Hacker News new | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submit login

I recently discovered this python interface for tikz https://github.com/allefeld/pytikz

While it does not directly address the issues you point at, it does alleviate some issues.

* The syntax is somewhat easier to parse.

* It is a lot easier to write functions to redraw the same components over and over again.

* Doing math calculations to systemically place objects in relation to each other is a lot easier because python's arithmetic syntax is a lot more intuitive than TeX's.

Of course, this does mean that you have to fire up python to draw figures.




Since it looks like you've contributed to this project, I have one MAJOR suggestion. Show examples. There's countless tikz projects I've seen that promise a lot and show absolutely nothing. I've invested lots of time to fruitless ends that would have been resolved if I just could see some examples that would show me if this is even in the right ballpark of what I'm looking for or not.

Examples code is a must for any software (test cases work as examples btw) and example graphics are a must for any graphics software. I know this isn't your fault, but I'm just venting a bit here. I'll check this out the next time I'm writing a paper but I just don't get how people can put software out there without any examples (even toy examples). If you have any examples you're willing to share I'd find that extremely helpful.


I merely fixed a small bug in the code.

There are some examples in this notebook https://nbviewer.org/github/allefeld/pytikz/blob/master/pyti...

Otherwise, this is just a python interface for tikz. Whatever is possible in tikz is possible in this. For every command in tikz, the corresponding python command is here https://allefeld.github.io/pytikz/tikz/

However, I do agree that more examples would help. In its current form, its mostly useful to people who are already familiar with tikz and need simpler syntax, and can quickly get up to speed with this.


Thanks, these examples do help!




Join us for AI Startup School this June 16-17 in San Francisco!

Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: