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I've installed XeTeX to my Fedora 17 recently (before that, I was using pdfLaTeX). The main reason for switching to XeTeX was the polyglossia package I'd like to make use of. Unfortunately, whenever trying to compile a *.tex source file that includes polyglossia with xelatex, e.g.

xelatex file.tex

the following error message turns up:

(/usr/share/texmf/tex/latex/fontspec/fontspec.sty

! LaTeX Error: File `expl3.sty' not found.

Type X to quit or <RETURN> to proceed,
or enter new name. (Default extension: sty)

Enter file name:

I therefore tried to install the expl3 library, which is included in the l3kernel package. Nonetheless, this didn't solve the problem since the package doesn't contain the file expl3.sty itself, only expl3.dtx (and expl3.pdf). So far I haven't been able to build expl3.sty from it (should be done using xelatex expl3.dtx? Sadly, doesn't work.)

kiss my armpit
  • 36,086
Martti Määriläinen
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    Update your TeX distribution – smh Dec 25 '12 at 15:32
  • @smh I installed the latest XeTeX version only a couple days ago, from the official XeTeX site, I think it should be up to date. – Martti Määriläinen Dec 25 '12 at 15:38
  • What's your TeX distribution? MikTeX? What version? – smh Dec 25 '12 at 15:44
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    You have to install expl3 package. To install a package see How do I update my TeX distribution? –  Dec 25 '12 at 15:53
  • It is actually quite likely that your fontspec is too old and wants an old version of expl3. Is tex live installed from fedora repositories? If yes, remove existing expl3 and fontspec, and install the current versions of the l3* bundle and fontspec. They come bundled as .tds.zip files which are extremely easy to install (i.e., unzip at the base of your tex tree). – jon Dec 25 '12 at 16:00
  • Well, tex -v gives TeX 3.141592 (Web2C 7.5.6), latex -v gives pdfTeX using libpoppler 3.141592-1.40.3-2.2 (Web2C 7.5.6). Is it what you're asking about? Not sure how to tell my distribution & version another way. – Martti Määriläinen Dec 25 '12 at 16:04
  • I'm still pretty confused about which distro and version of TeX I actually have :). Originally, I used pdfTeX running on I-don't-know-which distribution (Web2C?). I also installed TeX Live from Fedora repositories (could this also be the source of my problems?). I followed @jon's instructions and successfully (?) installed expl.sty. When trying to compile the same code, I get: ! Package expl3 Error: Required primitives not found. – Martti Määriläinen Dec 25 '12 at 16:42
  • @HarishKumar: I tried to follow the given instructions (for TeX Live), but alas, the command tlmgr is unrecognized. – Martti Määriläinen Dec 25 '12 at 16:45
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    The best way is to not rely on Fedora's packaging and install a regular TeXLive installation. See How to install "vanilla" TeXLive on Debian or Ubuntu. – Alan Munn Dec 25 '12 at 16:53
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    This seems old. There are two options: purge your installation and install TeX Live directly (as suggested), or (first!) remove respository-installed versions of the expl3 and fontspec and then install the current versions, ideally using .tds.zip files. The first option is easiest, but may not be realistic (e.g., bandwidth limits). The second option is not particularly hard, but requires comfort with the command line and the willingness to track down all the offending files. The biggest problem is that old expl3 stuff has changed location compared to the l3* stuff. (con't) – jon Dec 26 '12 at 19:39
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    ... you must purge all expl3 files first because of the location and file re-naming changes from about 2 years ago: they cause endless conflicts. Then install: fontspec.tds.zip, l3kernel.tds.zip, l3packages.tds.zip, l3experimental.tds.zip. If you plan to use luatex, then also install: lualibs.tds.zip, luamplib.tds.zip, luaotfload.tds.zip, luatexbase.tds.zip, luatextra.tds.zip --- along with the current binaries for luatex. I'd also add the oberdiek.tds.zip bundle as it includes many useful facilities for the newer engines. – jon Dec 26 '12 at 19:45
  • @jon: Thank you for your time, everything works just fine now. – Martti Määriläinen Dec 31 '12 at 13:20
  • @jon What should I do after instaling Tex Live? – Aqqqq Sep 24 '20 at 08:12

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