UCB Math Wiki - User contributions [en]

Email Calmail Settings

2010-07-28T14:16:46Z

Mgsa: /* mutt */

=== CalMail Math Account Name ===

In order to use CalMail Math account, you need to remember that your CalMail user name '''username@math.berkeley.edu''' includes your Math login name and '''@math.berkeley.edu'''. Also the server to which you should connect is '''calmail.berkeley.edu'''.

=== CalMail Instructions ===

There are [https://kb.berkeley.edu/jivekb/entry!default.jspa?categoryID=4&externalID=400 CalMail instructions]
for many email clients on the UCB knowledge base.

=== Older Math Department Instructions ===

Our local documentation maintained by Math users is [[Email | here]] and there is also some Calmail information [https://kb.berkeley.edu/jivekb/entry.jspa?externalID=406 here].

=== [[Email|Apple Mail client]] ===

=== Thunderbird ===

See our [[Calmail Thunderbird]] page; the CalMail knowledge base information is [https://kb.berkeley.edu/jivekb/entry.jspa?categoryID=4&externalID=413 here].

=== pine/alpine ===

The [[Calmail alpine]] page contains rudimentary documentation.

=== mutt ===

Here is a page [[Calmail mutt | on using mutt with Calmail]].
 Another one is [http://www.online-sport-betting.org sports gambling online].

=== CalMail language settings ===

Here is a user contributed page on [[CalMail language settings]].

--[[User:SteveSizemore|Steve Sizemore - Unix System Manager]] 16:19, 19 March 2009 (UTC)

SSH Access

2009-10-09T18:16:15Z

Mgsa:

== SSH ==

You must use an ssh client to log in to a Math Department server using ssh.

=== From Windows machines ===

One client which seems to work quite well is putty, which you can download
for free at http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/putty/ .

=== From other machines ===

Any machine other than Windows should have a native ssh client.
From a terminal window (shell), type

<tt>ssh USERNAME@login.math.berkeley.edu</tt>.

--[[User:SteveSizemore|Steve Sizemore - Unix System Manager]] 03:47, 19 March 2009 (UTC)

If you want to shell in and use the graphical user interfaces of programs (e.g. Maple) then try
ssh -CX USERNAME@login.math.berkeley.edu.
Then for example type xmaple.

Future Articles

2009-04-08T18:43:49Z

Mgsa: /* Future Articles */ (Add note about subversion)

=Future Articles=

* Posting articles on the ArXiv (is this Wiki the right place for it?)

* What to do when you get those annoying emails saying that you're over quota, but it's not obvious why.

* How to install a font in your local directory for use with TeX.

* Tools for synchronization of files among various computers.
** Hosting [http://subversion.tigris.org/ Subversion] on the math servers.

* Overview of our network

* Overview of available software

* Guide to using bibTex

Text Editor

2009-03-02T05:21:02Z

Mgsa: Add note about TextMate availability.

Although LaTeX can be edited using any text editor, the following programs have features such as syntax coloring and built-in previewing for LaTeX.

==For more than one platform==
===TexMaker (Windows/Mac/Linux)===

Very well designed [http://www.xm1math.net/texmaker/ free editor] with buttons for compiling into dvi, ps, and pdf. Limited text coloring for different environments.

==For Windows==

===WinEdt===

Superb text editor for LaTeX. Highlights and colors text for the various environments. Matches parentheses, etc. Free trial for one month, then annoying popups start appearing, asking you to buy the [http://www.winedt.com/ program]. For students the price is $30.

===EditPad Lite===

[http://www.editpadpro.com/editpadlite.html EditPad], free version. Excellent text editor for general purposes, not specific to LaTeX.

===Notepad===

This is standard on all Windows operating systems.

==For Unix==

For the department computers, probably the best choice is Emacs with AucTeX.

===Emacs with AucTeX===

[http://doc.kom.aau.dk/reference_cards/ Here] are some very useful reference cards for Emacs and AucTeX commands.

To use AucTeX (and RefTeX), edit your .emacs file (you may not know it's there, but it is), for example with the shell command <pre>emacs ~/.emacs &</pre>
and insert the lines
<pre>(require 'tex-site)
(setq reftex-plug-into-AUCTeX t)
(add-hook 'LaTeX-mode-hook 'turn-on-reftex)
</pre>
After this, AucTeX will automatically start up any time you use a TeX document.

For your home computer, you may need to download these packages.

===Kile===
[http://kile.sourceforge.net/ Kile] for KDE.

==For Mac==
Since Mac OS X is based on Unix, you can also use any of the [[#For Unix|above programs]]. You can download some of the UniX packages using [http://www.finkproject.org/ Fink].

===TeXShop===
Freely available from http://www.uoregon.edu/~koch/texshop/texshop.html.

===TextMate===
In Spring 2008, UC Berkeley [http://inews.berkeley.edu/articles/Spring2008/1171.html purchased] a site license to [http://macromates.com/ TextMate], a multipurpose commercial text editor for Mac OS X. The site license may be downloaded from [http://software-central.berkeley.edu/ Software Central] for free.

===Aquamacs Emacs===

This is a special version of GNU Emacs built for Mac OS X. It is currently under active development and has a lively email discussion group. It comes
with Auctex, almost completely preconfigured and ready to go. It works well with the .pdf and .dvi viewers TeXniscope and Skim, and in particular
can use pdfsync or synctex to synchronize fairly well between the source and typeset files. It is available at Versiontracker and also at http://aquamacs.org.

Email

2009-03-02T04:43:29Z

Mgsa:

=CalMail Conversion=

Beware! This information will be outdated once the [[CalMail conversion]] occurs.

=Email Configuration=

==Mac OS X 10.5==

===Mail===

Open Mail. If this is the first time you've ran Mail, you'll be prompted to add an account. If not, choose File -> Add Account...

Fill in the first screen with your appropriate details:

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Add_Account.png]]

On the next screen, enter
* Account Type: IMAP
* Incoming Mail Server: mail.math.berkeley.edu

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Add_Account-1.png]]

On the next screen, enter
* Outgoing Mail Server: mail.math.berkeley.edu

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Add_Account-2.png]]

On the final screen, verify the details and create the account.

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Add_Account-3.png]]

Lastly, you'll need to set your IMAP prefix. To do this, go to Mail -> Preferences... and select the "Accounts" tab. Choose your math account in the list on the left, and click on the "Advanced" tab. Enter:
* IMAP Path Prefix: Mail
(NB: While "Mail" is the recommended path prefix, if you've used IMAP before your path prefix may be different.)

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Accounts.png]]

Close the preferences window, choosing to save your changes when prompted. Then restart Mail (by quitting and reopening it) to have your changes take effect.

===Thunderbird===

(Content not available yet.)

==Windows Vista==

(Content not available yet.)

==Linux==

===Pine===
Here one user got pine working on the math department servers:
<blockquote>
The relevant parts of my <tt>.pinerc</tt> are:

<pre>
smtp-server=mail.math.berkeley.edu:587/tls/user=bfroehle
inbox-path={mail.math.berkeley.edu:993/novalidate-cert/ssl/user=bfroehle}INBOX
folder-collections=Mail {mail.math.berkeley.edu:993/novalidate-cert/ssl/user=bfroehle}mail/[]
</pre>

-Brad
</blockquote>

Email

2009-02-23T17:11:21Z

Mgsa: Add notes for Pine

=Email Configuration=

==Mac OS X 10.5==

===Mail===

Open Mail. If this is the first time you've ran Mail, you'll be prompted to add an account. If not, choose File -> Add Account...

Fill in the first screen with your appropriate details:

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Add_Account.png]]

On the next screen, enter
* Account Type: IMAP
* Incoming Mail Server: mail.math.berkeley.edu

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Add_Account-1.png]]

On the next screen, enter
* Outgoing Mail Server: mail.math.berkeley.edu

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Add_Account-2.png]]

On the final screen, verify the details and create the account.

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Add_Account-3.png]]

Lastly, you'll need to set your IMAP prefix. To do this, go to Mail -> Preferences... and select the "Accounts" tab. Choose your math account in the list on the left, and click on the "Advanced" tab. Enter:
* IMAP Path Prefix: Mail
(NB: While "Mail" is the recommended path prefix, if you've used IMAP before your path prefix may be different.)

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Accounts.png]]

Close the preferences window, choosing to save your changes when prompted. Then restart Mail (by quitting and reopening it) to have your changes take effect.

===Thunderbird===

(Content not available yet.)

==Windows Vista==

(Content not available yet.)

==Linux==

===Pine===
Here one user got pine working on the math department servers:
<blockquote>
The relevant parts of my <tt>.pinerc</tt> are:

<pre>
smtp-server=mail.math.berkeley.edu:587/tls/user=bfroehle
inbox-path={mail.math.berkeley.edu:993/novalidate-cert/ssl/user=bfroehle}INBOX
folder-collections=Mail {mail.math.berkeley.edu:993/novalidate-cert/ssl/user=bfroehle}mail/[]
</pre>

-Brad
</blockquote>

Future Articles

2009-02-20T22:24:35Z

Mgsa: New page: =Future Articles= * CalMail Transition

=Future Articles=

* CalMail Transition

Main Page

2009-02-20T22:22:21Z

Mgsa: add suggestions page

__NOTOC__
=UC Berkeley Department of Mathematics=

Most pages can be edited by anyone who's logged in, and anyone can create an account. Feel free to add any computing related help and information.

==Computing Support==

Welcome to the UC Berkeley math department wiki. We hope to provide information of use to all members of our department.

===LaTeX===
* How to [[LaTeX basics|use LaTeX]].
* How to [[LaTeX Install|install LaTeX]] on your own computer.

===Email===
* How to check your [[Email]] from your own computer.

===Printing and Scanning===
* How to [[printing|print]] on the department's printers from your laptop.
* How to [/~gbergman/958_scanner.html use the copier in 958 Evans as a scanner].

===Math Department Servers===
* How to [[Webpage Guide|create a homepage]].
* How to [[File Management|manage files on the math department servers]].
* How to use [[SSH Access|remote shell access]].
* How to [[Software|get math software]].

===Miscellaneous===
* How to [[Proxy Servers|access MathSciNet and UC E-links from off-campus]].
* How to use [[slides]] in the seminar rooms.

==Suggestions for Future Articles==
Please record any ideas you have for [[Future Articles]] that you would like to see.

Main Page

2009-02-20T22:20:18Z

Mgsa: Changed protection level for "Main Page" [edit=autoconfirmed:move=autoconfirmed]

Scientific Software

2009-02-10T02:14:04Z

Mgsa:

List of software which might be useful for graduate math:

* Mathematica, Maple, and MATLAB are all available on <tt>panda</tt>.
* [http://www.gnu.org/software/octave/ Octave] is a free program that runs most MATLAB code.
* [http://www.singular.uni-kl.de/ Singular], [http://www.math.uiuc.edu/Macaulay2/ Macaulay 2], and [http://cocoa.dima.unige.it/ CoCoA] are free programs for doing computational commutative algebra. The first two are available on <tt>panda</tt> with the command names <tt>Singular</tt> and <tt>M2</tt> respectively.
* [http://www.math.tu-berlin.de/polymake/ Polymake] is a free software package for computations with polytopes, polyhedra, etc. Available on <tt>panda</tt>.
* [http://magma.maths.usyd.edu.au/magma/ MAGMA] does computations with many algebraic objects. Not free, but available on <tt>panda</tt>.

All of these packages are either freely available or installed on <tt>panda</tt> (also known as <tt>login.math.berkeley.edu</tt>), the math department's login server. See [[File Management#SSH|here]] for instructions on connecting to <tt>panda</tt> from your personal computer.

See also the list of [[Text Editor|text editors]] for various operating systems.

==MacPorts==

[http://www.macports.org/ MacPorts] is a program for Mac OS X which makes it easy to install and update most of the free software packages above and many others as well.

Email

2009-02-10T02:10:48Z

Mgsa:

Email

2009-02-10T02:07:50Z

Mgsa:

=Email Configuration=

==Mac OS X 10.5==

Open Mail. If this is the first time you've ran Mail, you'll be prompted to add an account. If not, choose File -> Add Account...

Fill in the first screen with your appropriate details:

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Add_Account.png]]

On the next screen, enter
* Account Type: IMAP
* Incoming Mail Server: mail.math.berkeley.edu

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Add_Account-1.png]]

On the next screen, enter
* Outgoing Mail Server: mail.math.berkeley.edu

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Add_Account-2.png]]

On the final screen, verify the details and create the account.

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Add_Account-3.png]]

Lastly, you'll need to set your IMAP prefix. To do this, go to Mail -> Preferences... and select the "Accounts" tab. Choose your math account in the list on the left, and click on the "Advanced" tab. Enter:
* IMAP Path Prefix: Mail
(NB: While "Mail" is the recommended path prefix, if you've used IMAP before your path prefix may be different.)

[[Image:OSX-Mail-Accounts.png]]

Close the preferences window, choosing to save your changes when prompted. Then restart Mail (by quitting and reopening it) to have your changes take effect.

Email

2009-02-10T02:06:26Z

Mgsa: New page: =Email Configuration= ==Mac OS X 10.5== Open Mail. If this is the first time you've ran Mail, you'll be prompted to add an account. If not, choose File -> Add Account... Fill in the f...

File:OSX-Mail-Add Account.png

2009-02-10T01:53:58Z

Mgsa:

Main Page

2009-02-10T01:44:56Z

Mgsa:

MediaWiki:Sidebar

2009-02-10T00:38:23Z

Mgsa:

* navigation
** mainpage|Wiki Homepage
** recentchanges-url|Recent Changes
** randompage-url|Random Page
** helppage|help

Main Page

2009-02-10T00:30:49Z

Mgsa:

__NOTOC__
=UC Berkeley Department of Mathematics=

Most pages can be edited by anyone who's logged in, and anyone can create an account. Feel free to add any computing related help and information.

==Computing Support==

Welcome to the UC Berkeley math department wiki. We hope to provide information of use to all members of our department.

===LaTeX===
* How to [[LaTeX basics|use LaTeX]].
* How to [[LaTeX Install|install LaTeX]] on your own computer.

===Math Department Servers===
* How to [[Webpage Guide|create a homepage]].
* How to [[File Management|manage files on the math department servers]].
* How to use [[SSH Access|remote shell access]].
* How to [[Software|get math software]].

===Printing and Scanning===
* How to [[printing|print]] on the department's printers from your laptop.
* How to [/~gbergman/958_scanner.html use the copier in 958 Evans as a scanner].

===Miscellaneous===
* How to [[Proxy Servers|access MathSciNet and UC E-links from off-campus]].
* How to use [[slides]] in the seminar rooms.

Main Page

2009-02-10T00:29:51Z

Mgsa:

__NOTOC__
=UC Berkeley Department of Mathematics=

Most pages can be edited by anyone who's logged in, and anyone can create an account. Feel free to add any computing related help and information.

==Computing Support==

Welcome to the UC Berkeley math department wiki. We hope to provide information of use to all members of our department.

===LaTeX===
* How to [[LaTeX basics|use LaTeX]].
* How to [[LaTeX Install|install LaTeX]] on your own computer.

===Math Department Servers===
* How to [[Webpage Guide|create a homepage]].
* How to [[File Management|manage files on the math department servers]].
** How to [[Software|get math software]].

===Printing and Scanning===
* How to [[printing|print]] on the department's printers from your laptop.
* How to [/~gbergman/958_scanner.html use the copier in 958 Evans as a scanner].

===Miscellaneous===
** How to [[Proxy Servers|access MathSciNet and UC E-links from off-campus]].
** How to use [[slides]] in the seminar rooms.

Main Page

2009-02-10T00:29:16Z

Mgsa:

=UC Berkeley Department of Mathematics=

Most pages can be edited by anyone who's logged in, and anyone can create an account. Feel free to add any computing related help and information.

==Computing Support==

Welcome to the UC Berkeley math department wiki. We hope to provide information of use to all members of our department.

===LaTeX===
* How to [[LaTeX basics|use LaTeX]].
* How to [[LaTeX Install|install LaTeX]] on your own computer.

===Math Department Servers===
* How to [[Webpage Guide|create a homepage]].
* How to [[File Management|manage files on the math department servers]].
** How to [[Software|get math software]].

===Printing and Scanning===
* How to [[printing|print]] on the department's printers from your laptop.
* How to [/~gbergman/958_scanner.html use the copier in 958 Evans as a scanner].

===Miscellaneous===
** How to [[Proxy Servers|access MathSciNet and UC E-links from off-campus]].
** How to use [[slides]] in the seminar rooms.

Main Page

2009-02-10T00:26:42Z

Mgsa: rework front page

=UC Berkeley Department of Mathematics=

==Computing Support==

Welcome to the UC Berkeley math department wiki. We hope to provide information of use to all members of our department.

* Answers to computer questions:
** How to [[LaTeX basics|use LaTeX]].
** How to [[LaTeX Install|install LaTeX]] on your own computer.
** How to [[Webpage Guide|create a homepage]].
** How to [[File Management|manage files on the math department servers]].
** How to [[Software|get math software]].
** How to [/~gbergman/958_scanner.html use the copier in 958 Evans as a scanner].
** How to [[printing|print]] on the department's printers from your laptop.
** How to [[Proxy Servers|access MathSciNet and UC E-links from off-campus]].
** How to use [[slides]] in the seminar rooms.

Most pages can be edited by anyone who's logged in, and anyone can create an account. Feel free to add any computing related help and information.

Webpage Guide

2008-09-20T02:49:27Z

Mgsa:

This page provides a basic tutorial on how to create your own webpage on the math department server.

==Setting up a page==

This section explains how to create a webpage on the math department's servers, assuming you already know a little HTML. For some an introduction to HTML, see [[#Basic HTML|below]].

In your home directory, you need to create a directory called <tt>public_html</tt> with the appropriate permissions. You can do this from a math department computer or over [[File Management#SSH|SSH]] by typing:
<pre>
mkdir public_html
chmod 755 public_html
</pre>
All files and directories for your webpage will go in the <tt>public_html</tt> directory, and the directory and all its contents must have their [[File_Management#Permissions|permissions set]] so that others can read the files and read and execute the directories.

Additionally, inside <tt>public_html</tt>, you should have a file called <tt>index.html</tt>, which will be your homepage, i.e. the first page that pops up when someone visits your website.
You can edit this file in emacs by typing <tt>emacs public_html/index.html</tt>. An alternative to <tt>emacs</tt> is <tt>pico</tt>, which is very similar to the interface for writing emails in pine. When you're done, type <tt>chmod 644 public_html/index.html</tt> to give the file the right permissions. Your page should now be visible at <tt><nowiki>/~USERNAME/</nowiki></tt>. You can create other pages by creating other files in the <tt>public_html</tt> directory. For example, the file <tt>public_html/math1b.html</tt> will have the URL <tt><nowiki>/~USERNAME/math1b.html</nowiki></tt>.

For more information on managing files on the math department's computer and what the permissions mean, see the page on [[File Management|file management]].

===Potential problems===

Some thing which might go wrong when you try to view the page in a browser:
* Error 403: This means that you don't have the permission set correctly. To make sure the permissions are correct for your homepage, type:
<pre>
chmod 755 public_html
chmod 644 public_html/index.html
</pre>
* Error 404: This means that the web server couldn't find your file at all. Make sure you have the files in the <tt>public_html</tt> directory.
* Instead of your homepage, you get a page with a name like "Index of": This is what the web server does when there's no <tt>index.html</tt> file.

==Basic HTML==

Each individual webpage on your site corresponds to a file of the form <tt>name.html</tt> . An HTML file just consists of plain text with a couple commands that tell the browser to do something to the display (for example, make the text bold font). Just like in LaTeX, there are some special characters that tell the browser "I am giving you a command"; they are <, > and /. Every command takes the form <code><command></code>, and most commands also allow you to turn them off by typing <code></command></code>. For example, if you want to turn on bold font, type <code></code>. When you are done typing the text that you'd like bold, turn off bold font with <code></code>.

The nice thing about HTML is that it is very forgiving--even if you make a mistake it will try its best to render something in the browser. This makes it easy to see the mistake and usually makes it easy to see how to fix the mistake too. Commands are case-insensitive.

* <code><HTML></code> In principle, every .html file should begin with <code><HTML></code> and end with <code></HTML></code> to let the browser know that you are going to use HTML commands. But if you plan on just writing plain text, then this is not necessary.
* <code><Title></code> This is the title of the webpage--what appears in the top bar of the browser window. Be sure to turn it off after using it, so that all the text doesn't appear in that one bar!
* <code><Body></code> This delineates the body of the webpage: all the text, images, etc that you want to appear on the page should go in between the Body on and off commands.
* <code> </code> and <code></code> Notice that if you just type text in an HTML file, the browser will ignore all enter keystrokes. In general, browsers treat extra "whitespace" as just one click of the spacebar. To tell a browser that you would like a line break, use br. If you would furthermore like a blank line to start of the next paragraph of text, use p instead.
* <code></code>, <code></code>, <code></code>, and <code><s></code>. Bold, italic, underlined and strikethrough text, respectively.
* <code></code> Set many optional properties on the font. Size takes a number as an argument; align takes one of "right", "center" or "left" as its argument; and color takes an RGB value as its argument. An RGB (red-green-blue) value is simply a 6 digit base-16 number, which means the digits can take any value from 0 to 9 and A to F. The first two digits give you the amount of red, the next two give you green, the last two give you blue. For example, fa8072 yields a tasty salmon color. To turn all these properties off, you just have to type <code></code>.
* <code> <body background="file/URL" bgcolor="rrggbb" link="rrggbb" vlink="rrggbb"></code> The optional properties for the BODY command, which set the background and the colors of links. Background takes either a filename (from you public_html directory) or a URL of another website, and sets that as the background. If it is too small of an image, it will be tiled. Bgcolor sets the background to a solid color if you don't want an background image. It, like link and vlink, takes an RGB value to set the color. Link is the color of an unclicked link; vlink is the color of a clicked link.
* <code> <img src="file/URL"></code> For inserting an image onto you webpage. The argument for src is either a filename or pathname for an image in your public_html directory, or else a complete URL to an image elsewhere.
* <code> <A HREF="URL">text</A> </code>. For links to pages on your site or on other sites. This can also be used to link to a PDF file or some other file for download. The URL is either the full URL for some other website (including the initial <tt>http://</tt>), or else just a pathname for an html file in your public_html directory. When the link is clicked, this is the page the browser directs you to. "Text" is just the text of hyperlink. For example, you may want the text to say "Solutions to Homework 9", but the URL will be something like "solutions9.pdf".
* <code> <mailto: emailaddress></code>. Creates a link that when clicked will open up the user's email program to send an email to "emailaddress". It is highly advised that you do NOT use this, but instead use Javascript to conceal your email address from spammers. See [[#Concealing_Your_Email_From_Spammers | below]] for ways to conceal your email address.

==Learning More HTML==

If you come across a webpage and want to know how they did that, you can try looking at the webpage's source. Most browsers have a View Source option in their menu; this will bring up the HTML page which you can examine.

Also, there are many other HTML tutorials and reference guides. One reference can be found [http://www.htmlhelp.com/reference/html40/ here].

There are also free templates available online. A particularly good site can be found [http://www.openwebdesign.org/ here]

==Concealing Your Email From Spammers==

Spammers use automated programs called webcrawlers to browse through webpages searching for email addresses. If your email address is just written in plain text in the HTML file (especially if you use the <code>mailto</code> command) a webcrawler will pick it up and you will get more spam. There are a few ways to conceal your email address from webcrawlers. We have listed them below, in increasing difficulty of implementation (which also happens to be increasing order of strength).

* Use words instead of punctuation. Many primitive webcrawlers are designed to look for the @ symbol and then copy the text around it. If you write words, like <code>mgsa AT math DOT berkeley DOT edu</code>, many webcrawlers will not realize it is an email address. This is a pretty commonly implemented trick to fool webcrawlers, but it's easy for a spammer to adapt and include searches for "AT <word> DOT" and still find your email. However, if your email address has some natural form, then you can use that in the description and webcrawlers will not be able to get it. For example: <code>my last name AT math DOT berkeley DOT edu</code>.
* Another way to fool webcrawlers who search for @ is to replace @ with an image of the symbol @. Webcrawlers cannot "see" what an image says, so this method completely works. The only downside is that someone trying to copy your email address has to remember to add the @ symbol. A large selection of images can be found doing an Google advanced image search for "at.gif" with the requirement that all images be small size.
* Javascript is used to embed Java programs in HTML and we can use it in a very simple way to conceal the <code>mailto:</code> command from spammers. This is the method used by the math department and MGSA to hide email addresses on their websites. This method also allows viewers to simply copy and paste email addresses into their email programs. To use it for a math.berkeley.edu email address, copy the following code into your HTML file where you would normally have a <code>mailto:</code> command.
<code><script type="text/javascript"> 
GoFish=new Array() 
GoFish[0]="%3c%61%20%68%72%65%66%3d%" + "22%6d%61%69%6c%74%6f%3a" 
GoFish[1]="YOUR_NAME_HERE" + "%40%6d%61%74%68%2e%62%65%72%6b%" 
GoFish[2]="65%6c%65%79%2e%65%64%75%22%3e" + "YOUR_NAME_HERE" 
GoFish[3]="%40%6d%61%74%68%2e%62%65%" + "72%6b%65%6c%65%79%2e%65%6" 
GoFish[4]="4%75%3c%2f%61%3e" + "" 
OutString=""; 
for (j=0;j<GoFish.length;j++){ 
OutString+=GoFish[j]; 
}document.write(unescape(OutString)); 
</script> 
</code>

In the two spots where it says YOUR_NAME_HERE you have to put the hexadecimal code for your username. This [http://centricle.com/tools/ascii-hex/ hex generator] will output the hexadecimal code for your username.

First Year Students

2008-08-10T21:42:17Z

Mgsa:

=Information for Incoming and First-Year Students=

The first year, and especially the first month, at Berkeley can be pretty overwhelming with all the tasks that you have to do. Settling into a new place, taking your prelim and fulfilling all the bureaucratic hurdles can be quite a whirlwind. The information below explains many of the situations you will probably face in your first year, and hopefully will make them all seem manageable. It's in your best interest to read through all this information at least once before arriving; they can provide a handy reference for navigating through your first year.

==Location==
The Math Department is located in [http://www.berkeley.edu/map/maps/BC45.html Evans Hall], the tall, grey building in the center of campus. The department occupies the 7th through 10th floors of the building. The graduate office is 965 Evans; the main lounge is 1015 Evans; and the computer clusters are in 731, 838 and 1015 (Annex) Evans. The vice-chair for graduate affairs is Daniel Tataru. Pop in and say hi to him when you get here, as he'll be glad to know you're here.

==Email and ID Cards==
To get a math.berkeley.edu email address, see Kathy Santos in 920 Evans your first week here. She can also give you a key to the
computer cluster and the copy room.

To get a UC Berkeley ID card, you have to go to the Cal1 office in Lower Sproul (on the ground floor of Cesar Chavez Student Center).

==Orientation==
On the afternoon of the first day of the prelim, there is a departmental orientation for first-year students. Much of the information on this site, such as establishing residency, will be talked about in greater detail, as well as some additional topics. This is also a great opportunity to ask questions about the program. The ever-helpful Barb Waller will email you with a location and time once it's known.

==Preliminary Exam==
The Prelim is a 6-hour written exam testing your undergraduate math background. It's given once a semester, and you must pass within your first three semesters. Thus, you only have three opportunities to take it, so you should take it every semester until you pass. And most students would agree, it's in your best interest to pass the first time.

Date: The exam is always scheduled for the Monday and Tuesday the week before classes start, from 9am to 12pm each day, in 60 Evans Hall. This room is located on the ground floor of Evans (not to be confused with the first floor or the basement), along the hall on the eastern side of the building.

Workshops: There are prelim workshops in the weeks before each exam. These workshop, led by graduate students, include informal problem-solving sessions and summaries of the material you're expected to know. Old prelim workshop webpages can be found here:

[/~carnahan/prelim/]

[/~sassaf/prelim/index.html]

Structure:
The prelim is split over the course of two days. Each day, you are given 9 questions and have three hours to submit solutions for at most six of them. On one day, 5 of the questions will be in algebra and 4 will be in analysis, and on the other day, the reverse distribution will occur. The questions are graded out of 10 points, so a perfect score is 120 points. To put the caliber of the exam into perspective, in the last five years, the minimum passing score has ranged from 53 to 68.

Resources: Here are some helpful study resources: 
* [/graduate_prelim.html The prelim website], has a syllabus describing the material you are responsible for, copies of previous exams, and statistics of exam performance. 

* Nearly a thousand problems from previous prelims, with complete solutions to most, have been published in the book "Berkeley Problems in Mathematics" by Paulo Ney de Souza. This is an excellent resource of problems and can be found at most [http://www.bestwebbuys.com/Berkeley_Problems_in_Mathematics-ISBN_0387204296.html?isrc=b-search book retailers].

==Residency==
If you are a US citizen that will be supported by the department (through a GSI or GSR position) in your second year and later, you must establish California residency within your first year. This is because the tuition and fees for residents are about half those for non-residents, and the departmental budget can allow for support of only so many non-residents. If you don't establish residency, it will cost you dearly, because you'll have to pay the difference in tuition out of your own pocket, and that will be several thousands of dollars.

So, here are the steps you need to complete to establish residency:
<ol>
<li> Make a credit card purchase for something shortly after you arrive in Berkeley and save the credit card statement. It can also help if you save your boarding pass if you are flying to California. This is to establish the approximate date of your arrival in the state.
<li> Once you have a California address, change the official address the university has on file for you. This can be done easily via [https://sis.berkeley.edu/bearfacts/ Bearfacts], under the section 'Personal'. You will need your student ID number to access this site.
<li> Get a California Driver's License or State ID to replace your one from another state, and register your vehicle here. It is very IMPORTANT to do this within your first TWO WEEKS at Berkeley, otherwise you will probably be hassled about this from the Residency Office when you file for residency.
<li> Open a local checking account. Again, do this within your first month. Both these steps indicate your intent on remaining permanently within the state.

<li> Register to vote in California, and if an election comes around, make sure to vote.
<li> File California State Taxes your first year here and make sure that you are not claimed as a dependent that year by anyone who is not a California resident.
<li> Keep credit card and bank statements and make regular purchases by credit card or use the ATM regularly to verify that you have spent your time continuously in the state. The Residency Affairs office is most wary of where you spend your time when school is not in session; spending more than a couple weeks of the year in your previous state of residence can impede your establishment of residency. Travel to other locations for academic purposes is less of a problem, especially if you have documentation of your time spent there. But still, plan on spending most of your first year in California.
<li> File an online Residence Classification Petition (available on [http://bearfacts.berkeley.edu Bearfacts]) and submit the checklist and supporting documentation within a week of submitting the online petition. Instructions are given at the end of the online petition. The deadline for submission for the fall of your second year is usually towards the end of August; see the [http://registrar.berkeley.edu/GeneralInfo/stucal.html Student Calendar] for an exact date.

However, the deadline for applying before fees are assessed is usually June 1. The difference between these two deadlines is that if you submit by the earlier deadline, and are classified as a resident, your fall fees will automatically be computed as if you were a resident and paid for by the department. If you submit by the later deadline, your fees will be automatically computed as if you are a non-resident and then later adjusted to the resident fees. This may mean that you might temporarily have to pay the difference between the non-resident and resident fees (a few hundred dollars), and will be refunded that money later in the semester.
</ol>

More detailed information can be found in the welcome packet that will be sent to you by the math department and on the [http://registrar.berkeley.edu/Residency/legalinfo.html Residency website].

==International Students==
International Students should stop by the SISS (Services for International Students and Scholars) office in [http://www.berkeley.edu/map/maps/DE67.html International House] during their first week on campus. This is a mandatory requirement of your visa. Non-mandatory, but quite useful, is the [http://www.ias.berkeley.edu/siss/new_fall_07/orientation.htm orientation].

==Registering for Classes==
Incoming students must register for classes before the start of the fall semester. This is done easily enough via the online registration site for the university, [http://telebears.berkeley.edu Telebears]. A list of courses can be found [http://schedule.berkeley.edu here]. If you are teaching in the fall, the math department requires you to register for Math 300, the teaching workshop. It is strongly recommended that you see your academic advisor sometime in the first week or two of the semester to discuss your classes. The deadline for graduate students to add/drop classes without a fee is the end of the third week of instruction.

Students are required by the university to sign up for 12 units to be full-time. Seminars are a good way to fill up some extra units and to get to know a professor and his or her students better. You can take up to 4 units of seminar each semester.

Do not worry if a class you want to take fills up. There is always room in the class for math department grad students. Just sign up for some other classes temporarily, then talk to the professor on the first day of class about getting onto the roster. Once you are on the roster, be sure to drop the other classes you temporarily signed up for.

==Housing==
There are several options for housing at Berkeley. These include private rentals and university-owned housing. In general, unless you live in the subsidized housing for families, the prices for university housing are more expensive than those for private housing (i.e. less bang for your buck).

There are many houses, apartments and rooms for rent in the area around campus. Naturally, proximity to campus, size of the housing, and the number of people you share with can all play factors in the price. Housing close to campus can be as much as twice as expensive as comparable housing a mile or two away. Fortunately, public transit (including AC Transit buses and the BART) and biking are both convenient ways to get to campus, which many grad students use. We have a free unlimited transit pass for the AC Transit system, but unfortunately BART is not included. Driving to campus isn't recommended, because campus parking can be a nightmare and very expensive.

Most landlords are reluctant to rent to people they haven't met, so don't expect to get a room or an apartment before you move out here. However, most people manage to find a place within a week or two of moving here. If you have a friend to live with in the interim, or can find a place with a month-to-month lease where you can leave after one or two months, those can be temporary solutions.

There are several resources available for your search for housing:

<ul>
<li>[http://www.craigslist.com Craigslist]. A free classifieds service for everything from housing, to dating, to miscellaneous things people are giving away for free. Considering it started in the Bay Area, it's definitely taken root here as an indispensible place to place ads. Almost everyone with a rental posts an ad on this site, and it's by far the biggest listing of rooms/houses/apartments to rent. This is probably a good place to start your search and to get an idea of the prices.
<li>[http://calrentals.housing.berkeley.edu/ CalRentals]. A University office administering a rental listings service. Placing listings is free, but there is a $20 fee for three months of access to view the listings. Landlords who advertise with Cal Rentals often prefer students as tenants.
<li>[http://housing.berkeley.edu/livingatcal/studentsfamilies.html Subsidized University Housing for Families]. UC Berkeley offers partially subsidized apartments to married students and students with families.
<li>[http://ihouse.berkeley.edu/ International House]. Located right next to campus, the I-House is another popular location for graduate students, especially those seeking to diversify their contacts outside the department.
<li>[http://www.usca.org/ Co-ops]. The co-ops are unique living experience, and each house has a different flavor. Several dozen people live in each house. Food, cooking, and cleaning responsibilities are all shared, which keeps the costs lower and distributes the maintenance work evenly among the members. The houses are also located very close to campus.
<li>[/~mgsa/w/index.php/Protected:Housing MGSA Housing Page]. Visit our own housing page to contact other math graduate students about potential rooming arrangements and housing availability. Requires you to be a logged in user of our wiki.
</ul>

First Year Students

2008-08-10T19:58:43Z

Mgsa:

=Information for First Years=

The first year, and especially the first month, at Berkeley can be pretty overwhelming with all the tasks that you have to do. Settling into a new place, taking your prelim and fulfilling all the bureaucratic hurdles can be quite a whirlwind. The information below explains many of the situations you will probably face in your first year, and hopefully will make them all seem manageable. It's in your best interest to read through all this information at least once before arriving; they can provide a handy reference for navigating through your first year.

==Residency==

If you are a U.S. citizen or permanent resident, you ''must'' become a California resident after your first year. If you do not, you are responsible for the out-of-state tuition starting in your second year. The official 2008 residency checklist is [[Images:Grreschecklist.pdf | here]]. You can find the most current version [http://registrar.berkeley.edu/Residency/legalinfo.html here].

The Residency Office needs to be convinced that you are not here ''just'' for educational purposes. In practice, what happens is that you convince them you are not intending to live anywhere else after you graduate.

Completing the following steps will make the residency application process go more smoothly.

1. Make a credit card purchase for something shortly after you arrive in Berkeley and save the credit card statement. It can also help if you save your boarding pass if you are flying to California. This is to establish the approximate date of your arrival in the state.

2. Once you have a California address, change the official address the university has on file for you. This can be done easily via [http://bearfacts.berkeley.edu Bearfacts], under the section 'Personal'. You will need your student ID number to access this site.

3. Get a California Driver's License or State ID to replace your one from another state, and register your vehicle here. It is very IMPORTANT to do this within your first TWO WEEKS at Berkeley, otherwise you will probably be hassled about this from the Residency Office when you file for residency.

4. Open a local checking account. Again, do this within your first month. Both these steps indicate your intent on remaining permanently within the state.

5. Register to vote in California, and if an election comes around, make sure to vote.

6. File California State Taxes your first year here and make sure that you are not claimed as a dependent that year by anyone who is not a California resident.

7. Keep credit card and bank statements and make regular purchases by credit card or use the ATM regularly to verify that you have spent your time continuously in the state. The Residency Affairs office is most wary of where you spend your time when school is not in session; spending more than a more than a couple of weeks of the year visiting your home can impede your establishment of residency. Traveling to one place at every possible opportunity (e.g. Thanksgiving, winter break, spring break, summer) will make them think you intend return there when you finish your education instead of staying in California. Travel to other locations for academic purposes is less of a problem, especially if you have documentation of your time spent there. But still, plan on spending no more than six weeks outside of California your first year.

8. File an online Residence Classification Petition (available on Bearfacts) and submit the checklist and supporting documentation within a week of submitting the online petition. Instructions are given at the end of the online petition. The deadline for submission for the fall of your second year is usually towards the end of August; see the Student Calendar for an exact date.

However, the deadline for applying before fees are assessed is usually June 1. The difference between these two deadlines is that if you submit by the earlier deadline, and are classified as a resident, your fall fees will automatically be computed as if you were a resident and paid for by the department. If you submit by the later deadline, your fees will be automatically computed as if you are a non-resident and then later adjusted to the resident fees. This may mean that you might temporarily have to pay the difference between the non-resident and resident fees (a few hundred dollars), and will be refunded that money later in the semester.

First Year Students

2008-08-10T19:37:50Z

Mgsa:

First Year Students

2008-08-10T19:36:31Z

Mgsa: New page: =Information for First Years= The first year, and especially the first month, at Berkeley can be pretty overwhelming with all the tasks that you have to do. Settling into a new place, tak...

Main Page

2008-08-06T05:52:43Z

Mgsa:

<big>'''MGSA Welcomes You'''</big>

These are the wiki pages of the Mathematics Graduate Student Association of the University of California, Berkeley.

In order to edit any pages, you have to be logged in. This is to assure that only members of the Berkeley math department, and those that wish to benefit it, can alter the content of the pages.

Certain special pages (those that start with the 'Protected:' prefix) are only viewable by logged in users, so that the content remains within the Berkeley math community. These include the Job pages and the Housing listings.

===Making a new wiki page===

To create a new wiki page, simply edit the URL of this page, by replacing the words 'Main_Page' with 'your page name'. Spaces in the URL should be replaced with '_'. For example, /~mgsa/w/index.php/Boring_Example. Then just edit that page as you see fit: you can simply enter the text of your page, or you can make a more elaborate page if you know a bit of wiki markup. Look at the edit pages of some of the other wiki pages to get an idea for the special commands for getting things like section headings or italics. Please only use the characters A-Z a-z 0-9 . _ \ / ~ % - + & : ? ! = ( ) @ unless you know the special wiki uses of other characters, such as ] or *. These special characters might cause unexpected results.

And it's always smart to preview your post to make sure it displays the way you want it to.

Html

2008-04-23T05:37:09Z

Mgsa: redirect

#REDIRECT [[Webpage_Guide]]

Webpage

2008-04-23T05:20:19Z

Mgsa: redirect

#REDIRECT [[Webpage_Guide]]

Latex

2008-04-23T05:18:58Z

Mgsa: redirect

#REDIRECT [[LaTeX_basics]]

LaTeX

2008-04-23T05:18:23Z

Mgsa: redirect

#REDIRECT [[LaTeX_basics]]

Access to MathSciNet and UC eLinks from Home

2008-03-01T01:53:07Z

Mgsa:

Even if you are not on campus, you can still remotely access all the services and subscriptions that are available when you are physically on the campus network. Examples of such services are: MathSciNet, UC e-Links, JStor, etc.

To do this, you need to enable your browser to use a proxy server. Basically, what this means is that your computer communicates with the internet through an intermediary, the proxy server. In this case, the intermediary is the University server. Websites like MathSciNet only see the intermediary and treat all requests as if they were coming from the university. This is how you get access.

'''Note:''' You should have proxy servers enabled only when you need them. Since you are going through the intermediary, every request for information requires 4 transfers instead of two. This can cause a noticeable slowdown in your internet speed. (Instead of You -> Website -> You it becomes You -> Proxy -> Website -> Proxy -> You).

==Instructions==

Taken directly from [http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu/configure.calnet.html the University library site].

'''Internet Explorer 6.0 and 5.x (MS Windows Only) '''
Dial-up Modem Connection with Internet Explorer 6.0 or 5.x

*select: Tools
*select: Internet Options...
*select: Connections
*in the Dial-up settings box find the icon with the name of your dial-up service, and click on the icon once to highlight it
*select: Settings...
*check the box next to: "Automatically detect settings"
*check the box next to: "Use automatic configuration script"
*enter this Address: http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click on OK
*click on OK on the Internet Options menu

'''Internet Explorer 6.0 and 5.x (MS Windows Only) '''
DSL or Cable-Modem Connection (LAN) with Internet Explorer 6.0 or 5.x

*Notes: (1) Some users report that Internet Explorer 6.0 needs to be configured as if for a dial-up connection when used with a DSL or cable-modem service. (2) There seem to be one or more versions of Internet Explorer 6.0 that have been modified by SBC for use with their DSL service. If you are using such a browser, look for a "DSL Settings" facility rather than the "LAN Settings" area.
*select: Tools
*select: Internet Options...
*select: Connections
*select: LAN Settings
*check the box next to: "Use automatic configuration script"
*enter this Address: http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click on OK
*click on OK on the Internet Options menu

'''Internet Explorer 4.x (MS Windows Only) '''

*Use Service Pack 1 (SP1) or Higher; SP2 Highly Recommended
*select View
*select Internet Options
*select the Connection tab
*in the Automatic configuration box click on Configure
*enter this URL: http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click on Refresh
*click on OK then OK again on the Internet Options menu

'''Internet Explorer 3.x (MS Windows Only) '''

*select View
*select Options
*select the Connection tab
*in the Automatic configuration box click on Configure
*enter this URL: http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click on OK then OK again on the Internet Options menu

'''Netscape 7.x, 6.x or 4.x '''

*select Edit
*select Preferences
*click on the '+' to the left of the Advanced option
*click on Proxies
*click on the Automatic proxy configuration button
*enter in the Configuration Location (URL): http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click Reload and OK

'''Netscape 7.x, 6.x or 4.x in Mac OSX '''

*select Netscape from the menu bar.
*select Preferences
*click on the triangle to the left of the Advanced option
*click on Proxies
*click on the Automatic proxy configuration button
*enter in the Configuration Location (URL): http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click Reload and OK

'''Netscape Navigator 3.x and 2.x '''

*select Options
*select Network Preferences
*select the Proxies tab
*click on Automatic proxy configuration
*enter in the Configuration Location (URL): http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click Reload and oK

'''Mozilla 0.9.x or 1.x '''

*select Edit
*select Preferences
*click on the '+' to the left of the Advanced option
*click on Proxies
*click on the Automatic proxy configuration button
*enter in the Configuration Location (URL): http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click Reload and OK

'''Mozilla 0.9.x or 1.x in Mac OSX '''

*select Mozilla from the menu bar.
*select Preferences
*click on the triangle to the left of the Advanced option
*click on Proxies
*click on the Automatic proxy configuration button
*enter in the Configuration Location (URL): http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click Reload and OK

'''Mozilla Firefox 2.x '''

*select Tools
*select Options
*select Advanced
*select the Network tab
*in the "Connection" box, click on "Settings"
*click on the Automatic proxy configuration radio button
*enter in the Automatic proxy configuration URL: http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click Reload and then OK to close the "Connection Settings" dialog box
*click OK to close the "Options" dialog box

'''Mozilla Firefox 1.x '''

*select Tools
*select Options
*click on "Connection Settings" at the bottom of the "General" section of the "Options" dialog box
*click on the Automatic proxy configuration button
*enter in the Automatic proxy configuration URL: http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click Reload and then OK to close the "Connection Settings" dialog box
*click OK to close the "Options" dialog box

'''Mozilla Firefox 2.x in Mac OSX '''

*select Firefox from the menu bar.
*select Preferences
*select the Advanced icon
*select the Network tab
*in the "Connection" box, click on "Settings" button to bring up the "Set Up Proxies to Access the Internet" dialog box>
*click on the "Automatic proxy configuration URL" radio button
*enter the "Automatic proxy configuration URL:" http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click Reload and OK to close the "Connection Settings" dialog box
*click OK to save your changes and exit the Preferences dialog box.

'''Mozilla Firefox 1.x in Mac OSX '''

*select Firefox from the menu bar.
*select Preferences
*select the General icon
*click on the "Connection Settings" button to bring up the "Set Up Proxies for Accessing the Internet" dialog box>
*click on the "Automatic proxy configuration URL" radio button
*enter the "Automatic proxy configuration URL:" http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*click Reload and OK to close the "Connection Settings" dialog box
*click OK to save your changes and exit the Preferences dialog box.

'''Safari in Mac OSX '''

NOTE: Safari 2 under Mac OS 10.4.3 will work with the proxy service, as will Safari 1.2 under Mac OS 10.3.2. Safari 2 under 10.4 is problematic, and you should upgrade to the 10.4.3 level of the operating system if you hope to use Safari with the proxy service.
*Start up Safari, and choose "Preferences" from the "Safari" menu.
*Click on the "Advanced" icon.
*In the "Proxies:" option, click the "Change Settings..." button.
*System Preferences should start up automatically, with the "Network" panel open and "Proxies" selected. You may need to log in with your Administrator password to make these changes.
*Under "Select a proxy server to configure:", choose "Automatic Proxy Configuration." (You may need to scroll down the list to the end to see this choice).
*In the "Proxy Configuration File" text box, enter the URL for the CalNet-authenticating proxy server's configuration script: http://proxy.lib.berkeley.edu:7777/proxy.pac
*Click the "Apply now" button.
*Close the Network control panel.

It is not necessary to restart Safari to begin using the Library proxy server. There are, however, a number of caveats regarding the use of Safari with the proxy service.

Help:Contents

2008-02-08T23:59:39Z

Mgsa: Reverted edit of AceldRonch, changed back to last version by Mgsa

Please consult the [http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Help:FAQ MediaWiki FAQs] for questions about editing and creating pages on this site.

Wikipedia has an [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:How_to_edit_a_page introductory tutorial].

===Making a new wiki page===

To create a new wiki page, simply edit the URL of this page, by replacing the words 'Help:Contents' with 'your page name'. Spaces in the URL should be replaced with '_'. For example, /~mgsa/w/index.php/Boring_Example. Then just edit that page as you see fit: you can simply enter the text of your page, or you can make a more elaborate page if you know a bit of wiki markup. Look at the edit pages of some of the other wiki pages to get an idea for the special commands for getting things like section headings or italics. Please only use the characters A-Z a-z 0-9 . _ \ / ~ % - + & : ? ! = ( ) @ unless you know the special wiki uses of other characters, such as ] or *. These special characters might cause unexpected results.

And it's always smart to preview your post to make sure it displays the way you want it to.

Help:Contents

2008-02-04T11:27:44Z

Mgsa: varraccnom

domelt
Please consult the [http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Help:FAQ MediaWiki FAQs] for questions about editing and creating pages on this site.

Wikipedia has an [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:How_to_edit_a_page introductory tutorial].

===Making a new wiki page===

To create a new wiki page, simply edit the URL of this page, by replacing the words 'Help:Contents' with 'your page name'. Spaces in the URL should be replaced with '_'. For example, /~mgsa/w/index.php/Boring_Example. Then just edit that page as you see fit: you can simply enter the text of your page, or you can make a more elaborate page if you know a bit of wiki markup. Look at the edit pages of some of the other wiki pages to get an idea for the special commands for getting things like section headings or italics. Please only use the characters A-Z a-z 0-9 . _ \ / ~ % - + & : ? ! = ( ) @ unless you know the special wiki uses of other characters, such as ] or *. These special characters might cause unexpected results.

And it's always smart to preview your post to make sure it displays the way you want it to.

LaTeX Install

2007-10-03T21:44:14Z

Mgsa: /* Installing a Text Editor */

==Installation for Windows==

There are three easy steps for installing LaTeX on Windows:
* Install GhostView - for creating and viewing postscript (.ps) files
* Install MikTex - this is the standard LaTeX package for Windows
* Install a Text Editor - to type up your own LaTeX files or edit other people's files

All these components will take up approximately 400 MB on your computer, but have at least 600 MB free before installation to keep your computer running smoothly.

===Installing GhostView===

This step is so that you can create and view postscript (.ps) files.

You need to download GhostView, which consists of two parts, GSView and Ghostscript. [http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/gsview/index.htm Download] the most current versions of both and install them following the instructions in the self-extracting installation packages. Users of personal computers should install the Win32 versions of these packages.

===Installing MikTeX===

This is the crucial component of the installation and also the biggest on disk, consisting of more than 300 MB. Expect it to take about an hour to download and install, even with a fast connection and computer.

Go to the [http://miktex.org/ MikTex webpage] and choose Install MikTex from the left menu bar. Select the version you want to install (probably the newest) and follow the instructions. You usually have the choice between a basic install and a full install. If you have the room on your computer and plan to use LaTeX pretty heavily in the future, you might as well do a complete install, rather than having to [[Latex_Install#Installing_Extra_Packages add packages later]]. (Note: this is pretty much unnecessary with newer versions of MikTeX, if you're always connected to the internet -- it downloads any packages you need on the fly, while compiling your tex documents.)

Once MikTeX is done installing, it will have created two directories full of many files: the <tt>MikTex</tt> directory and the <tt>texmf</tt> directory, the latter of which has all the executable files like <tt>latex.exe</tt> .

====Adding MikTeX to the PATH====
In Windows, the "PATH" is a list of directories which are automatically searches for executable files when you type a command on the command line. You should add the directory containing <code>latex.exe</code> to the PATH.

In Windows XP, go to Control Panel, click on 'System', go to the 'Advanced' tab, click on 'Environment Variables'. Scroll down the 'user variables' box until you find "PATH" (you may need to create it?), and add the appropriate directory, probably <code>c:\miktex\texmf\bin\</code>. Multiple entries in the PATH should be separated by semicolons (;).

===Installing a Text Editor===

Any text editor is sufficient to type up LaTeX documents, however some are specially designed with LaTeX in mind. These usually have buttons for common tasks and text highlighting/coloration for LaTeX environments like Math Mode.

Warning: do not type up LaTeX documents in word processing programs, such as MS Word. These programs "mark up" the text, meaning they have program-specific coding hidden in the file. The text you see on screen is much less than the actual text inside the file. The LaTeX compiler will encounter this extra coding and produce strange results.

It's recommended to use a text editor with LaTeX-specific features. Such a list can be found [[Text_Editor | here]].

For text editors without LaTeX in mind, you will have to create your LaTeX files in them (making sure to give them a .tex filename extension). Open the command prompt, navigate to the directory containing your file, and type <code>latex <filename></code> to compile the file. This produces several files, including a <code>.dvi</code> file. The DVI file can easily be converted to PS or PDF formats.

(Note, this requires that you have correctly set the PATH, as described above.)

===Installing Extra Packages===
Once you've been using LaTeX for a while, you may find that you need to install new/additional LaTeX packages. MikTeX makes this process very simple. Find MikTeX in your Start Menu and select <tt>MikTex Options</tt>. This is the file <tt>mo.exe</tt> in the same directory where you find <tt>latex.exe</tt> (usually this is <tt>C:\texmf\miktex\bin</tt> ).

Click on the <tt>Packages</tt> tab, then right-click the root of the directory tree (usually called 'MikTeX Packages'). The option 'Find Package' appears, so click it. Then type the name of the package you seek into the appropriate field and click 'Find Now'. Select the search result you want and click 'Goto'. Install if necessary.

==Installation for Mac==

===Installing LaTeX===

===Installing a Text Editor===

A list of text editors can be found [[Text_Editor | here]].

===Installing Extra Packages===

Once you've been using LaTeX for a while, you may find that you need to install new/additional LaTeX packages.

==Installation for Linux==
If you're running something debian-like (including ubuntu), just type

sudo apt-get install latex

Easy, huh? You can now tex your documents with commands like

latex thesis

You might want to learn how to use emacs, which is often considered the-one-true-editor. On the other hand, it's a long and steep learning curve before you might believe that.

LaTeX Install

2007-10-03T17:24:51Z

Mgsa: /* Installation for Linux */

==Installation for Windows==

There are three easy steps for installing LaTeX on Windows:
* Install GhostView - for creating and viewing postscript (.ps) files
* Install MikTex - this is the standard LaTeX package for Windows
* Install a Text Editor - to type up your own LaTeX files or edit other people's files

All these components will take up approximately 400 MB on your computer, but have at least 600 MB free before installation to keep your computer running smoothly.

===Installing GhostView===

This step is so that you can create and view postscript (.ps) files.

You need to download GhostView, which consists of two parts, GSView and Ghostscript. [http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/gsview/index.htm Download] the most current versions of both and install them following the instructions in the self-extracting installation packages. Users of personal computers should install the Win32 versions of these packages.

===Installing MikTeX===

This is the crucial component of the installation and also the biggest on disk, consisting of more than 300 MB. Expect it to take about an hour to download and install, even with a fast connection and computer.

Go to the [http://miktex.org/ MikTex webpage] and choose Install MikTex from the left menu bar. Select the version you want to install (probably the newest) and follow the instructions. You usually have the choice between a basic install and a full install. If you have the room on your computer and plan to use LaTeX pretty heavily in the future, you might as well do a complete install, rather than having to [[Latex_Install#Installing_Extra_Packages add packages later]]. (Note: this is pretty much unnecessary with newer versions of MikTeX, if you're always connected to the internet -- it downloads any packages you need on the fly, while compiling your tex documents.)

Once MikTeX is done installing, it will have created two directories full of many files: the <tt>MikTex</tt> directory and the <tt>texmf</tt> directory, the latter of which has all the executable files like <tt>latex.exe</tt> .

====Adding MikTeX to the PATH====
In Windows, the "PATH" is a list of directories which are automatically searches for executable files when you type a command on the command line. You should add the directory containing <code>latex.exe</code> to the PATH.

In Windows XP, go to Control Panel, click on 'System', go to the 'Advanced' tab, click on 'Environment Variables'. Scroll down the 'user variables' box until you find "PATH" (you may need to create it?), and add the appropriate directory, probably <code>c:\miktex\texmf\bin\</code>. Multiple entries in the PATH should be separated by semicolons (;).

===Installing a Text Editor===

Any text editor is sufficient to type up LaTeX documents, however some are specially designed with LaTeX in mind. These usually have buttons for common tasks and text highlighting/coloration for LaTeX environments like Math Mode.

Warning: do not type up LaTeX documents in word processing programs, such as MS Word. These programs "mark up" the text, meaning they have program-specific coding hidden in the file. The text you see on screen is much less than the actual text inside the file. The LaTeX compiler will encounter this extra coding and produce strange results.

It's recommended to use a text editor with LaTeX-specific features. Such a list can be found [[Text_Editor | here]].

For text editors without LaTeX in mind, you will have to create your LaTeX files in them (making sure to give them a .tex filename extension). Open the command prompt, navigate to the containing your file, and type <code>latex <filename></code> to compile the file. This produces several files, including a <code>.dvi</code> file. The DVI file can easily be converted to PS or PDF formats.

(Note, this requires that you have correctly set the PATH, as described above.)

===Installing Extra Packages===
Once you've been using LaTeX for a while, you may find that you need to install new/additional LaTeX packages. MikTeX makes this process very simple. Find MikTeX in your Start Menu and select <tt>MikTex Options</tt>. This is the file <tt>mo.exe</tt> in the same directory where you find <tt>latex.exe</tt> (usually this is <tt>C:\texmf\miktex\bin</tt> ).

Click on the <tt>Packages</tt> tab, then right-click the root of the directory tree (usually called 'MikTeX Packages'). The option 'Find Package' appears, so click it. Then type the name of the package you seek into the appropriate field and click 'Find Now'. Select the search result you want and click 'Goto'. Install if necessary.

==Installation for Mac==

===Installing LaTeX===

===Installing a Text Editor===

A list of text editors can be found [[Text_Editor | here]].

===Installing Extra Packages===

Once you've been using LaTeX for a while, you may find that you need to install new/additional LaTeX packages.

==Installation for Linux==
If you're running something debian-like (including ubuntu), just type

sudo apt-get install latex

Easy, huh? You can now tex your documents with commands like

latex thesis

You might want to learn how to use emacs, which is often considered the-one-true-editor. On the other hand, it's a long and steep learning curve before you might believe that.

LaTeX Install

2007-10-03T17:23:11Z

Mgsa: /* Installation for Linux */

==Installation for Windows==

There are three easy steps for installing LaTeX on Windows:
* Install GhostView - for creating and viewing postscript (.ps) files
* Install MikTex - this is the standard LaTeX package for Windows
* Install a Text Editor - to type up your own LaTeX files or edit other people's files

All these components will take up approximately 400 MB on your computer, but have at least 600 MB free before installation to keep your computer running smoothly.

===Installing GhostView===

This step is so that you can create and view postscript (.ps) files.

You need to download GhostView, which consists of two parts, GSView and Ghostscript. [http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/gsview/index.htm Download] the most current versions of both and install them following the instructions in the self-extracting installation packages. Users of personal computers should install the Win32 versions of these packages.

===Installing MikTeX===

This is the crucial component of the installation and also the biggest on disk, consisting of more than 300 MB. Expect it to take about an hour to download and install, even with a fast connection and computer.

Go to the [http://miktex.org/ MikTex webpage] and choose Install MikTex from the left menu bar. Select the version you want to install (probably the newest) and follow the instructions. You usually have the choice between a basic install and a full install. If you have the room on your computer and plan to use LaTeX pretty heavily in the future, you might as well do a complete install, rather than having to [[Latex_Install#Installing_Extra_Packages add packages later]]. (Note: this is pretty much unnecessary with newer versions of MikTeX, if you're always connected to the internet -- it downloads any packages you need on the fly, while compiling your tex documents.)

Once MikTeX is done installing, it will have created two directories full of many files: the <tt>MikTex</tt> directory and the <tt>texmf</tt> directory, the latter of which has all the executable files like <tt>latex.exe</tt> .

====Adding MikTeX to the PATH====
In Windows, the "PATH" is a list of directories which are automatically searches for executable files when you type a command on the command line. You should add the directory containing <code>latex.exe</code> to the PATH.

In Windows XP, go to Control Panel, click on 'System', go to the 'Advanced' tab, click on 'Environment Variables'. Scroll down the 'user variables' box until you find "PATH" (you may need to create it?), and add the appropriate directory, probably <code>c:\miktex\texmf\bin\</code>. Multiple entries in the PATH should be separated by semicolons (;).

===Installing a Text Editor===

Any text editor is sufficient to type up LaTeX documents, however some are specially designed with LaTeX in mind. These usually have buttons for common tasks and text highlighting/coloration for LaTeX environments like Math Mode.

Warning: do not type up LaTeX documents in word processing programs, such as MS Word. These programs "mark up" the text, meaning they have program-specific coding hidden in the file. The text you see on screen is much less than the actual text inside the file. The LaTeX compiler will encounter this extra coding and produce strange results.

It's recommended to use a text editor with LaTeX-specific features. Such a list can be found [[Text_Editor | here]].

For text editors without LaTeX in mind, you will have to create your LaTeX files in them (making sure to give them a .tex filename extension). Open the command prompt, navigate to the containing your file, and type <code>latex <filename></code> to compile the file. This produces several files, including a <code>.dvi</code> file. The DVI file can easily be converted to PS or PDF formats.

(Note, this requires that you have correctly set the PATH, as described above.)

===Installing Extra Packages===
Once you've been using LaTeX for a while, you may find that you need to install new/additional LaTeX packages. MikTeX makes this process very simple. Find MikTeX in your Start Menu and select <tt>MikTex Options</tt>. This is the file <tt>mo.exe</tt> in the same directory where you find <tt>latex.exe</tt> (usually this is <tt>C:\texmf\miktex\bin</tt> ).

Click on the <tt>Packages</tt> tab, then right-click the root of the directory tree (usually called 'MikTeX Packages'). The option 'Find Package' appears, so click it. Then type the name of the package you seek into the appropriate field and click 'Find Now'. Select the search result you want and click 'Goto'. Install if necessary.

==Installation for Mac==

===Installing LaTeX===

===Installing a Text Editor===

A list of text editors can be found [[Text_Editor | here]].

===Installing Extra Packages===

Once you've been using LaTeX for a while, you may find that you need to install new/additional LaTeX packages.

==Installation for Linux==
If you're running something debian-like (including ubuntu), just type

sudo apt-get install latex

Easy, huh?

LaTeX Install

2007-10-03T17:22:25Z

Mgsa:

==Installation for Windows==

There are three easy steps for installing LaTeX on Windows:
* Install GhostView - for creating and viewing postscript (.ps) files
* Install MikTex - this is the standard LaTeX package for Windows
* Install a Text Editor - to type up your own LaTeX files or edit other people's files

All these components will take up approximately 400 MB on your computer, but have at least 600 MB free before installation to keep your computer running smoothly.

===Installing GhostView===

This step is so that you can create and view postscript (.ps) files.

You need to download GhostView, which consists of two parts, GSView and Ghostscript. [http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/gsview/index.htm Download] the most current versions of both and install them following the instructions in the self-extracting installation packages. Users of personal computers should install the Win32 versions of these packages.

===Installing MikTeX===

This is the crucial component of the installation and also the biggest on disk, consisting of more than 300 MB. Expect it to take about an hour to download and install, even with a fast connection and computer.

Go to the [http://miktex.org/ MikTex webpage] and choose Install MikTex from the left menu bar. Select the version you want to install (probably the newest) and follow the instructions. You usually have the choice between a basic install and a full install. If you have the room on your computer and plan to use LaTeX pretty heavily in the future, you might as well do a complete install, rather than having to [[Latex_Install#Installing_Extra_Packages add packages later]]. (Note: this is pretty much unnecessary with newer versions of MikTeX, if you're always connected to the internet -- it downloads any packages you need on the fly, while compiling your tex documents.)

Once MikTeX is done installing, it will have created two directories full of many files: the <tt>MikTex</tt> directory and the <tt>texmf</tt> directory, the latter of which has all the executable files like <tt>latex.exe</tt> .

====Adding MikTeX to the PATH====
In Windows, the "PATH" is a list of directories which are automatically searches for executable files when you type a command on the command line. You should add the directory containing <code>latex.exe</code> to the PATH.

In Windows XP, go to Control Panel, click on 'System', go to the 'Advanced' tab, click on 'Environment Variables'. Scroll down the 'user variables' box until you find "PATH" (you may need to create it?), and add the appropriate directory, probably <code>c:\miktex\texmf\bin\</code>. Multiple entries in the PATH should be separated by semicolons (;).

===Installing a Text Editor===

Any text editor is sufficient to type up LaTeX documents, however some are specially designed with LaTeX in mind. These usually have buttons for common tasks and text highlighting/coloration for LaTeX environments like Math Mode.

Warning: do not type up LaTeX documents in word processing programs, such as MS Word. These programs "mark up" the text, meaning they have program-specific coding hidden in the file. The text you see on screen is much less than the actual text inside the file. The LaTeX compiler will encounter this extra coding and produce strange results.

It's recommended to use a text editor with LaTeX-specific features. Such a list can be found [[Text_Editor | here]].

For text editors without LaTeX in mind, you will have to create your LaTeX files in them (making sure to give them a .tex filename extension). Open the command prompt, navigate to the containing your file, and type <code>latex <filename></code> to compile the file. This produces several files, including a <code>.dvi</code> file. The DVI file can easily be converted to PS or PDF formats.

(Note, this requires that you have correctly set the PATH, as described above.)

===Installing Extra Packages===
Once you've been using LaTeX for a while, you may find that you need to install new/additional LaTeX packages. MikTeX makes this process very simple. Find MikTeX in your Start Menu and select <tt>MikTex Options</tt>. This is the file <tt>mo.exe</tt> in the same directory where you find <tt>latex.exe</tt> (usually this is <tt>C:\texmf\miktex\bin</tt> ).

Click on the <tt>Packages</tt> tab, then right-click the root of the directory tree (usually called 'MikTeX Packages'). The option 'Find Package' appears, so click it. Then type the name of the package you seek into the appropriate field and click 'Find Now'. Select the search result you want and click 'Goto'. Install if necessary.

==Installation for Mac==

===Installing LaTeX===

===Installing a Text Editor===

A list of text editors can be found [[Text_Editor | here]].

===Installing Extra Packages===

Once you've been using LaTeX for a while, you may find that you need to install new/additional LaTeX packages.

==Installation for Linux==

Scientific Software

2007-10-03T09:07:01Z

Mgsa: fixed link

===Free Software===

List useful, free software below. Please do not link to any pirated software.

* [http://www.gnu.org/software/octave/ Octave] A free program that runs most Matlab code.
* [[Text_Editor | Free text editors]] for various operating systesm.

===Software Tips===

Scientific Software

2007-10-03T09:06:34Z

Mgsa: added link to text editors

===Free Software===

List useful, free software below. Please do not link to any pirated software.

* [http://www.gnu.org/software/octave/ Octave] A free program that runs most Matlab code.
* [[Text_Editor Free text editors]] for various operating systesm.

===Software Tips===

LaTeX basics

2007-10-03T08:59:08Z

Mgsa: added link to Text Editor page

==Learning LaTeX==
One very good idea is to get a LaTeX file from a more experienced user so that you can see their tricks in action, and just cut and paste. Even experienced LaTeX users do this from their own papers from time to time. For example, you could download the source for Ben Webster's papers from [/~bwebste his website]. More generally, you can get the source of any paper on [http://front.math.ucdavis.edu the arXiv], which should lead to a fairly inexhaustable source of LaTeX tricks beyond the standard tutorials.

If you want to use the exam package, you could use [/~eep/teaching/M54sp06PF.tex this practice final].

==Useful References==
[http://www.ctan.org/tex-archive/info/lshort/english/lshort.pdf "The Not-so-short introduction to LaTeX2e"] is very complete, and also written in a very easy to understand fashion. It's probably more useful as a reference than anything else -- I don't recommend reading it cover-to-cover.

[http://www-math.mit.edu/~psh/exam/examdoc.pdf "Using the exam document class"] is a very readable introduction to a very useful document class.

==Installing LaTeX==

Main article [[Latex_Install | here]].

==Editors==
Learn to use a specialized LaTeX editor. [[Text_Editor | Main Article]]

For the department computers, probably the best choice is Emacs with AucTeX.

[http://doc.kom.aau.dk/reference_cards/ Here] are some very useful reference cards for Emacs and AucTeX commands.

To use AucTeX (and RefTeX), edit your .emacs file (you may not know it's there, but it is), for example with the shell command <pre>emacs ~/.emacs &</pre>
and insert the lines
<pre>(require 'tex-site)
(setq reftex-plug-into-AUCTeX t)
(add-hook 'LaTeX-mode-hook 'turn-on-reftex)
</pre>
After this, AucTeX will automatically start up any time you use a TeX document.

For your home computer, you may need to download these packages. On a Mac, this can be done with [http://fink.sourceforge.net/ Fink].

Other editor options include:
*[http://www.winedt.com WinEdt] for Windows,
*[http://kile.sourceforge.net/ Kile] for KDE,
*[http://www.uoregon.edu/~koch/texshop/ TexShop] for Mac OS.

==Diagrams==
Th most popular package for drawing diagrams is XYpic. Drawing roughly rectalinear commutative diagrams is relatively easy (see the xyguide), but in fact, there is a lot more you can do with this package if you're willing to go through the steeper learning curve and learn xypic proper. Aaron Lauda has a lot of useful examples in [http://www.dpmms.cam.ac.uk/~al366/xytutorial.html his tutorial].

==Bibliographies==
Learn [http://cmtw.harvard.edu/Documentation/TeX/Bibtex/Example.html how to use BibTeX]. I promise you won't regret it later. Remember that you can get BibTeX citations from from [http://ams.rice.edu MathSciNet] or [http://front.math.ucdavis.edu the Front]. Somewhat obnoxiously, the standard BibTeX styles won't produce a citation to the arXiv, so you'll want an special BibTeX style. I use [/~bwebste/halpha.bst halpha.bst].

If ever want access to the LaTeX version of the bibliography that BibTeX has created, it's in the file *.bbl. If you submit a paper with BibTeX'ed bibliography to the arXiv, you should include the *.bbl file, NOT the *.bib.

Text Editor

2007-10-03T08:58:45Z

Mgsa: texmaker, winedt, editpad

==Free LaTeX Editors==

===TexMaker (Windows/Mac/Linux)===

Very well designed [http://www.xm1math.net/texmaker/ free editor] with buttons for compiling into dvi, ps, and pdf. Limited text coloring for different environments.

==Non-Free LaTeX Editors==

===WinEdt (Windows)===

Superb text editor for LaTeX. Highlights and colors text for the various environments. Matches parentheses, etc. Free trial for one month, then annoying popups start appearing, asking you to buy the [http://www.winedt.com/ program]. For students the price is $30.

==Free General Text Editors==

===EditPad Lite (Windows)===

[http://www.editpadpro.com/editpadlite.html EditPad], free version. Excellent text editor for general purposes.

===Notepad (Windows)===

This is standard on all Windows operating systems.

==Non-Free General Text Editors==

LaTeX Install

2007-10-03T08:45:22Z

Mgsa: /* Installing MikTeX */

==Installation for Windows==

There are three easy steps for installing LaTeX on Windows:
* Install GhostView - for creating and viewing postscript (.ps) files
* Install MikTex - this is the standard LaTeX package for Windows
* Install a Text Editor - to type up your own LaTeX files or edit other people's files

All these components will take up approximately 400 MB on your computer, but have at least 600 MB free before installation to keep your computer running smoothly.

===Installing GhostView===

This step is so that you can create and view postscript (.ps) files.

You need to download GhostView, which consists of two parts, GSView and Ghostscript. [http://pages.cs.wisc.edu/~ghost/gsview/index.htm Download] the most current versions of both and install them following the instructions in the self-extracting installation packages. Users of personal computers should install the Win32 versions of these packages.

===Installing MikTeX===

This is the crucial component of the installation and also the biggest on disk, consisting of more than 300 MB. Expect it to take about an hour to download and install, even with a fast connection and computer.

Go to the [http://miktex.org/ MikTex webpage] and choose Install MikTex from the left menu bar. Select the version you want to install (probably the newest) and follow the instructions. You usually have the choice between a basic install and a full install. If you have the room on your computer and plan to use LaTeX pretty heavily in the future, you might as well do a complete install, rather than having to [[Latex_Install#Installing_Extra_Packages add packages later]].

Once MikTeX is done installing, it will have created two directories full of many files: the <tt>MikTex</tt> directory and the <tt>texmf</tt> directory, the latter of which has all the executable files like <tt>latex.exe</tt> .

===Installing a Text Editor===

Any text editor is sufficient to type up LaTeX documents, however some are specially designed with LaTeX in mind. These usually have buttons for common tasks and text highlighting/coloration for LaTeX environments like Math Mode.

Warning: do not type up LaTeX documents in word processing programs, such as MS Word. These programs "mark up" the text, meaning they have program-specific coding hidden in the file. The text you see on screen is much less than the actual text inside the file. The LaTeX compiler will encounter this extra coding and produce strange results.

It's recommended to use a text editor with LaTeX-specific features. Such a list can be found [[Text_Editor | here]].

For text editors without LaTeX in mind, you will have to create your LaTeX files in them (making sure to give them a .tex filename extension). Then, bring the file to the same folder that latex.exe is in (usually <tt>C:\texmf\miktex\bin</tt> ). Open the command prompt, navigate to the folder latex.exe is in and type <code>latex <filename></code> to compile the file. This produces several files, including a <code>.dvi</code> file. The DVI file can easily be converted to PS or PDF formats.

===Installing Extra Packages===

Once you've been using LaTeX for a while, you may find that you need to install new/additional LaTeX packages. MikTeX makes this process very simple. Find MikTeX in your Start Menu and select <tt>MikTex Options</tt>. This is the file <tt>mo.exe</tt> in the same directory where you find <tt>latex.exe</tt> (usually this is <tt>C:\texmf\miktex\bin</tt> ).

Click on the <tt>Packages</tt> tab, then right-click the root of the directory tree (usually called 'MikTeX Packages'). The option 'Find Package' appears, so click it. Then type the name of the package you seek into the appropriate field and click 'Find Now'. Select the search result you want and click 'Goto'. Install if necessary.

==Installation for Mac==

===Installing LaTeX===

===Installing a Text Editor===

A list of text editors can be found [[Text_Editor | here]].

===Installing Extra Packages===

Once you've been using LaTeX for a while, you may find that you need to install new/additional LaTeX packages.

==Installation for Linux==

LaTeX Install

2007-10-03T08:34:27Z

Mgsa: added installing extra packages

LaTeX Install

2007-10-03T08:25:27Z

Mgsa: /* Installing GhostView */

LaTeX Install

2007-10-03T08:09:46Z

Mgsa:

LaTeX basics

2007-10-03T07:39:17Z

Mgsa: added link to LaTeX Install guide

==Learning LaTeX==
One very good idea is to get a LaTeX file from a more experienced user so that you can see their tricks in action, and just cut and paste. Even experienced LaTeX users do this from their own papers from time to time. For example, you could download the source for Ben Webster's papers from [/~bwebste his website]. More generally, you can get the source of any paper on [http://front.math.ucdavis.edu the arXiv], which should lead to a fairly inexhaustable source of LaTeX tricks beyond the standard tutorials.

If you want to use the exam package, you could use [/~eep/teaching/M54sp06PF.tex this practice final].

==Useful References==
[http://www.ctan.org/tex-archive/info/lshort/english/lshort.pdf "The Not-so-short introduction to LaTeX2e"] is very complete, and also written in a very easy to understand fashion. It's probably more useful as a reference than anything else -- I don't recommend reading it cover-to-cover.

[http://www-math.mit.edu/~psh/exam/examdoc.pdf "Using the exam document class"] is a very readable introduction to a very useful document class.

==Installing LaTeX==

Main article [[Latex_Install | here]].

==Editors==
Learn to use a specialized LaTeX editor. For the department computers, probably the best choice is Emacs with AucTeX.

[http://doc.kom.aau.dk/reference_cards/ Here] are some very useful reference cards for Emacs and AucTeX commands.

To use AucTeX (and RefTeX), edit your .emacs file (you may not know it's there, but it is), for example with the shell command <pre>emacs ~/.emacs &</pre>
and insert the lines
<pre>(require 'tex-site)
(setq reftex-plug-into-AUCTeX t)
(add-hook 'LaTeX-mode-hook 'turn-on-reftex)
</pre>
After this, AucTeX will automatically start up any time you use a TeX document.

For your home computer, you may need to download these packages. On a Mac, this can be done with [http://fink.sourceforge.net/ Fink].

Other editor options include:
*[http://www.winedt.com WinEdt] for Windows,
*[http://kile.sourceforge.net/ Kile] for KDE,
*[http://www.uoregon.edu/~koch/texshop/ TexShop] for Mac OS.

==Diagrams==
Th most popular package for drawing diagrams is XYpic. Drawing roughly rectalinear commutative diagrams is relatively easy (see the xyguide), but in fact, there is a lot more you can do with this package if you're willing to go through the steeper learning curve and learn xypic proper. Aaron Lauda has a lot of useful examples in [http://www.dpmms.cam.ac.uk/~al366/xytutorial.html his tutorial].

==Bibliographies==
Learn [http://cmtw.harvard.edu/Documentation/TeX/Bibtex/Example.html how to use BibTeX]. I promise you won't regret it later. Remember that you can get BibTeX citations from from [http://ams.rice.edu MathSciNet] or [http://front.math.ucdavis.edu the Front]. Somewhat obnoxiously, the standard BibTeX styles won't produce a citation to the arXiv, so you'll want an special BibTeX style. I use [/~bwebste/halpha.bst halpha.bst].

If ever want access to the LaTeX version of the bibliography that BibTeX has created, it's in the file *.bbl. If you submit a paper with BibTeX'ed bibliography to the arXiv, you should include the *.bbl file, NOT the *.bib.

Emergency phone numbers

2006-12-03T02:26:48Z

Mgsa:

Please make note of the following emergency numbers. This is especially relevant for GSI's should an emergency arise during section.

Emergency for Cell phones 642-3333 
Police (24-hours) 642-6760 
Emergency from campus phone or pay phone 911

If you forget these numbers you can always call the Front Office, 642-6550,
or Barbara Peavy at 642-2479 and we will call for help.

LaTeX basics

2006-10-11T21:38:55Z

Mgsa: /* Learning LaTeX */

==Learning LaTeX==
One very good idea is to get a LaTeX file from a more experienced user so that you can see their tricks in action, and just cut and paste. Even experienced LaTeX users do this from their own papers from time to time. For example, you could download the source for Ben Webster's papers from [/~bwebste his website]. More generally, you can get the source of any paper on [http://front.math.ucdavis.edu the arXiv], which should lead to a fairly inexhaustable source of LaTeX tricks beyond the standard tutorials.

If you want to use the exam package, you could use [/~eep/teaching/M54sp06PF.tex this practice final].

==Useful References==
[http://www.ctan.org/tex-archive/info/lshort/english/lshort.pdf "The Not-so-short introduction to LaTeX2e"] is very complete, and also written in a very easy to understand fashion. It's probably more useful as a reference than anything else -- I don't recommend reading it cover-to-cover.

[http://www-math.mit.edu/~psh/exam/examdoc.pdf "Using the exam document class"] is a very readable introduction to a very useful document class.

==Editors==
Learn to use a specialized LaTeX editor. For the department computers, probably the best choice is Emacs with AucTeX.

[http://doc.kom.aau.dk/reference_cards/ Here] are some very useful reference cards for Emacs and AucTeX commands.

To use AucTeX (and RefTeX), edit your .emacs file (you may not know it's there, but it is), for example with the shell command <pre>emacs ~/.emacs &</pre>
and insert the lines
<pre>(require 'tex-site)
(setq reftex-plug-into-AUCTeX t)
(add-hook 'LaTeX-mode-hook 'turn-on-reftex)
</pre>
After this, AucTeX will automatically start up any time you use a TeX document.

For your home computer, you may need to download these packages. On a Mac, this can be done with [http://fink.sourceforge.net/ Fink].

Other editor options include:
*[http://www.winedt.com WinEdt] for Windows,
*[http://kile.sourceforge.net/ Kile] for KDE,
*[http://www.uoregon.edu/~koch/texshop/ TexShop] for Mac OS.

==Diagrams==
Th most popular package for drawing diagrams is XYpic. Drawing roughly rectalinear commutative diagrams is relatively easy (see the xyguide), but in fact, there is a lot more you can do with this package if you're willing to go through the steeper learning curve and learn xypic proper. Aaron Lauda has a lot of useful examples in [http://www.dpmms.cam.ac.uk/~al366/xytutorial.html his tutorial].

==Bibliographies==
Learn [http://cmtw.harvard.edu/Documentation/TeX/Bibtex/Example.html how to use BibTeX]. I promise you won't regret it later. Remember that you can get BibTeX citations from from [http://ams.rice.edu MathSciNet] or [http://front.math.ucdavis.edu the Front]. Somewhat obnoxiously, the standard BibTeX styles won't produce a citation to the arXiv, so you'll want an special BibTeX style. I use [/~bwebste/halpha.bst halpha.bst].

If ever want access to the LaTeX version of the bibliography that BibTeX has created, it's in the file *.bbl. If you submit a paper with BibTeX'ed bibliography to the arXiv, you should include the *.bbl file, NOT the *.bib.

LaTeX basics

2006-10-11T21:38:08Z

Mgsa:

==Learning LaTeX==
One very good idea is to get a LaTeX file from a more experienced user so that you can see their tricks in action, and just cut and paste. Even experienced LaTeX users do this from there own papers from time to time. For example, you could download the source for Ben Webster's papers from [/~bwebste his website]. More generally, you can get the source of any paper on [http://front.math.ucdavis.edu the arXiv], which should lead to a fairly inexhaustable source of LaTeX tricks beyond the standard tutorials.

If you want to use the exam package, you could use [/~eep/teaching/M54sp06PF.tex this practice final].

==Useful References==
[http://www.ctan.org/tex-archive/info/lshort/english/lshort.pdf "The Not-so-short introduction to LaTeX2e"] is very complete, and also written in a very easy to understand fashion. It's probably more useful as a reference than anything else -- I don't recommend reading it cover-to-cover.

[http://www-math.mit.edu/~psh/exam/examdoc.pdf "Using the exam document class"] is a very readable introduction to a very useful document class.

==Editors==
Learn to use a specialized LaTeX editor. For the department computers, probably the best choice is Emacs with AucTeX.

[http://doc.kom.aau.dk/reference_cards/ Here] are some very useful reference cards for Emacs and AucTeX commands.

To use AucTeX (and RefTeX), edit your .emacs file (you may not know it's there, but it is), for example with the shell command <pre>emacs ~/.emacs &</pre>
and insert the lines
<pre>(require 'tex-site)
(setq reftex-plug-into-AUCTeX t)
(add-hook 'LaTeX-mode-hook 'turn-on-reftex)
</pre>
After this, AucTeX will automatically start up any time you use a TeX document.

For your home computer, you may need to download these packages. On a Mac, this can be done with [http://fink.sourceforge.net/ Fink].

Other editor options include:
*[http://www.winedt.com WinEdt] for Windows,
*[http://kile.sourceforge.net/ Kile] for KDE,
*[http://www.uoregon.edu/~koch/texshop/ TexShop] for Mac OS.

==Diagrams==
Th most popular package for drawing diagrams is XYpic. Drawing roughly rectalinear commutative diagrams is relatively easy (see the xyguide), but in fact, there is a lot more you can do with this package if you're willing to go through the steeper learning curve and learn xypic proper. Aaron Lauda has a lot of useful examples in [http://www.dpmms.cam.ac.uk/~al366/xytutorial.html his tutorial].

==Bibliographies==
Learn [http://cmtw.harvard.edu/Documentation/TeX/Bibtex/Example.html how to use BibTeX]. I promise you won't regret it later. Remember that you can get BibTeX citations from from [http://ams.rice.edu MathSciNet] or [http://front.math.ucdavis.edu the Front]. Somewhat obnoxiously, the standard BibTeX styles won't produce a citation to the arXiv, so you'll want an special BibTeX style. I use [/~bwebste/halpha.bst halpha.bst].

If ever want access to the LaTeX version of the bibliography that BibTeX has created, it's in the file *.bbl. If you submit a paper with BibTeX'ed bibliography to the arXiv, you should include the *.bbl file, NOT the *.bib.

Webpage Guide

2006-09-27T18:12:40Z

Mgsa:

This page provides a basic tutorial on how to create your own webpage on the math department server. Before proceeding, please make sure you understand basic [[File_Management|file management]], especially setting file permissions.

In your home directory, you need to create a directory called <tt>public_html</tt> . All files and directories for your webpage need to go in this directory, and the directory and all its contents must have their [[File_Management#Permissions|permissions set]] so that others can read the files and read and execute the directories. Make sure that any content you want on your webpage, like pictures, pdf's, etc., is located in <tt>public_html</tt>.

Additionally, <tt>public_html</tt> should have a file called <tt>index.html</tt> , which will be your homepage, i.e. the first page that pops up when someone visits your website. Once you've created this file (and set its permissions), your website's homepage will have the URL: <tt>/~USERNAME</tt>. In general, if you create a webpage called foo.html, it's URL will be <tt>/~USERNAME/foo.html</tt>.

Create html files using your favorite text editor. On the departmental computers, emacs and pico are two standard text editors.

===Basic HTML===

Each individual webpage on your site corresponds to a file of the form <tt>name.html</tt> . An HTML file just consists of plain text with a couple commands that tell the browser to do something to the display (for example, make the text bold font). Just like in LaTeX, there are some special characters that tell the browser "I am giving you a command"; they are <, > and /. Every command takes the form <code><command></code>, and most commands also allow you to turn them off by typing <code></command></code>. For example, if you want to turn on bold font, type <code></code>. When you are done typing the text that you'd like bold, turn off bold font with <code></code>.

The nice thing about HTML is that it is very forgiving--even if you make a mistake it will try its best to render something in the browser. This makes it easy to see the mistake and usually makes it easy to see how to fix the mistake too. Commands are case-insensitive.

* <code><HTML></code> In principle, every .html file should begin with <code><HTML></code> and end with <code></HTML></code> to let the browser know that you are going to use HTML commands. But if you plan on just writing plain text, then this is not necessary.
* <code><Title></code> This is the title of the webpage--what appears in the top bar of the browser window. Be sure to turn it off after using it, so that all the text doesn't appear in that one bar!
* <code><Body></code> This delineates the body of the webpage: all the text, images, etc that you want to appear on the page should go in between the Body on and off commands.
* <code> </code> and <code></code> Notice that if you just type text in an HTML file, the browser will ignore all enter keystrokes. In general, browsers treat extra "whitespace" as just one click of the spacebar. To tell a browser that you would like a line break, use br. If you would furthermore like a blank line to start of the next paragraph of text, use p instead.
* <code></code>, <code></code>, <code></code>, and <code><s></code>. Bold, italic, underlined and strikethrough text, respectively.

* <code></code> Set many optional properties on the font. Size takes a number as an argument; align takes one of "right", "center" or "left" as its argument; and color takes an RGB value as its argument. An RGB (red-green-blue) value is simply a 6 digit base-16 number, which means the digits can take any value from 0 to 9 and A to F. The first two digits give you the amount of red, the next two give you green, the last two give you blue. For example, fa8072 yields a tasty salmon color. To turn all these properties off, you just have to type <code></code>.

* <code> <body background="file/URL" bgcolor="rrggbb" link="rrggbb" vlink="rrggbb"></code> The optional properties for the BODY command, which set the background and the colors of links. Background takes either a filename (from you public_html directory) or a URL of another website, and sets that as the background. If it is too small of an image, it will be tiled. Bgcolor sets the background to a solid color if you don't want an background image. It, like link and vlink, takes an RGB value to set the color. Link is the color of an unclicked link; vlink is the color of a clicked link.

* <code> <img src="file/URL"></code> For inserting an image onto you webpage. The argument for src is either a filename or pathname for an image in your public_html directory, or else a complete URL to an image elsewhere.

* <code> <A HREF="URL">text</A> </code>. For links to pages on your site or on other sites. This can also be used to link to a PDF file or some other file for download. The URL is either the full URL for some other website (including the initial <tt>http://</tt>), or else just a pathname for an html file in your public_html directory. When the link is clicked, this is the page the browser directs you to. "Text" is just the text of hyperlink. For example, you may want the text to say "Solutions to Homework 9", but the URL will be something like "solutions9.pdf".

* <code> <mailto: emailaddress></code>. Creates a link that when clicked will open up the user's email program to send an email to "emailaddress". It is highly advised that you do NOT use this, but instead use Javascript to conceal your email address from spammers. See [[Webpage_Guide#Concealing_Your_Email_From_Spammers | below]] for ways to conceal your email address.

===Learning More HTML===

If you come across a webpage and want to know how they did that, you can try looking at the webpage's source. Most browsers have a View Source option in their menu; this will bring up the HTML page which you can examine.

Also, there are many other HTML tutorials and reference guides. One reference can be found [http://www.htmlhelp.com/reference/wilbur/ here].

===Concealing Your Email From Spammers===

Spammers use automated programs called webcrawlers to browse through webpages searching for email addresses. If your email address is just written in plain text in the HTML file (especially if you use the <code>mailto</code> command) a webcrawler will pick it up and you will get more spam. There are a few ways to conceal your email address from webcrawlers. We have listed them below, in increasing difficulty of implementation (which also happens to be increasing order of strength).

* Use words instead of punctuation. Many primitive webcrawlers are designed to look for the @ symbol and then copy the text around it. If you write words, like <code>mgsa AT math DOT berkeley DOT edu</code>, many webcrawlers will not realize it is an email address. This is a pretty commonly implemented trick to fool webcrawlers, but it's easy for a spammer to adapt and include searches for "AT <word> DOT" and still find your email. However, if your email address has some natural form, then you can use that in the description and webcrawlers will not be able to get it. For example: <code>my last name AT math DOT berkeley DOT edu</code>.

* Another way to fool webcrawlers who search for @ is to replace @ with an image of the symbol @. Webcrawlers cannot "see" what an image says, so this method completely works. The only downside is that someone trying to copy your email address has to remember to add the @ symbol. A large selection of images can be found doing an Google advanced image search for "at.gif" with the requirement that all images be small size.

* Javascript is used to embed Java programs in HTML and we can use it in a very simple way to conceal the <code>mailto:</code> command from spammers. This is the method used by the math department and MGSA to hide email addresses on their websites. This method also allows viewers to simply copy and paste email addresses into their email programs. To use it for a math.berkeley.edu email address, copy the following code into your HTML file where you would normally have a <code>mailto:</code> command.
<code><script type="text/javascript"> 
GoFish=new Array() 
GoFish[0]="%3c%61%20%68%72%65%66%3d%" + "22%6d%61%69%6c%74%6f%3a" 
GoFish[1]="YOUR_NAME_HERE" + "%40%6d%61%74%68%2e%62%65%72%6b%" 
GoFish[2]="65%6c%65%79%2e%65%64%75%22%3e" + "YOUR_NAME_HERE" 
GoFish[3]="%40%6d%61%74%68%2e%62%65%" + "72%6b%65%6c%65%79%2e%65%6" 
GoFish[4]="4%75%3c%2f%61%3e" + "" 
OutString=""; 
for (j=0;j<GoFish.length;j++){ 
OutString+=GoFish[j]; 
}document.write(unescape(OutString)); 
</script> 
</code>

In the two spots where it says YOUR_NAME_HERE you have to put the hexadecimal code for your username. This [http://centricle.com/tools/ascii-hex/ hex generator] will output the hexadecimal code for your username.