INTRODUCTION revision 21495
1Getting Started with Texinfo 2============================ 3 425 March 1993 5 6Most of the installation instructions are described in the file `INSTALL'. 7One additional note to make is that if your info files are in a nonstandard 8place (i.e. not in the `info' directory immediately under $prefix) you may 9wish to change the default info path as specified via DEFAULT_INFOPATH in 10info/Makefile.in. 11 12"Texinfo" is a documentation system that uses a single source file to 13produce both on-line information and printed output. Using Texinfo, 14you can create a printed document with the normal features of a book, 15including chapters, sections, cross references, and indices. From the 16same Texinfo source file, you can create a menu-driven, on-line Info 17file with nodes, menus, cross references, and indices. 18 19The name of the Texinfo source documentation file is `texinfo.texi'. 20You can produce both on-line information and printed output from this 21source file. The documentation describes Texinfo in detail, including 22how to write Texinfo files, how to format them for both hard copy and 23Info, and how to install Info files. 24 25To get started, you need to create either a printed manual or an 26on-line Info file from the `texinfo.texi' file. You do not need to 27create both, although you will probably want both eventually. 28 29To learn how to use Info, read the info documentation. You can do this in 30one of two ways: using the standalone `info' program, or using Info mode in 31GNU Emacs. 32 33 * If you want to use the `info' program, type 34 35 $ info -f info-stnd 36 37 * If you want to use Emacs, start up emacs and type `C-h i' [M-x info]. 38 Follow the instructions to learn how to use Info. 39 40After learning how to use Info, you can read the Texinfo documentation. 41Using the standalone `info', type the following at the shell prompt: 42 43 $ info -f texinfo 44 45To use read this manual in Emacs, you first need to edit the Info-directory 46menu (the file `dir' in the system info directory) to contain the 47appropriate node. To learn how to do this, see node: Add in the Info 48documentation. 49 50The Texinfo documentation describes Texinfo in detail; among other things, 51it tells how to install Info files in the usual manner. (See node: Install 52an Info File.) 53 54The `info-stnd.info' file describes the standalone Info reader in detail. To 55read this file, type 56 57 $ info -f info-stnd 58 59If you are using GNU Emacs, you may want to install the Emacs Lisp files 60permanently. Move them them to a directory in the load-path for Emacs; 61otherwise Emacs will not be able to load the autoloaded support files, such 62as `texinfmt.el'. 63 64The `texinfo.el' file contains the autoload commands; it is the only 65file that needs to be loaded initially. If your Emacs does not 66automatically load `texinfo.el', you can tell it to do so by placing 67the following in `default.el' or in your `.emacs' file: 68 69 (load "texinfo") 70 71 72To create a printed manual 73========================== 74 75You need: 76 77 * The `tex' program, which typesets the manual using TeX. 78 * The `texinfo.tex' definition file that tells TeX how to typeset 79 a Texinfo file. 80 * The `texindex' program, which sorts the unsorted index files 81 created by TeX. 82 * A printing program such as `lp' or `lpr', 83 * A printer. 84 85This Texinfo distribution package contains `texinfo.tex', the C source 86for `texindex', and the handy shell script `texi2dvi'. The `tex' 87program is not part of this distribution, but is available separately. 88(See `How to Obtain TeX' in the Texinfo documentation.) 89 90 * Install `tex'. (`texindex' is installed automagically by 91 `make install' in this distribution.) 92 93 * Move the `texinfo.tex' file to an appropriate directory; the current 94 directory will do. (`/usr/local/lib/tex/inputs' might be a good place. 95 See ``Preparing to Use TeX'' in the Texinfo manual, for more 96 information.) 97 98After following those instructions, type the following to make the .dvi 99files: 100 101 $ make texinfo.dvi 102 $ (cd info; make info.dvi info-stnd.dvi) 103 $ (cd makeinfo; make makeinfo.dvi) 104 105You can then print the resulting .dvi files with the `lpr' command (on BSD 106systems. On SysV systems the command is `lp'. Consult your man pages for 107more information). 108 109For example, the command to print the texinfo.dvi file might be: 110 111 $ lpr -d texinfo.dvi 112 113The name of the printing command depends on the system; `lpr -d' is 114common, and is illustrated here. You may use a different name for the 115printing command. 116 117Please report bugs to bug-texinfo@prep.ai.mit.edu. 118 119Happy formatting. 120