Session 2

If you have got this far, you should already have some idea how LaTeX processes (or "compiles") a source file to a dvi file, and you should have some idea of the sort of commands you need to put in a LaTeX source file. You will also have experimented with simple files, and know how to compile them with LaTeX, view and print them, and how to deal with one of those nasty LaTeX error messages.

If you feel you do need to revise any of this material, you should go back and have another look at Session 1. Otherwise, try out the following.

As you start to type your own documents, you will find particular problems related to the material you are trying to typeset. Remember: LaTeX has an enormous number of packages to help with all sorts of problems from the simple to the esoteric, and it is usually better to get a special package for a particular problem than to start reprogramming parts of LaTeX yourself. I can advise Birmingham Maths students on suitable packages to use to solve their problems.