[OS X TeX] Re: TeXShop Feature Request

[Luis Sequeira]

> Greetings  "Herbert Schulz" <herbs at wideopenwest.com>
> On 29/05/2010 at 14:54 you wrote concerning
> Re: [OS X TeX] TeXShop Feature Request
> 
> Hello Herb,
> 
> <<snip>>
> 
> HS> Something like that used with a BasicTeX distribution (much smaller that the full TeX Live distribution supplied with the MacTeX installer) might be handy.
> 
> I agree. Before I had a Mac machine I tried to install BasicTeX on a friend's iMac, but I guess my downloads were inadequate since we could not get anything to install. The MacTeX download is both amazing and humungous, but it worked flawlessly on my friend's iMac and now on mine. But for beginners, perhaps BasicTeX would be a less intimidating introduction. When your TeX legs become stable, then move up to TeXShop and friends! 
> 
> <<snip>>
> 
> 
> Cheers  Don (Green Dragon)
> -- 

I think that the best thing for a beginner is that things really work.
Having a document fail to typeset because something is missing, and telling a beginner that he has to install additional packages is not my idea of easy.

Nowadays I find it hard to justify not installing the full thing (either being MacTex, or TeX Live, or MikTex). It just saves headaches later, beginners or otherwise.

Luis Sequeira