[OS X TeX] Forcing the use of pdtlatex or dvips

[Herbert Schulz]

On May 25, 2008, at 6:58 PM, Dr. Clea F. Rees wrote:

> On 25/05/08, you seem to have written:
>
>> On 25.05.2008, at 14:00, Herbert Schulz wrote:
>>> On May 25, 2008, at 1:53 AM, Roberto Avanzi wrote:
>>>> Well, apparently it is with TWO percent signs, so if I use
>>>> %%!TEX TS-program = pdflatex
>>>> as suggested by herbert Schulz, THEN pdflatex is always used,  
>>>> regardless of the menu.
>>> Howdy,
>>> Either one or two (or three, ...) will work. I've gotten into the  
>>> habit of using %% only because if some printers get a raw file  
>>> that starts with %! they immediately assume the file to be  
>>> Postscript. I've never run into that problem but printing through  
>>> using the lp command in Terminal to a Postscript printer could do  
>>> that.
>>
>> Ok, nobody will ever believe what I am going to write.  I tried  
>> that with ONE percent sign yesterday and they day before, several  
>> times, and it did not work.  It worked, today, with two, though.  I  
>> tried it now again with just one percent sign, and it works.   
>> Weird.  (I must have mistyped something else yesterday. Of course I  
>> will never figure out what.)
>
> If nobody believes you, I must be nobody. I have never been able to  
> get
> this to work. I was about to try with two percent signs when I read
> this. Being curious, I opened a xelatex document with the following
> second line (the first - allegedly - sets the encoding):
> %!TEX TS-program = XeLaTeX
> -> result: pdflatex runs and complains, predictably that it can't
> manage, that xelatex is needed etc. etc.
> I change the second line:
> %%!TEX TS-program = XeLaTeX
> -> result: xelatex runs, compiles document
> I change the second line:
> %!TEX TS-program = XeLaTeX
> -> result: xelatex runs, compiles document
> I change the second line:
> %!TEX TS-program = PDFLaTeX
> -> result: pdflatex fails
> I change the second line:
> %!TEX TS-program = XeLaTeX
> -> result: xelatex compiles document
>
> I don't believe you mistyped anything. In any case, I _know_ I did  
> not.
> The changes shown are the _only_ changes I made to the file.
>
> Yours,
> cfr


Howdy,

One more thing... Are the documents you tried this with imported from  
another system? There could a problem with mixed line endings.

Good Luck,

Herb Schulz
(herbs at wideopenwest.com)