General ⇒ how to compile

[sofie]

hello everybody,
I'm new here, my name as you can see is sofie. I'm learning how to use latex for my end theses for my bachelor in econometrics.
I use texniccenter to write, but I can't seem to compile my first testfile. I tried to build (ctrl+F7) and then view output (F5), but the only thing I get then, is 'cannot execute the command'.
I also have tried to define output files, but I can not figure out what to do there.
Hope that anyone would like to help a beginner, thanks

[localghost]

What did you install beside TeXnicCenter? Note that TeXnicCenter does not provide a LaTeX system. So you have to install a MiKTeX system to get it work. It is recommended to also install GSview and Ghostscript for viewing postscript files and the Adobe Reader for viewing PDF files.

[localghost]

What did you install beside TeXnicCenter? Note that TeXnicCenter does not provide a LaTeX system. So you have to install a MiKTeX system to get it work. It is recommended to also install GSview and Ghostscript for viewing postscript files and the Adobe Reader for viewing PDF files.

Edit: Obviously something went wrong. So this post can be deleted.

[sofie]

hi localghost,

I already also downloaded miktech 2.6
but I don't know how to use that to compile or view. it has so many maps.. i'll try downloading the other programme you suggested, ghostview

thanks anyway

[localghost]

So, to get closer to a solution, please describe in detail what you have done to get your source compiled (installed programs, compiling routes, …). If you get error messages, post an extract (or the whole LOG file as attachment). And if necessary, add the source code. So we may find out what's going wrong.

[sofie]

Hi localghost,

I installed miktex 2.6 and texniccenter. I didn't write a whole source code yet, I just tried to get familiar with these programs. I copy-pasted a very simple program from a manual about latex. It's like this:
\documentclass[12pt]{article}
\usepackage{amsfonts,amsmath, a4wide}
\usepackage[dutch]{babel}
\frenchspacing
\sloppy
\begin{document}
\title{Wachtrij-analyse met daarin voortijdige vertrekken opgenomen}
\author{Sofie van Ginkel}
\maketitle
blablabla
\end{document}

The thing is, when trying to compile, texniccenter doesn't say that something is wrong with the code. There's just this pop-up window saying: 'cannot execute the command' and it gives you only the option 'ok'. Hope this makes my problem a little more clear to you.

Greetings, sofie

[sofie]

ok, after trying some more, I know what my problem is. I don't know what to enter when defining output profiles. I added LaTeX => PDF, but what do I enter for 'path to the (La)TeX-compiler' and what for 'command line arguments to pass to the compiler'?

[pumpkinegan]

LaTeX => PDF means that you want to compile with pdflatex.exe, so set the path to the (La)TeX compiler to be pdflatex.exe which is in the bin directory of MiKTeX, and set the command line arguments to be:

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-interaction=nonstopmode "%pm"
 
 
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Then you will have to set the viewer to be a PDF reader, such as Adobe Reader.

Alternatively, I have included a build profile, which you should be able to import to TeXnicCenter (Alt + F7). Just make sure the paths are set correctly for your system.

[localghost]

I recommend to use the standard build profiles of TeXnicCenter first. So you are only some clicks and key touches away from a running system. You can find them in the attachment. Unzip the archive and import them via Alt+F7. Note that the profiles are made for TeXnicCenter 7.01 Beta 1 with MiKTeX 2.6, GPL Ghostsript 8.56 (with GSview 4.8 in combination) and Adobe Reader 8.1 on a german system. Ghostscript is needed to compile with the profile "LaTeX => PS => PDF", where it converts the Postscript file to PDF format. You have to adapt the paths to get it work for you. Additionally you have to remove some command line parameters for makeindex in all profiles.

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-s personal.ist -g "%bm"
 
 
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Since my personal index style file "personal.ist" doesn't exist on your system and you will not have any interest to sort your index for the german language with "-g", you have to remove that and replace the command line with the default settings.

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"%bm"
 
 
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Later on you can do some experiments with the texify binary suggested by pumpkinegan.

[sofie]

hi guys,
thanks a lot for your help. i think i can come a long way with both your help. maybe you'll hear from me later.

sofie