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
25 \paperpagestyle default
26 \tracking_changes false
41 \begin_layout Standard
42 Principal maintainer of this file is
47 If you have comments or error corrections, please send them to the LyX
48 Documentation mailing list, <lyx-docs@lists.lyx.org>.
56 \begin_layout Standard
57 \begin_inset LatexCommand \tableofcontents{}
69 \begin_inset Quotes eld
72 Uncle Cosmo, why do they call this a word processor?
73 \begin_inset Quotes erd
80 \begin_inset Quotes eld
84 You've seen what food processors do to food, right?
85 \begin_inset Quotes erd
95 \begin_inset Quotes eld
99 \begin_inset Quotes erd
105 \begin_layout Section
109 \begin_layout Standard
110 LyX is a document preparation system.
111 It excels at letting you create complex technical and scientific articles
112 with mathematics, cross-references, bibliographies, indices, etc.
113 It is very good at documents of any length in which the usual processing
114 abilities are required: automatic sectioning and pagination, spellchecking,
116 It can also be used to write a letter to your mom, though granted, there
117 are probably simpler programs available for that.
118 It is definitely not the best tool for creating banners, flyers, or advertiseme
119 nts (we'll explain why later), though with some effort all these can be
121 Some examples of what it is used for: memos, letters, dissertations and
122 theses, lecture notes, seminar notebooks, conference proceedings, software
123 documentation, books (on PostgreSQL, remote sensing, cryptology, fictional
124 novels, poetry, and even a children's book or two), articles in refereed
125 scientific journals, scripts for plays and movies, business proposals \SpecialChar \ldots{}
130 \begin_layout Standard
131 LyX is a program that provides a modern approach to writing documents with
132 a computer by using a markup language paradigm, an approach that breaks
133 with the obsolete tradition of the
134 \begin_inset Quotes eld
138 \begin_inset Quotes erd
141 It is designed for authors who want professional output quickly with a
142 minimum of effort without becoming specialists in typesetting.
143 The job of typesetting is done mostly by the computer, not the author;
144 with LyX, the author can concentrate on the contents of her writing.
147 \begin_layout Standard
148 Part of the initial challenge of using LyX comes from the change in thinking
149 that you, the user, must make.
150 At one time, all we had for creating documents were typewriters, so we
151 all learned certain tricks to get around their limitations.
152 Underlining, which is little more than overstriking with the
153 \begin_inset Quotes eld
157 \begin_inset Quotes erd
160 character, became a way to emphasize text.
161 You were forced to figure out column sizes and tab stops, and set them,
162 before creating a table.
163 The same applied for letters and other right justified text.
164 Hyphenation at the end of a line required a careful eye and a lot of foresight.
167 \begin_layout Standard
168 In other words, we've all been trained to worry about the little details
169 of which character goes where.
170 Consequently, almost all word processors have this mentality.
171 They still use tab stops for adding whitespace.
172 You still need to worry about exactly where on the page something will
174 Emphasizing text means changing a font, similar to changing the typewriter
176 This is the underlying philosophy of a WYSIWYG word processor:
177 \begin_inset Quotes eld
180 What You See Is What You Get
181 \begin_inset Quotes erd
185 Unfortunately, that paradigm often results in
186 \begin_inset Quotes eld
189 What You See Is All You Get
190 \begin_inset Quotes erd
196 \begin_layout Standard
197 This is where LyX differs from an ordinary word processor.
198 You don't concern yourself with what character goes where.
203 and LyX takes care of the rest, following a set of rules called a
211 \begin_layout Standard
212 To be fair, most recent versions of the most popular office suites now have
213 some sort of style sheets which follow a similar markup method.
214 However, our experience is that they are still rarely used in practice.
219 Let's look at a little example:
222 \begin_layout Standard
223 Suppose you are writing a report.
224 To begin your report, you want a section called
225 \begin_inset Quotes eld
228 Introduction\SpecialChar \@.
230 \begin_inset Quotes erd
233 So, you go into whatever menu it is in your word processor that changes
234 font sizes and decide on a new font size.
235 Then you turn on bold face.
237 \begin_inset Quotes eld
243 \begin_inset Quotes erd
247 Of course, if you later decide that this section belongs someplace else
248 in the document, or if you insert a new section before it, you need to
249 change the numbering for this and all following sections, as well as any
250 entry in the table of contents.
254 \begin_layout Standard
255 In LyX, you go to the pull-down on the far left of the button bar and select
261 \begin_inset Quotes eld
264 Introduction\SpecialChar \@.
266 \begin_inset Quotes erd
272 \begin_layout Standard
274 If you cut and paste the section, it will automatically be renumbered ---
276 And if you enter references to that section correctly (by inserting cross-refer
277 ence tags), LyX will automatically update them all throughout the file so
278 that you never, ever type a section number.
281 \begin_layout Standard
282 Now let's look at the problem of consistency.
283 Five days later, you reopen your report and start Section\InsetSpace ~
285 However, you forget that you were using 18pt bold instead of 16pt, so you
286 type in the heading for Section\InsetSpace ~
287 4 in a different font that what you used
288 for Section\InsetSpace ~
290 That problem doesn't even exist in LyX.
291 The computer takes care of all that silly bookkeeping about which thing
292 has what size font, not you.
293 After all, that's what a computer is good at.
296 \begin_layout Standard
297 Here's another example.
298 Suppose you're making a list.
299 In other word processors, a list is just a bunch of tab stops and newlines.
300 You need to figure out where to put the label for each list item, what
301 that label should be, how many blank lines to put between each item, and
303 Under LyX, you have only two concerns: what kind of list is this, and what
304 do I want to put in it.
308 \begin_layout Standard
309 So, the basic idea behind LyX is: specify
319 \begin_inset Quotes eld
322 What You See Is What You Get,
323 \begin_inset Quotes erd
327 \begin_inset Quotes eld
330 What You See Is What You
335 \begin_inset Quotes erd
339 \begin_inset Quotes eld
343 \begin_inset Quotes erd
346 It's a powerful idea that greatly simplifies the mechanics of writing documents.
347 This is also why LyX isn't so good for creating posters and flyers---in
352 want to specify exactly where everything goes, because there are no functional
353 units like paragraphs, sections, etc.
354 This doesn't mean LyX is missing some cool function.
355 It simply means that it isn't the right tool for the job --- you don't
356 use a screwdriver to drive in nails (unless your screwdriver comes with
357 a lifetime warranty).
360 \begin_layout Section
361 Differences between LyX and Other Word
367 \begin_layout Standard
368 LyX and Other Word Processors
377 \begin_layout Standard
378 No, we're not trying to start (or win) a word processor holy war here.
379 But we do think it's important to describe LyX's features.
380 And one of LyX's main features, WYSIWYM, is a fundamentally different concept
381 than the one that most of people have about word processing.
389 \begin_layout Standard
390 Here's a list of things you won't find in LyX:
393 \begin_layout Itemize
397 \begin_layout Itemize
401 \begin_layout Itemize
402 Extra whitespace (i.e.
414 \begin_layout Standard
415 Tab stops, along with a ruler showing you the position of things on the
416 page, are useless in LyX.
417 The program worries about where things go on the page, not you.
418 Extra whitespace is similar; LyX adds them where necessary, depending on
420 Not being able to type two blank lines in a row will be annoying at first,
421 but it makes more sense once you're thinking in WYSIWYM terms.
424 \begin_layout Standard
425 Here are some things that exist in LyX, but aren't used as you might think:
428 \begin_layout Itemize
432 \begin_layout Itemize
436 \begin_layout Itemize
438 single spaced, double spaced, etc.)
441 \begin_layout Itemize
442 Whitespace, horizontal and vertical
445 \begin_layout Itemize
449 \begin_layout Itemize
450 Typefaces (bold, italic, underline, etc.)
453 \begin_layout Standard
454 Although they exist in LyX, you generally don't need them.
455 LyX will take care of these things for you, depending on what you're doing.
456 Different parts of the document are automatically set in a different typeface
458 Paragraph indenting is context dependent; different types of paragraphs
459 get indented differently.
460 Page breaks get handled automatically, as well.
461 In general, the space between lines, between words, and between paragraphs
462 is variable, set by LyX.
466 \begin_layout Standard
467 There are ways to adjust all of these (only some of which require knowledge
468 of LaTeX), either for a whole document or for a specific location in a
486 \begin_layout Standard
487 Lastly, there are a few areas where we believe LyX (and LaTeX) surpasses
488 many word processors:
491 \begin_layout Itemize
495 \begin_layout Itemize
499 \begin_layout Itemize
503 \begin_layout Itemize
507 \begin_layout Itemize
511 \begin_layout Standard
512 Granted, many modern word processors can handle mathematical symbols, tables,
513 and hyphenation, and many have moved towards style definitions and the
515 However, they've only recently been able to do so, whereas LyX is built
516 upon the LaTeX document preparation system.
517 LaTeX has been around for decades, and
524 \begin_layout Section
529 LaTeX (and why do I care)?
532 \begin_layout Standard
533 LaTeX is a document preparation system designed by Leslie Lamport in 1985.
537 \begin_layout Standard
538 The source for the info in this section is
539 \begin_inset Quotes eld
547 \begin_inset Quotes erd
550 by Helmut Kopka and Patrick Daly, which has an entry in the bibliography
561 It, in turn, was built up from a typesetting language called TeX, created
562 by Donald Knuth in 1984.
564 \begin_inset Quotes eld
568 \begin_inset Quotes erd
572 \begin_inset Quotes eld
576 \begin_inset Quotes erd
579 which is how many people feel about it.
580 However, most folks don't understand just what TeX is.
581 TeX takes a sequence of typesetting commands, written in a script in an
582 ASCII file, and executes them.
583 It's a bit more complicated than a typewriter, but not nearly as involved
584 as an actual printing press; however, many of the
585 \begin_inset Quotes eld
589 \begin_inset Quotes erd
592 of the printing trade were modeled by Knuth as computer algorithms and
593 incorporated into TeX, thus its excellent printed appearance.
594 In any case, what comes directly out of TeX is the so-called
595 \begin_inset Quotes eld
599 \begin_inset Quotes erd
607 You can then feed the
611 file to anything that understands
619 to other formats like PostScript®, PDF, etc.
623 \begin_layout Standard
624 If it weren't for one other feature, all TeX would be is a typesetting engine.
625 However, TeX also allows you to define macros.
626 This is where the action begins.
629 \begin_layout Standard
630 Most people who use TeX are actually using a macro package which Knuth created
631 to hide a lot of the typesetting details.
632 This is what most people think of when they think of TeX\SpecialChar \@.
634 don't work with raw TeX, which are the bare-bones typesetting commands.
635 People creating new macro-packages do that.
636 This is where Leslie Lamport enters our story.
637 He wanted a macro package that was more user-oriented and less typesetter-orien
638 ted, a set of commands that consistently typeset things like sections or
639 tables or math formulae in a uniform, consistent fashion with as little
641 This is how LaTeX was born.
644 \begin_layout Standard
645 Now, in parallel with the development and growth of LaTeX, other folks were
646 creating their own custom macro packages for TeX, ones to make slides or
647 articles for math journals and so on.
648 Some used the raw TeX facilities to do this, others began modifying LaTeX.
649 To try and unify this mess, a team of LaTeX-nicians (including Lamport,
650 of course) began to work on LaTeX2e, the current version of LaTeX, during
652 This new version of LaTeX has commands which provide an easier-to-use interface
653 to TeX's macro-creating commands (remember TeX?), aid in the use of new
655 In fact, LaTeX is quite an extensive language in its own right! Users around
656 the world have been creating their own add-ons for LaTeX beyond the standard
660 \begin_layout Standard
661 There are two ways to extend LaTeX: classes and styles.
666 is a set of LaTeX (and TeX) macros describing a new type of document, like
667 a book, or an article.
668 There are classes for slides, for physics and math journals\SpecialChar \ldots{}
670 even have a class for their thesis format! A
674 differs from a class in that it doesn't define a new type of document,
675 but a different type of
679 that any document can use.
680 For example, LyX controls page margins and line spacing using two different
681 LaTeX style-files designed for these purposes.
682 There are style-files for a whole slew of things: printing labels or envelopes,
683 changing indentation behavior, adding new fonts, manipulating graphics,
684 designing fancy page headings, customizing bibliographies, altering the
685 location and appearance of footnotes, tables, and figures, customizing
689 \begin_layout Standard
694 \labelwidthstring 00.00.0000
695 TeX: Typesetting language with macro capability.
699 \labelwidthstring 00.00.0000
700 LaTeX: Macro package built upon TeX\SpecialChar \@.
705 \labelwidthstring 00.00.0000
706 classes: Descriptions of a type of document, using LaTeX\SpecialChar \@.
711 \labelwidthstring 00.00.0000
712 styles: Alters the default behavior of LaTeX in some way.
716 \labelwidthstring 00.00.0000
717 LyX: Visual, WYSIWYM word-processor that uses LaTeX in all its glory to
721 \begin_layout Standard
722 The idea of this section was to try and explain
726 LyX works somewhat differently from other word processors.
727 The reason is simple: LyX uses LaTeX as its printing backend.
728 Just like LaTeX, LyX focuses on the context of your writing ---
733 The computer then handles how it should look.
736 \begin_layout Standard
737 Oh --- one last thing.
738 LaTeX is pronounced like TeX is.
740 \begin_inset Quotes eld
744 \begin_inset Quotes erd
751 \begin_layout Standard
753 \begin_inset Quotes eld
757 \begin_inset Quotes erd
760 , depending on how you pronounce your
761 \begin_inset Quotes eld
765 \begin_inset Quotes erd
768 s\SpecialChar \ldots{}
775 Lamport says in his book, though, that
776 \begin_inset Quotes eld
783 -tecks is also possible
784 \begin_inset Quotes erd
789 \begin_inset Quotes eld
793 \begin_inset Quotes erd
796 on the other hand, is pronounced
797 \begin_inset Quotes eld
801 \begin_inset Quotes erd
805 \begin_inset Quotes eld
809 \begin_inset Quotes erd
813 \begin_inset Quotes eld
817 \begin_inset Quotes erd
820 depending on what country you're from \SpecialChar \ldots{}
821 but numerous holy wars and flame
822 fests have been started over this issue on the LyX mailing lists, so please
823 just pronounce it however you please.
824 Just don't pronounce it
825 \begin_inset Quotes eld
829 \begin_inset Quotes erd
838 \begin_layout Chapter
839 Navigating the Documentation
842 \begin_layout Standard
843 To make it easier to answer your questions and describe all of the features
844 of LyX, the documentation has been split up into several different files.
845 Each one has its own purpose, as described below.
846 Before you go plowing into any of those files, however, you should read
847 this chapter thoroughly first, since it contains a lot of useful information
848 and commentary that can save you some time.
851 \begin_layout Standard
852 Although LyX is now well past the
853 \begin_inset Quotes eld
857 \begin_inset Quotes erd
860 mark, some of the documentation may be incomplete or a bit out of date,
861 though we try to keep up.
862 Like the rest of LyX, the manuals are the work of a group of volunteers
864 \begin_inset Quotes eld
868 \begin_inset Quotes erd
871 , families, dishes to clean, kitty litter to dispose of, et cetera.
872 If you want to help out, be sure to read Section\InsetSpace ~
874 \begin_inset LatexCommand \ref{sec:Contrib}
878 in addition to the rest of this document.)
881 \begin_layout Standard
882 Also, please do us a favor---if anything in these manuals confuses you,
883 is unclear, or wrong, don't hesitate to let us know! You can reach the
884 current document maintainers by mailing to
886 lyx-docs@lists.lyx.org
889 If you have questions which are not obviously answered in the documentation,
890 and need help fast, there is an active users' mailing list which you can
893 lyx-users@lists.lyx.org
898 \begin_layout Section
899 The Format of the Manuals
902 \begin_layout Standard
903 Some of you may have printed out the manual(s).
904 Others may be reading it online, within LyX as a file.
905 For those reading online, there are some differences from the printed version.
906 First, the title is simply at the top of the document, not formatted on
907 a separate page as in some of the printed versions.
908 Nor are any of the footnotes or the Table of Contents visible.
909 To open a footnote, which looks like this,
913 \begin_layout Standard
917 \begin_layout Standard
918 To close me, click on the grey box on the top left of this box, the one
920 \begin_inset Quotes eld
924 \begin_inset Quotes erd
932 click on it with the left mouse button.
933 For the Table of Contents, either click on the grey box, or click on the
941 menu, where the contents are displayed automatically\SpecialChar \@.
945 \begin_layout Standard
946 In the printed manuals, all cross-references appear as the actual numbers
947 for a chapter, section, subsection, and so on.
948 Online, however, all cross-references appear as a grey box like the following:
950 \begin_inset LatexCommand \ref{sec:Contrib}
955 (The printed manuals show a number instead.) If you click on that box with
956 the left mouse button, a dialog box will appear containing a list of all
957 the cross-references in the document.
958 This introduction has only one named
959 \begin_inset Quotes eld
963 \begin_inset Quotes erd
967 You can go to the section the referred to by clicking the button labeled
969 Going back to where you came from is just as easy.
971 \begin_inset Quotes eld
975 \begin_inset Quotes erd
982 will take you back to your earlier location.
984 \begin_inset Quotes eld
992 \begin_inset Quotes erd
998 \begin_layout Standard
999 Now that we've cleared up some of the differences between the printed and
1000 online versions of this file, we can start looking at the format of this
1002 You'll occasionally notice things in different fonts:
1005 \begin_layout Itemize
1010 is used for general emphasis, generic arguments, book titles, names of
1011 sections of other manuals, and notes from the authors.
1014 \begin_layout Itemize
1019 is used for program and file names, LaTeX code, and LyX code and functions.
1022 \begin_layout Itemize
1027 is used for menu, button, or dialog box names, and the names of keyboard
1031 \begin_layout Itemize
1036 is used for people's names.
1039 \begin_layout Standard
1040 For menu accelerator keys and other more obscure keybindings, you'll probably
1046 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1051 Extended Features Manual
1054 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1062 When we do need to reference keys, we'll use the following prefixing convention
1066 \begin_layout Itemize
1067 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1075 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1085 \begin_layout Itemize
1086 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1094 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1104 \begin_layout Itemize
1105 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1113 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1120 key, which on some keyboards will be the
1127 \begin_layout Itemize
1128 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1136 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1139 \SpecialChar \ldots{}
1141 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1149 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1152 are the function keys.
1155 \begin_layout Itemize
1156 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1164 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1170 \begin_layout Itemize
1171 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1179 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1183 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1191 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1195 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1203 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1207 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1215 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1221 \begin_layout Itemize
1224 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1230 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1234 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1242 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1246 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1254 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1258 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1266 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1270 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1278 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1282 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1290 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1293 : these are the 6 keys that appear above the cursor keys on many PC keyboards.
1295 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1303 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1307 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1315 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1319 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1327 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1331 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1339 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1345 \begin_layout Itemize
1354 both refer to the same key.
1355 Some keyboards label the
1360 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1364 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1368 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1372 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1375 still others have two keys.
1376 LyX treats all of them as the same key, so we'll use
1387 \begin_layout Standard
1388 You'll also see something like
1389 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1395 \begin_inset Quotes els
1401 \begin_inset Quotes ers
1405 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1409 We've listed the possible default keybindings for a function in its entry
1411 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1416 Extended Features Manual
1419 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1422 so check there, too.
1423 Note that there are two different keybinding maps in common use in the
1425 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1429 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1432 style which is the default and familiar to those coming from the PC world,
1434 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1438 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1441 style, which is common with those who
1442 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1446 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1449 on Unix systems and use the Emacs editor.
1450 Unless specifically noted, the keybindings in the documentation are from
1451 the default CUA map.
1452 If you like Emacs, you should be smart enough to read the documentation
1453 and figure out the bindings on your own.
1456 \begin_layout Section
1460 \begin_layout Standard
1461 The following list describes the contents of each of the files in the documentat
1465 \begin_layout Description
1472 \begin_layout Standard
1477 \begin_layout Description
1484 \begin_layout Standard
1485 If you are new to LyX, and have never used LaTeX before, you should start
1487 If you think LaTeX is the stuff they make condoms out of, then you definitely
1488 need to reread Chapter 1, then read the
1493 Note that after you read the
1497 , you'll probably still think LaTeX is some stretchy substance --- but you
1502 know how to use LyX.
1505 \begin_layout Standard
1510 used LaTeX before, you should still read the
1514 , starting with the section on
1515 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1518 LyX for LaTeX users.
1519 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1522 (Skimming the rest of the document wouldn't hurt, either.)
1525 \begin_layout Standard
1526 If, at any time, you find yourself feeling a bit clueless with respect to
1527 LyX, try perusing the
1531 before diving into any of the other manuals.
1532 It's a good springboard.
1536 \begin_layout Description
1544 \begin_layout Standard
1545 The primary documentation.
1550 of the basic operation and available features of LyX here.
1551 The main manual assumes that you've read the
1559 \begin_layout Description
1562 Extended\InsetSpace ~
1567 \begin_layout Standard
1573 Documents how to use raw LaTeX commands, additional layouts, and special-purpos
1574 e editing features, and includes some of the (rather bizarre, but nifty)
1575 tricks of the LaTeX masters.
1579 \begin_layout Description
1586 \begin_layout Standard
1587 A description of advanced LyX features, including how to customize the overall
1588 behavior of LyX\SpecialChar \@.
1589 This includes such things as keybindings, internationalization,
1590 and configuration files.
1591 Don't even think of going in here until you read the
1599 \begin_layout Description
1607 \begin_layout Standard
1608 LyX investigates your system upon installation.
1609 This file contains info on what LyX learned about your installation.
1610 Check it to see if you're missing something you might like to have.
1614 \begin_layout Standard
1615 These files will reference one another as necessary.
1624 information on installation and customization, but refers the reader to
1627 Customization Manual
1629 for more information.
1632 \begin_layout Standard
1633 We'll state again an important point:
1636 \begin_layout Standard
1637 \begin_inset VSpace bigskip
1643 \begin_layout Standard
1645 If you are new to LyX, read the
1654 \begin_layout Standard
1655 \begin_inset VSpace bigskip
1661 \begin_layout Standard
1662 Otherwise, you could needlessly frustrate yourself.
1663 LyX does all that you need a word processor to do, but using a different
1667 \begin_layout Chapter
1668 \begin_inset LatexCommand \label{sec:Contrib}
1672 Contributing to the LyX Project
1675 \begin_layout Section
1679 \begin_layout Standard
1680 LyX is mostly written in C++.
1681 It is a large project, and as a result it is not free from bugs, or the
1682 need for improvements in the source code.
1685 \begin_layout Subsection
1689 \begin_layout Standard
1690 While using LyX, you may find behaviour which you consider a bug.
1691 Crashes, though rare, can happen.
1692 User interface problems are considered major bugs by the LyX team: especially
1693 helpful are indications of parts of the LyX interface you find confusing,
1697 \begin_layout Standard
1698 LyX has a bug tracking system, which you can find at
1701 \begin_inset LatexCommand \htmlurl[LyX bug tracker]{http://bugzilla.lyx.org/}
1708 You should check the bug tracker before reporting any bugs, in case it
1709 has already been reported.
1710 If you have a comment on an existing bug, or wish to report a new bug,
1711 you may either use the bug tracker, or send an e-mail to the development
1714 lyx-devel@lists.lyx.org
1717 Archives of this list are linked from the main LyX website,
1720 \begin_inset LatexCommand \htmlurl[LyX website]{http://www.lyx.org/}
1729 \begin_layout Standard
1730 A good (useful) bug report will at a minimum include the version of LyX
1731 you are having the problem with.
1732 Accurate, detailed descriptions are preferred - the more time developers
1733 have to spend to pinpoint the source of a bug, the less time they have
1734 for other improvements.
1735 Mention the system and system version you are running LyX with.
1736 Give the versions of the libraries you have installed on your system, and,
1737 if relevant, the versions of external programs that LyX uses.
1738 If it's a compilation or configuration problem, include the file
1742 , and mention which compiler you are using.
1746 \begin_layout Standard
1747 If you can make LyX crash, please take the time to produce a backtrace with
1748 a non-stripped lyx executable.
1749 The one built in the source directory is per default not stripped, while
1750 the installed binary is stripped.
1751 So, run LyX from gdb by typing, for example,
1752 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1758 gdb /users/steve/lyx-1.0.x/src/lyx
1762 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1766 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1776 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1780 Make LyX crash and you'll return to gdb.
1782 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1792 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1795 to produce a backtrace and include the output in the bug report
1799 \begin_layout Standard
1800 if you want to be thorough, use the
1801 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1809 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1813 \begin_inset Quotes eld
1821 \begin_inset Quotes erd
1824 commands to print out the values of local variables at a few stack levels.
1830 If possible, then a description of a way to reproduce the bug is more important
1831 than a backtrace, because then we have the possibility to roll our own
1833 If the bug is not easily reproducible, a backtrace is essential, because
1834 then that might be all we've got.
1837 \begin_layout Subsection
1838 Contributing fixes and new features
1841 \begin_layout Standard
1842 If you have made changes to LyX's source that you think should become part
1843 of LyX, send your changes as a diff file (in unified format) to the development
1844 list referenced above, along with a change log, and a description of what
1848 \begin_layout Section
1849 Contributing to the Documentation
1852 \begin_layout Standard
1853 LyX's documentation is extensive; however LyX is under constant development,
1854 and each new release adds new features.
1855 You may find some documentation needs improvement.
1856 This section describes what to do if you find an error, or have some suggestion
1857 s for improving the documentation.
1860 \begin_layout Subsection
1861 Reporting Errors in the Manuals
1864 \begin_layout Standard
1865 If you find a problem with the documentation, send a message to the mailing
1868 lyx-docs@lists.lyx.org
1871 The documentation team will make any necessary fixes.
1874 \begin_layout Subsection
1875 Joining the Documentation Team.
1878 \begin_layout Standard
1879 The LyX Documentation Project, like anything else in the LyX project, can
1880 always use assistance! If you're interested in contributing to the Documentatio
1881 n Project, you need to do the following assignment
1888 \begin_layout Enumerate
1889 Get the latest LyX source code.
1894 \begin_layout Standard
1895 The more adventurous can grab the latest documentation anonymously from
1896 the LyX CVS repository - it is contained in the
1905 You will find a directory inside the main tree called
1910 Inside that directory is a file called
1915 Read it; it's the style sheet for the documentation.
1918 \begin_layout Enumerate
1932 \begin_layout Standard
1933 The point of this exercise is to give you ideas.
1942 is likely to be the most up-to-date of all of the documentation.
1943 You should be able to glean some insights into how we want the manuals
1944 to read and to look.
1948 \begin_layout Enumerate
1949 Contact the team at:
1953 \begin_layout Standard
1956 lyx-docs@lists.lyx.org
1959 \begin_layout Standard
1960 to discuss your intended changes, and get some feedback on them.
1964 \begin_layout Standard
1965 The changes you wish to make may range from improving clarity of the text,
1966 to doing major re-structuring of the documentation.
1967 Any and all improvements are gladly received.