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TeX Live 2008/2009

Summary

Upgrade TeX Live to 2008 or, alternatively to 2009 if upstream releases new version. Use packaging based on upstream metadata and don't use monolithic build any more.

Owner

Current status

  • Targeted release: Fedora 12
  • Last updated: 2009-06-23
  • Percentage of completion: 50%

Detailed Description

TeX Live uses uses its own classification of TeX packages which can be automated and used by packaging systems in various distributions. The packaging metadata that upstream provides allows to distinguish doc, source and runtime files which could then be packaged separately.

Benefit to Fedora

A better packaging scheme allows to reduce bandwidth and save significant disc space. It also allows simpler maintenance of separate TeX packages.

Scope

Requires packaging or testing and/or enhancements in fedora infrastructure, currently 1627 new packages are to be reviewed and added.

How To Test

First off install the repository:

# rpm -i http://jnovy.fedorapeople.org/texlive/texlive-release-2008-1.fc11.noarch.rpm

The package contains repo file for yum which contains TeX Live 2008 with binaries from the TeX Live development tree as of 13th June. After installing the release package do:

yum install texlive

if you don't have texlive already installed. While upgrading from older texlive release please remove all the texlive packages before the upgrade, especially be sure that the /usr/share/texmf directory is removed. This is because the famous directory -> symlink upgrade RPM bug.

This will install the basic TeX Live scheme. You can alternatively install any of these schemes:

  1. texlive-scheme-basic
  2. texlive-scheme-context
  3. texlive-scheme-full
  4. texlive-scheme-gust
  5. texlive-scheme-gutenberg
  6. texlive-scheme-medium
  7. texlive-scheme-minimal
  8. texlive-scheme-omega
  9. texlive-scheme-tetex
  10. texlive-scheme-xml

or various pre-set TeX Live collections, the list is here: http://jnovy.fedorapeople.org/texlive/collections

You are also allowed to install the packages themselves, full list is here: http://jnovy.fedorapeople.org/texlive/pkgs

Note that it is in testing state so (many) bugs could occur. There are possible clashes with applications packaged separately (such as dvipdfmx, etc.) so we may want to discuss these conflicts with respective fedora package maintainers to fix them. In case you are a maintainer of such package please send me an email to me so that we can sort it out on the TeX Live side (packages maintained separately are preferred).

User Experience

Users could use exactly the part of TeX they need without wasting disc space.

Dependencies

  1. need mass review for all packages before this feature is completed
  2. need to do a license audit - done automatically because upstream metadata contains codes for package licenses
  3. import of all of the ~1600 packages need to be finished
  4. all of the packages need to be built

Contingency Plan

Stay stuck with TeX Live 2007.

Documentation

Release Notes

TeX Live 2008 is now introduced with improved packaging scheme that saves download bandwidth and disc size. It is based on upstream packaging metadata and an automated license audit is performed. Packages are now composed from schemes and collections to define a package set user needs to install to use a particular TeX Live feature.

Comments and Discussion