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I have a couple 'packages' (more appropriately called styles) that I'd like to painlessly distribute to my classmates. The most straightforward way to do this is via CTAN, but I'm not sure if it is appropriate to upload the style since it is only applicable to a very small group of people, and possibly only for a few years.

Has this sort of thing been done before? If I put these styles on CTAN, would angry TeXers show up at my door bearing pitchforks full of burning hay, chanting curses upon my family and descendants, for cluttering their filesystem with useless-to-them styles?

Sean Allred
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    sounds more appropriate for something like github – cmhughes Feb 19 '14 at 17:26
  • @cmhughes Already done. Unfortunately, my users are hardly computer-savvy; see http://tex.stackexchange.com/q/161312/17423. – Sean Allred Feb 19 '14 at 17:31
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    I'm sharpening my pitchfork as we speak :) More seriously, my answer would be: yes. Packages on CTAN can be very domain-specific but there shouldn't be any restrictions as to who can/should use them. That said, only someone from CTAN could offer a more definitive answer. – jub0bs Feb 19 '14 at 17:47
  • @SeanAllred I know the feeling :). You can increase the chance of people using things like github by creating screenshot-based instructions; something like this, for example – cmhughes Feb 19 '14 at 18:45
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    I've been pondering this; if you're users are not computer savvy, what will be the advantage of posting the files on ctan? – cmhughes Feb 19 '14 at 21:44
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    @cmhughes Then they can open up a GUI program, search for, say, Sean's package, and click 'Install'. (When I say not computer-savvy, I mean, "So open up the terminal." "The what?") – Sean Allred Feb 20 '14 at 03:29
  • What's the advantage of ctan over, say, dropbox? There are some very specific packages on ctan but I'm just wondering what the advantage is. (And won't OS X users end up in Terminal anyway?) – cfr Feb 20 '14 at 03:40
  • @cfr Right now, one of the packages I'm sticking into TEXMF home is PGF 3.0 (I've only been able to successfully get the package onto one other computer (via makefile), and I told the guy that the PGF thing was pro tempore and to remove it once PGF 3 is on CTAN. He's savvy-ish.) And nope, TeX Live Utility is something of a tlmgr front-end. Anyway, PGF can't be done via dropbox, and many people actually do take my advice of sticking each work in a separate folder, so this wouldn't be very practical under such a model. – Sean Allred Feb 20 '14 at 04:02
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    Yes but tlmgr will only install stuff in TeX Live. You can't install arbitrary CTAN packages that way. And CTAN is not going to have PGF 3 until it has PGF 3, if you see what I mean. The bit about the separate directories I don't understand. Why would that be a problem? – cfr Feb 20 '14 at 21:54
  • @cfr Perhaps I misunderstood the implication; there is no cross-platform way to make such a TDS available in TeX's search path other than sticking all relevant styles in the current directory. Besides, this can't work for PGF/etc. – Sean Allred Feb 20 '14 at 22:07
  • That seems, unfortunately, to be true. But I don't see that its being on CTAN will help. Or does TeX Live Utility add the ability to install arbitrary packages from CTAN? (Even then, you still, presumably, have the pgf problem.) – cfr Feb 20 '14 at 22:18
  • Did you contact the people from CTAN? I also wonder why Robin "wasteofspace" Fairbairns didn’t react here. You could try to ping him leaving a comment below his latest answer with a link. – Speravir Mar 15 '14 at 23:19
  • @Speravir I suppose I should contact them as well, and I can ping wasteofspace if you're serious :) Such a fitting username for this topic. – Sean Allred Mar 16 '14 at 00:05
  • @SeanAllred: Yes, I am serious about him. – Speravir Mar 16 '14 at 00:52
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    @wasteofspace, any chance of a canonical-type answer here? – Paul Gessler Jul 03 '14 at 14:25

1 Answers1

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I've been encouraged by the Great Old Ones of the TeX world to submit when I have something usable. Your style file may seem to you like a tool of limited application; but it could wind up being exactly what somebody needed for some unforeseeable reason. Furthermore, even if people don't use your package for its intended purpose, it's quite possible that they can skim it for ideas or for specific code.

When we submit to CTAN, in other words, we're enriching each other; as long as your package works and solves a real problem, I'd say submit it.

dgoodmaniii
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  • Woah! Didn't see this answer :) I guess my dilemma is with the definition of 'real problem'. It's not a problem per se; it's just enforcing a certain look and feel. Consider it analogous to putting up a style file for franchise use: it's very helpful to a relatively small group of people. – Sean Allred May 12 '15 at 22:56
  • That's a real problem. If individual universities and publishers can post their own class files, useful only for a very limited population, I don't see why your package shouldn't be uploaded. – dgoodmaniii May 13 '15 at 02:28
  • Wait, do they? I've never seen one. – Sean Allred May 13 '15 at 02:30
  • Search CTAN for "thesis"; you'll find plenty of examples. – dgoodmaniii May 13 '15 at 02:33
  • Hmm, you're right. I made a bunch of support packages though for a bunch of different disciplines (cs, maths, biology, psychology, etc.); do you think it would be wise to bundle them all up in one file to be selected with a class option? – Sean Allred May 13 '15 at 02:36
  • @SeanAllred Do they use common code? Are the files tiny (e.g. many are less than 4K)? When I uploaded some files to use initials more easily, I explicitly told the CTAN people: look, there's really nothing to this. If it isn't worth the space, that's fine. But one person from here was interested in seeing an example, so maybe it will be useful. Their response: if it is useful to even one person, that's worth having. If the package is small, I was told there is no issue anyway. (Space used to be tight but isn't now.) If your package is PGF-size with only one user, that might be different ;). – cfr May 13 '15 at 02:53
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    @SeanAllred Also, consider this. How widely used are the styles for Computers and Electronics in Agriculture? (Not to say this isn't a great journal but it does sound quite specialist.). There are even macros there for printing the dates of Friday 13ths between 1991 and 2003 (thirteen). (I'm sure it is very useful to superstitious time-machine owners.) – cfr May 13 '15 at 03:14
  • @cfr Haha! Yes, I suppose the existence of 'for fun' packages makes my point almost completely moot :) They do use some common code, but very little. I've got around 11 files across 22K. – Sean Allred May 13 '15 at 12:31