin_inset Quotes eld
822 \begin_inset Quotes erd
825 , depending on how you pronounce your
826 \begin_inset Quotes eld
830 \begin_inset Quotes erd
833 s\SpecialChar \ldots{}
840 Lamport says in his book, though, that
841 \begin_inset Quotes eld
848 -tecks is also possible
849 \begin_inset Quotes erd
854 \begin_inset Quotes eld
858 \begin_inset Quotes erd
861 on the other hand, is pronounced
862 \begin_inset Quotes eld
866 \begin_inset Quotes erd
870 \begin_inset Quotes eld
874 \begin_inset Quotes erd
878 \begin_inset Quotes eld
882 \begin_inset Quotes erd
885 depending on what country you're from \SpecialChar \ldots{}
886 but numerous holy wars and flame
887 fests have been started over this issue on the LyX mailing lists, so please
888 just pronounce it however you please.
889 Just don't pronounce it
890 \begin_inset Quotes eld
894 \begin_inset Quotes erd
903 \begin_layout Chapter
905 Navigating the Documentation
908 \begin_layout Standard
910 To make it easier to answer your questions and describe all of the features
911 of LyX, the documentation has been split up into several different files.
912 Each one has its own purpose, as described below.
913 Before you go plowing into any of those files, however, you should read
914 this chapter thoroughly first, since it contains a lot of useful information
915 and commentary that can save you some time.
918 \begin_layout Standard
920 Although LyX is now well past the
921 \begin_inset Quotes eld
925 \begin_inset Quotes erd
928 mark, some of the documentation may be incomplete or a bit out of date,
929 though we try to keep up.
930 Like the rest of LyX, the manuals are the work of a group of volunteers
932 \begin_inset Quotes eld
936 \begin_inset Quotes erd
939 , families, dishes to clean, kitty litter to dispose of, et cetera.
940 If you want to help out, be sure to read Section\InsetSpace ~
942 \begin_inset LatexCommand \ref{sec:Contrib}
946 in addition to the rest of this document.)
949 \begin_layout Standard
951 Also, please do us a favor---if anything in these manuals confuses you,
952 is unclear, or wrong, don't hesitate to let us know! You can reach the
953 current document maintainers by mailing to
955 lyx-docs@lists.lyx.org
958 If you have questions which are not obviously answered in the documentation,
959 and need help fast, there is an active users' mailing list which you can
962 lyx-users@lists.lyx.org
967 \begin_layout Section
969 The Format of the Manuals
972 \begin_layout Standard
974 Some of you may have printed out the manual(s).
975 Others may be reading it online, within LyX as a file.
976 For those reading online, there are some differences from the printed version.
977 First, the title is simply at the top of the document, not formatted on
978 a separate page as in some of the printed versions.
979 Nor are any of the footnotes or the Table of Contents visible.
980 To open a footnote, which looks like this,
984 \begin_layout Standard
989 \begin_layout Standard
991 To close me, click on the grey box on the top left of this box, the one
993 \begin_inset Quotes eld
997 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1005 click on it with the left mouse button.
1006 For the Table of Contents, either click on the grey box, or click on the
1014 menu, where the contents are displayed automatically\SpecialChar \@.
1018 \begin_layout Standard
1020 In the printed manuals, all cross-references appear as the actual numbers
1021 for a chapter, section, subsection, and so on.
1022 Online, however, all cross-references appear as a grey box like the following:
1024 \begin_inset LatexCommand \ref{sec:Contrib}
1029 (The printed manuals show a number instead.) If you click on that box with
1030 the left mouse button, a dialog box will appear containing a list of all
1031 the cross-references in the document.
1032 This introduction has only one named
1033 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1037 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1041 You can go to the section the referred to by clicking the button labeled
1043 Going back to where you came from is just as easy.
1045 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1049 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1056 will take you back to your earlier location.
1058 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1066 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1072 \begin_layout Standard
1074 Now that we've cleared up some of the differences between the printed and
1075 online versions of this file, we can start looking at the format of this
1077 You'll occasionally notice things in different fonts:
1080 \begin_layout Itemize
1086 is used for general emphasis, generic arguments, book titles, names of
1087 sections of other manuals, and notes from the authors.
1090 \begin_layout Itemize
1096 is used for program and file names, LaTeX code, and LyX code and functions.
1099 \begin_layout Itemize
1105 is used for menu, button, or dialog box names, and the names of keyboard
1109 \begin_layout Itemize
1115 is used for people's names.
1118 \begin_layout Standard
1120 For menu accelerator keys and other more obscure keybindings, you'll probably
1126 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1131 Extended Features Manual
1134 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1142 When we do need to reference keys, we'll use the following prefixing convention
1146 \begin_layout Itemize
1149 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1157 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1167 \begin_layout Itemize
1170 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1178 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1188 \begin_layout Itemize
1191 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1199 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1206 key, which on some keyboards will be the
1213 \begin_layout Itemize
1216 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1224 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1227 \SpecialChar \ldots{}
1229 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1237 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1240 are the function keys.
1243 \begin_layout Itemize
1246 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1254 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1260 \begin_layout Itemize
1263 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1271 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1275 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1283 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1287 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1295 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1299 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1307 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1313 \begin_layout Itemize
1318 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1324 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1328 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1336 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1340 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1348 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1352 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1360 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1364 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1372 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1376 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1384 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1387 : these are the 6 keys that appear above the cursor keys on many PC keyboards.
1389 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1397 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1401 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1409 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1413 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1421 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1425 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1433 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1439 \begin_layout Itemize
1449 both refer to the same key.
1450 Some keyboards label the
1455 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1459 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1463 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1467 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1470 still others have two keys.
1471 LyX treats all of them as the same key, so we'll use
1482 \begin_layout Standard
1484 You'll also see something like
1485 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1491 \begin_inset Quotes els
1497 \begin_inset Quotes ers
1501 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1505 We've listed the possible default keybindings for a function in its entry
1507 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1512 Extended Features Manual
1515 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1518 so check there, too.
1519 Note that there are two different keybinding maps in common use in the
1521 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1525 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1528 style which is the default and familiar to those coming from the PC world,
1530 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1534 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1537 style, which is common with those who
1538 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1542 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1545 on Unix systems and use the Emacs editor.
1546 Unless specifically noted, the keybindings in the documentation are from
1547 the default CUA map.
1548 If you like Emacs, you should be smart enough to read the documentation
1549 and figure out the bindings on your own.
1552 \begin_layout Section
1557 \begin_layout Standard
1559 The following list describes the contents of each of the files in the documentat
1563 \begin_layout Description
1571 \begin_layout Standard
1576 \begin_layout Description
1584 \begin_layout Standard
1586 If you are new to LyX, and have never used LaTeX before, you should start
1588 If you think LaTeX is the stuff they make condoms out of, then you definitely
1589 need to reread Chapter 1, then read the
1594 Note that after you read the
1598 , you'll probably still think LaTeX is some stretchy substance --- but you
1603 know how to use LyX.
1606 \begin_layout Standard
1612 used LaTeX before, you should still read the
1616 , starting with the section on
1617 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1620 LyX for LaTeX users.
1621 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1624 (Skimming the rest of the document wouldn't hurt, either.)
1627 \begin_layout Standard
1629 If, at any time, you find yourself feeling a bit clueless with respect to
1630 LyX, try perusing the
1634 before diving into any of the other manuals.
1635 It's a good springboard.
1638 \begin_layout Description
1647 \begin_layout Standard
1649 The primary documentation.
1654 of the basic operation and available features of LyX here.
1655 The main manual assumes that you've read the
1662 \begin_layout Description
1666 Extended\InsetSpace ~
1671 \begin_layout Standard
1678 Documents how to use raw LaTeX commands, additional layouts, and special-purpos
1679 e editing features, and includes some of the (rather bizarre, but nifty)
1680 tricks of the LaTeX masters.
1683 \begin_layout Description
1691 \begin_layout Standard
1693 A description of advanced LyX features, including how to customize the overall
1694 behavior of LyX\SpecialChar \@.
1695 This includes such things as keybindings, internationalization,
1696 and configuration files.
1697 Don't even think of going in here until you read the
1704 \begin_layout Description
1713 \begin_layout Standard
1715 LyX investigates your system upon installation.
1716 This file contains info on what LyX learned about your installation.
1717 Check it to see if you're missing something you might like to have.
1720 \begin_layout Standard
1722 These files will reference one another as necessary.
1731 information on installation and customization, but refers the reader to
1734 Customization Manual
1736 for more information.
1739 \begin_layout Standard
1741 We'll state again an important point:
1745 \begin_layout Standard
1748 \begin_inset VSpace bigskip
1754 \begin_layout Standard
1756 If you are new to LyX, read the
1765 \begin_layout Standard
1768 \begin_inset VSpace bigskip
1775 \begin_layout Standard
1777 Otherwise, you could needlessly frustrate yourself.
1778 LyX does all that you need a word processor to do, but using a different
1782 \begin_layout Chapter
1785 \begin_inset LatexCommand \label{sec:Contrib}
1789 Contributing to the LyX Project
1792 \begin_layout Section
1797 \begin_layout Standard
1799 LyX is mostly written in C++ (the LaTeX importer is written in Perl).
1800 It is a large project, and as a result it is not free from bugs, or the
1801 need for improvements in the source code.
1804 \begin_layout Subsection
1809 \begin_layout Standard
1811 While using LyX, you may find behaviour which you consider a bug.
1812 Crashes, though rare, can happen.
1813 User interface problems are considered major bugs by the LyX team: especially
1814 helpful are indications of parts of the LyX interface you find confusing,
1818 \begin_layout Standard
1820 LyX has a bug tracking system, which you can find at
1823 \begin_inset LatexCommand \htmlurl[LyX bug tracker]{http://bugzilla.lyx.org/}
1830 You should check the bug tracker before reporting any bugs, in case it
1831 has already been reported.
1832 If you have a comment on an existing bug, or wish to report a new bug,
1833 you may either use the bug tracker, or send an e-mail to the development
1836 lyx-devel@lists.lyx.org
1839 Archives of this list are linked from the main LyX website,
1842 \begin_inset LatexCommand \htmlurl[LyX website]{http://www.lyx.org/}
1851 \begin_layout Standard
1853 A good (useful) bug report will at a minimum include the version of LyX
1854 you are having the problem with.
1855 Accurate, detailed descriptions are preferred - the more time developers
1856 have to spend to pinpoint the source of a bug, the less time they have
1857 for other improvements.
1858 Mention the system and system version you are running LyX with.
1859 Give the versions of the libraries you have installed on your system, and,
1860 if relevant, the versions of external programs that LyX uses.
1861 If it's a compilation or configuration problem, include the file
1865 , and mention which compiler you are using.
1869 \begin_layout Standard
1871 If you can make LyX crash, please take the time to produce a backtrace with
1872 a non-stripped lyx executable.
1873 The one built in the source directory is per default not stripped, while
1874 the installed binary is stripped.
1875 So, run LyX from gdb by typing, for example,
1876 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1882 gdb /users/steve/lyx-1.0.x/src/lyx
1886 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1890 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1900 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1904 Make LyX crash and you'll return to gdb.
1906 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1916 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1919 to produce a backtrace and include the output in the bug report
1923 \begin_layout Standard
1925 if you want to be thorough, use the
1926 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1934 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1938 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1946 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1949 commands to print out the values of local variables at a few stack levels.
1955 If possible, then a description of a way to reproduce the bug is more important
1956 than a backtrace, because then we have the possibility to roll our own
1958 If the bug is not easily reproducible, a backtrace is essential, because
1959 then that might be all we've got.
1962 \begin_layout Subsection
1964 Contributing fixes and new features
1967 \begin_layout Standard
1969 If you have made changes to LyX's source that you think should become part
1970 of LyX, send your changes as a diff file (in unified format) to the development
1971 list referenced above, along with a change log, and a description of what
1975 \begin_layout Section
1977 Contributing to the Documentation
1980 \begin_layout Standard
1982 LyX's documentation is extensive; however LyX is under constant development,
1983 and each new release adds new features.
1984 You may find some documentation needs improvement.
1985 This section describes what to do if you find an error, or have some suggestion
1986 s for improving the documentation.
1989 \begin_layout Subsection
1991 Reporting Errors in the Manuals
1994 \begin_layout Standard
1996 If you find a problem with the documentation, send a message to the mailing
1999 lyx-docs@lists.lyx.org
2002 The documentation team will make any necessary fixes.
2005 \begin_layout Subsection
2007 Joining the Documentation Team.
2010 \begin_layout Standard
2012 The LyX Documentation Project, like anything else in the LyX project, can
2013 always use assistance! If you're interested in contributing to the Documentatio
2014 n Project, you need to do the following assignment
2021 \begin_layout Enumerate
2023 Get the latest LyX source code.
2028 \begin_layout Standard
2030 The more adventurous can grab the latest documentation anonymously from
2031 the LyX CVS repository - it is contained in the
2040 You will find a directory inside the main tree called
2045 Inside that directory is a file called
2050 Read it; it's the style sheet for the documentation.
2053 \begin_layout Enumerate
2068 \begin_layout Standard
2070 The point of this exercise is to give you ideas.
2079 is likely to be the most up-to-date of all of the documentation.
2080 You should be able to glean some insights into how we want the manuals
2081 to read and to look.
2084 \begin_layout Enumerate
2086 Contact the team at:
2090 \begin_layout Standard
2094 lyx-docs@lists.lyx.org
2097 \begin_layout Standard
2099 to discuss your intended changes, and get some feedback on them.
2102 \begin_layout Standard
2104 The changes you wish to make may range from improving clarity of the text,
2105 to doing major re-structuring of the documentation.
2106 Any and all improvements are gladly received.