LaTeX and Mac OS X's Grapher (advice)

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SUMMARY

This discussion focuses on using Mac OS X's Grapher application to create LaTeX expressions for posting in forums. Users can type equations in Grapher, right-click to copy the LaTeX expression, and then format it with [tex] tags for forum use. Keyboard shortcuts for various mathematical symbols are provided, including \neq, \pi, \sum, \partial, \div, \int, and \sqrt. The conversation also addresses the manual LaTeX expressions for symbols like ∆ and ≈, clarifying that while Grapher does not automatically convert these, users can still type them directly in LaTeX.

PREREQUISITES
  • Familiarity with Mac OS X's Grapher application
  • Basic understanding of LaTeX syntax and formatting
  • Knowledge of mathematical symbols and their LaTeX representations
  • Experience with forum posting and markup languages
NEXT STEPS
  • Explore advanced features of Mac OS X's Grapher for complex equations
  • Learn more about LaTeX packages for enhanced mathematical typesetting
  • Research keyboard shortcuts for LaTeX symbols in different applications
  • Practice creating and formatting LaTeX expressions for various mathematical contexts
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This discussion is beneficial for mathematicians, educators, students, and anyone using LaTeX for typesetting mathematical expressions in online forums.

daytripper
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LaTeX and Mac OS X's "Grapher" (advice)

Hello everyone.
I recently stumbled upon something that I consider incredibly useful (and poor practice, I realize). I figured I'd post it here in the hopes of helping someone to discover this themselves.

Using Grapher to create LaTeX expressions for PF:
Go into Mac's Grapher and type up an equation. Grapher has a fairly intuitive expression editor in it. After you've created your equation right-click on the equation. An option should pop up saying "copy LaTeX expression". After that, when posting it to the forums, simply surround what's on your clipboard with [ tex] [ /tex] (minus the extra spaces) and you're done.

Here's some useful keyboard shortcuts for things such as sqrt, sigma, and the integral thingy.
To type these symbols in grapher, hold down "alt" then press the corresponding key
= - \neq

p - \pi

w - \sum_{a}^{b}{f\left( x \right)} (notated for ease of reading)

d - \partial

/ - \div

b - \int_{a}^{b}{f\left( x \right)}

v - \sqrt{a}

V (capitol V) - \sqrt[a]{b}

alt + capitol P makes a symbol which looks familiar and apparently can be used by Grapher but there seems to be some sort of issue with the LaTeX.

You can make ∆ via alt+j but there's no latex expression for it. Same goes for ≈ with alt+x.
î can be produce via alt+i then i again, but this seems pointless as it seems you can't make j-hat or k-hat.

Anyway, I hope I've been of help.
-Tim

edit: mutton pointed out that there is a way to write delta and approximation via LaTeX (see below). Mac just doesn't do this for you. Sorry if the above comment was misleading. Thanks mutton.
 
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For manual conversion:

\Delta - \Delta
\approx - \approx
 


\hat i - \hat i

\hat j - \hat j

\hat k - \hat k

The dots on the i and j don't look nice with the hat, so:

\hat \imath - \hat \imath[/itex]<br /> <br /> \hat \jmath - \hat \jmath[/itex]&lt;br /&gt; &lt;br /&gt; I find that it really is fastest to just type the LaTeX directly when posting. (Then again, I&amp;#039;ve never made LaTeX code any other way.)
 


yea, but I've got an easy way out so I guess I'll never learn. haha. thanks for the tips on \hat \imath and such, though.
edit: \imath isn't working for me... my latex for that symbol is \hat \imath... not sure why
 

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