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The plus sign + or minus sign - in LaTeX is too big for me. I want to scale down these binary operation symbol at once, so that whenever I type +, it corresponds to a more little + symbol. How can I do this? And what method to scale down the symbol is better? (By the way, I'm using mtpro2 now.)

enter image description here

My code:

\documentclass[12pt,a4paper,openany,fleqn]{book}
\usepackage[no-math]{xeCJK}
\setmainfont{TeX Gyre Termes Bold}
\usepackage[subscriptcorrection,slantedGreek,nofontinfo,zswash,mtphrb]{mtpro2}
\usepackage{bm}
\setCJKmainfont{cwTeX Q Ming} %just a Chinese font
\everymath{\displaystyle}
\begin{document}
results:\\
$a+b$\\
$\bm{\mathrm{a}}+\bm{\mathrm{b}}$\\
$\mbf {a+b}$ %MathTimePro2 original command
\end{document}

Result of test code: enter image description here

Eric
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  • 1
    How much smaller should the symbol be? – Mico Feb 14 '17 at 18:14
  • I'm not sure should I better specified by percentage or an absolute size? In fact, I have no idea now. I need to trial-and-error and see the display. Maybe 80%. I guess. – Eric Feb 14 '17 at 18:14
  • Can you show the code you're using? If I do \usepackage{newtxtext,newtxmath}, with $(\mathbf{a}+\mathbf{b})$, I get a decidedly smaller plus sign – egreg Feb 14 '17 at 18:32
  • @egreg Wow! I haven't thought of that! I'm going to add my code. – Eric Feb 14 '17 at 18:42
  • @egreg Now I've edited. – Eric Feb 14 '17 at 18:52
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    @Eric As Boris says, somebody put their time into making a consistent math font (mtpro2, in this case). It wouldn't be too difficult to use the plus sign from newtxmath, but I'm not sure it's the right thing to do. Anyway, remove \everymath{\displaystyle}: it's one of the worst TeX hints around. And using a boldface font as main font is another very bad choice for your readers. – egreg Feb 14 '17 at 18:56
  • What is the flaw of \everymath{\displaystyle}? I used it simply because I personally like the fraction in inline mode not too short as default. – Eric Feb 14 '17 at 19:05
  • If you want somebody to see your query, you need to tell them they have mail like this: @egreg. You should not use \\ to break lines outside special contexts (e.g. tabular, array). – cfr Feb 14 '17 at 23:52
  • @Eric So you like to spoil the typesetting, by adding large white stripes to your page. Well, the document is yours. – egreg Feb 15 '17 at 00:03

2 Answers2

6

  1. Please do not do this. A good font was carefully designed by a font designer, who supposedly spent years in training and then designed fonts, carefully balancing readability, harmony and tradition. Making changes like this is like adding a moustache to a portrait in a gallery.

  2. Instead, choose a font that corresponds to your tastes. Here is a catalog of free mathematical fonts: http://www.tug.dk/FontCatalogue/mathfonts.html. Linux libertine, http://www.tug.dk/FontCatalogue/linuxlibertine/, has smallish plus sign.

Boris
  • 38,129
4

I don't recommend this approach of making + active in order to redefine it, because it will break things that are being added with \dimexpr and \numexpr. However, to that end, I have also provided \newplus to redefine the + and \oldplus to turn it off, restoring the original use.

\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{scalerel}
\let\svplus+
\catcode`+=\active % Make + an active character
\def+{\mathbin{\ThisStyle{\vcenter{\hbox{$\SavedStyle\scaleto{\svplus}{5\LMpt}$}}}}}% 
\catcode`+=12 %
\def\newplus{\catcode`+=\active }
\def\oldplus{\catcode`+=12 }
\begin{document}
New: \newplus

$A + B \svplus C$

$\scriptstyle A + B \svplus C$

$\scriptscriptstyle A + B \svplus C$

Old: \oldplus

$A + B \svplus C$

$\scriptstyle A + B \svplus C$

$\scriptscriptstyle A + B \svplus C$
\end{document}

enter image description here

Steven B. Segletes
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  • +1 for using the scalerel package. :-) – Mico Feb 14 '17 at 18:45
  • @Mico Thanks. The \ThisStyle{...\SavedStyle...} approach to condensing \mathchoice options is so revolutionary ;^) that even TeXperts can't believe it. See comment following http://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/43978/proper-use-of-mathchoice/114594#114594 – Steven B. Segletes Feb 14 '17 at 18:50