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This identical question has been answered, but unfortunately the answer is a bit over my head :( EDIT: way over my head.

I need a very basic explanation - preferably in English not computersciencese - for how to do this. Things I don't understand from here and here are:

  1. What is a batch file, should I just copy the code (which is Greek to me) directly in or might I need to modify it, and what is a path/how do I put the batch file in the path to Notepad++

  2. What is that "NPPExec" plugin, what is a dll file, and why do or do not I need it? And if I need it, what do I do with it and where do I get it?

  3. For those of you familiar with Notepad++, how do I create these keyboard shortcuts that everyone is saying to create?

Thank you all in advance, I have already made much progress in LaTeX, largely because of the help from this site. Slowly but surely!

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user50612
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  • Notepad++ is a very good general editor, with syntax highlighting for many programming languages (including TeX), but I think you should stick with a dedicated editor, which will be much more helpful. That said, a batch file is a commands program (a shell script) for Windows, with a special syntax. You even can run latex from the command line, but nobody does that except in very special cases. For explanations on dlls take a look at this page: http://www.easydesksoftware.com/dll.htm – Bernard Apr 29 '14 at 23:18
  • Does TeXworks count as an editor? Should I even bother with configuring Notepad++ to use for TeX? And I'm really not looking for anything fancy. Running from command line would be fine with me - if I knew how :) – user50612 Apr 29 '14 at 23:35
  • TeXworks is editor; Notepad is an editor, as Notepad++. You can use them all to type a .tex file. But some have more facilites tha others. A simple example: you very often have to type arguments between { }. In Notepad, you'll have to type first {, the your argument and finally not forget to type the closing }, otherwise the compiler will scream. In a good editer, you'll have a shortcut such as Ctrl+{, and you'll have at once the pair {} and the cursor in between, just waiting you type your argument. So unless you love typing again and again… – Bernard Apr 29 '14 at 23:56
  • I think I can handle the brackets :) I guess I'll use TeXworks until I get notepad++ figured out for now. – user50612 Apr 30 '14 at 00:01
  • I'd strongly recommend TeXworks until you run up against some limitations. It's more or less the least-common-denominator editor that everyone has, and it's certainly the simplest. In its Help menu, you'll find an entry labeled "A short manual for TeXworks", also available at this link. Skim over chapters 1 and 2, and start reading more closely in chapter 3. – Mike Renfro Apr 30 '14 at 00:06
  • Well actually you can try also with TeXMaker is another dedicated editor with friendly inerface for TeX' orTeXStudio`an fork from the firs with few facilities for beginners. – Aradnix Apr 30 '14 at 01:47
  • @Bernard Notepad++ automatically types {} when you type {, with the latest version anyway. – Skeleton Bow Oct 23 '16 at 11:27

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