General Options¶

--alone

Avoid calling other programs when possible. For example, --alone will prevent texexec from using fmtutil(1) to generate formats (this prevention can be handy when tracing installation problems).

--environments=file[,file[,...]]

Specify ConTeXt environment file(s), separated by commas, to use when processing the source file. This option is useful when converting from non-ConTeXt file formats without environment or layout settings.

--help

Produce a summary of switches and arguments. A more detailed help is produced by including --all.

--interface=language

Specify the language ConTeXt should use to communicate with you. Options are

--keep

Preserve a few of the temporary files generated while processing by appending .keep to their name. For example, after

texexec --keep document.tex


    

you will find (besides document.pdf) document.log.keep and document.top.keep. The document.top file is where texexec wraps document.tex with the proper ConTeXt macro commands to set the output format, etc.

--once

Process a file exactly once. (By default, texexec processes the file as many times as necessary to sort out all references, typeset MetaPost code, and so forth.)

--purge

Get rid of most temporary files generated while processing the source file. For example,

texexec --purge somefile.tex


    

will generate somefile.pdf, cleaning up after itself and leaving only one extra file, somefile.tuo. See also the --purge option of ctxtools(1)

--purgeall

Get rid of all temporary files generated while processing the source file, including the filename.tuo file. See also the --purge --all option combination of ctxtools(1)

--randomseed=NNNN

Set the random seed.

--result=FILENAME

Allows you to change the basename of the output file. See --mode for an example.

--runs=NUMBER

Specify the number of runs to perform on a file. Overrides texexec's calculations.

--separation

Perform color separations.

--silent

Suppress a few diagnostic and progress messages.

--timeout=NNN

Abort the run if a subprocess waits for more than NNN seconds; e.g. while waiting for user input when tex reports an undefined control sequence. Useful for automated testing scripts, to make sure the runs finish.

--usemodules=module1[,module2,[...]]

Use the comma-separated list of modules. For example, to typeset document.tex using the bib and units modules:

texexec --usemodules=bib,units document.tex


    

--verbose

Output extra diagnostic information.

--version

Print the version number.

Processing ConTeXt Source Files¶

Including specifying paper sizes, formats, and so forth.

--arrange

Perform page rearrangements, which are used to produce booklets. This option tells ConTeXt to the first n-1 runs without taking account of arrangements, then on the last run to pay attention to the arrangement commands in the source file.

--batchmode

Process the file in batchmode, which means to typeset the whole document even if there are errors. More imformation about batchmode can be found in Donald E. Knuth's TeXbook.

--nonstopmode

Process the file in nonstopmode, which means to typeset the document and report errors, but not to stop at any error. It is similar to batchmode but more verbose. More imformation about nonstopmode can be found in Donald E. Knuth's TeXbook.

--bodyfont=font

The name of a font to preload for use in setting the body of the text (OBSOLETE).

--centerpage

Center the document on the page.

--color

Turn on color mode. Color mode can also be set by commands embedded in the document. These commands override the --color option.

--convert=FORMAT

Convert the input file to ConTeXt format from FORMAT before processing. In most cases, this conversion will result in a TeX file. Currently supported input FORMATs are xml and sgml.

--dvipdfmx, --dvipdfm, --dpx, --dpm

Use the TeX engine (e.g. pdftex or pdfetex) to make a DVI file and dvipdfmx(1) to turn it into PDF.

--dvi, --ps, --dvips

Use the TeX engine (e.g. pdftex or pdfetex) to make a DVI file and dvips(1) to turn it into PostScript. It's counterintuitive that --dvi produces a PostScript file in addition to the DVI file. But that's because --dvi is shorthand for --dvips; adding the --nobackend option prevents texexec's running dvips(1). See also the --engine option.

--fast

Typeset the document(s) as fast as possible without causing problems.

--final

Perform a final run without skipping anything. This option is typically used with --fast.

--language=LANGUAGE

Set the language for hyphenation. Can be specified in your source file. Options are the same as those for --interface.

--mode=MODELIST, --modes=MODELIST

Allows you to change the mode used while typesetting the source file. The MODELIST is a comma separated list of modes. Modes are a conditional-compilation facility like #ifdef in C. So one source file can be used to produce several typeset documents: one for A4 paper, one for screen display in full color, one for letter paper, etc. For example:

texexec --pdf --mode=A4     --result=manual-a manual-t.tex 
texexec --pdf --mode=letter --result=manual-l manual-t.tex
texexec --pdf --mode=screen --result=manual-s manual-t.tex


    

Here the --mode tells ConTeXt which mode directives to use when typesetting the source file. The --result option tells ConTeXt where to put the output file.

--modefile=file

Load this file before most of the usual processing; usually used for mode-related material.

--noarrange

Ignore arrangement commands in the source file.

--nobackend

Do not run the backend, e.g. dvips(1) or dvipdfmx(1). See the --dvips or --dvipdfmx options. Why would you give one of those options to choose a backend, yet tell texexec not to run the backend? Because each backend has its own syntax for \special calls. Specifying the backend allows the ConTeXt macros to use the correct syntax so that when you later run the backend to produce PostScript or PDF, the specials will be interpreted correctly.

--pages=PAGENUMBERLIST

Specify the pages or page range to appear in the output file. PAGENUMBERLIST may be the keyword odd or even; or one or more pages or page ranges separated by commas. For example,

texexec --pages=1,7,8-11,14 somefile.tex


    

--paperformat=KEY

For typesetting multiple pages on a single piece of paper. KEY has the form a4a3 (for printing A4 pages on A3 paper), a5a4 (for printing A5 pages on A4 paper), or in general aMaN. The actual layout of the pages is specified with the --printformat option.

--pdf, --pdftex

Use pdftex(1) to produce a pdf document (the default).

--printformat=KEY

Specify the layout of the final output. KEY can be up, resulting in 2 pages per sheet, double sided; or down, resulting in 2 rotated pages per sheet, double sided. Use the --paperformat option to specify the original page and sheet size.

--utfbom

Turn on UTF-8 encoding.

--xetex, --xtx

Use xetex(1) to produce a pdf document.

Creating ConTeXt Format Files¶

--make

Generate a ConTeXt format file. For example, to make cont-en.fmt and have it placed in a default format directory:

texexec --make de


    

The most common invocation, which is used by scripts that install a new version of ConTeXt (see ctxtools(1)), uses --all so that texexec makes the usual formats:

texexec --make --all


    

--local

When searching for TeX or MetaPost formats, look in the current directory rather than in the location set by the kpse library. See kpathsea(1) for more information on path searching.

--check

Check and report information about the ConTeXt version, the distribution, the TeX engine, and the language interfaces/formats.

Expert options¶

You should know what you're doing if you use these options!

--alpha

Use the TEXMFALPHA environment variable to find and run an alpha release of ConTeXt.

--beta

Use the TEXMFBETA environment variable to find and run a beta release of ConTeXt.

--distribution=dist

Usually one of standard, web2c, or miktex. texexec should figure it out automatically, and you shouldn't need to use this option.

--engine=texengine

Specify the program to do the hard work of typesetting. Currently either pdftex (the default), xetex, or aleph. The luatex value is experimental. The --engine option is not usually needed. Instead, let texexec figure out the setting based on other command-line information. See for example the --xetex or --pdf switches.

Postprocess PDF Files¶

--combination=ROWS*COLS

Specify the number of pages to show on a single page. Use with --pdfcombine.

--pdfarrange

For rearranging pages in PDF files.

texexec --pdfarrange --paperformat=a5a4 --printformat=up foo.pdf


    

This command creates an A5 booklet from a PDF file foo.pdf. --pdfarrange is used in conjunction with the following options.

--pdfcopy

Copy and perhaps process pages from the pdf file. The resulting file is texexec.pdf by default, but you can change that using --result. Use the --scale option to magnify or demagnify the original pages and the --pages option to select the pages to copy. Here is an example using all these options:

texexec --pages=4-7 --pdfcopy --scale=750 --result=one images.pdf


    

It takes pages 4-7 from images.pdf, scales them by 75%, and copies them to one.pdf.

--scale=integer

If the integer is less than 10, then it is taken as an (integer) magnification factor. Otherwise, it is taken as a magnification factor in TeX terms, i.e. with 1000 meaning full scale.

--paperoffset=dimen

Specify the space between the edge of the pages and the beginning of the text block.

--backspace=dimen

Specify the inside (gutter) margins.

--topspace=dimen

Specify the top and bottom margin.

--markings

Add crop marks.

--addempty=PAGES

Add empty pages after the pages specified in PAGES. (Useful for, among other things, adding blank pages after a table of contents.)

--textwidth=WIDTH

Set the width of the original text. Specifying this parameter with a single-sided original will allow ConTeXt to adjust the page layout for double-sided output, producing much more attractive results.

With the --pdfarrange flag, specifying more than one file will result in all of the files being combined in the final result, allowing you to add title pages, decorated part separators, and so forth.

You can also do more complex manipulations, such as adding additional text to the page by setting up a small file with layout definitions and a simple figure insertion loop.

--pdfcombine

Combine multiple pages. Requires the --combination option.

--pdfselect

Extract pages from a file. Use in combination with the --selection switch, as in

texexec --pdfselect --paperformat=S6
--selection=1,9,14 file-1


    

which extracts pages 1, 9, and 14 from file-1.pdf, and places them in texexec.pdf (the default output filename if an output file isn't specified).

See --pdfarrange for other options.

--selection=PAGES

Specify pages to be affected by another option. See --pdfarrange and --pdfselect for examples.

XML handling¶

--filters=filter1[,filter2[,...]]

Specify XML filters to use.

Extract or Strip Out Documentation¶

--listing

Produce a typeset version of the source code in FILE. You can specify the format of the output file. For example, use

texexec --ps --listing readme.now


    

to produce a PostScript file called texexec.ps.

See also --backspace, --topspace, and --result.

--module

Create documentation for ConTeXt, MetaPost (see mpost(1)), perl(1), and ruby(1) modules. Converts the documentation to ConTeXt format and then typesets a documentated version of the source file.

Documentation lines in ConTeXt source files are specified by beginning lines with these strings:

%C : Copyright information

%D : Documentation lines

%I : TeXEdit information lines (mostly in Dutch)

%M : Macro code needed to processs the documentation

%S : Suppressed lines

The same forms can be used for Perl or ruby scripts, except that the % character (the TeX comment character) is replaced by # (the Perl comment character).

See also the --documentation option to ctxtools(1).

Process MetaPost Figures¶

--mpsformats=name

The name of a MetaPost format file, e.g. metafun (the default).

--mptex

Strips out and typesets TeX code embedded in a MetaPost file.

--nomp

Do not run mpost(1), even if needed.

--nomprun

Do not run mpost(1) on embedded MetaPost code.

Producing Proof Sheets of Figures¶

Generate information and proof sheets of one or more (non-EPS) graphics files. For example,

texexec --figures *.png *.jpg

scans the current directory for PNG and JPG files and extracts useful information about their sizes and types. By default, this information is stored in rlxtools.rli. Then the given figures are made into a proof sheet (by default texexec.pdf) according to the method specified by the --method option. Note that newer versions of pdftex(1) do not support TIFF inclusion.

--method=ALTERNATIVE

Specify one of three options to produce the document containing the images used in the source file:

a : A proof sheet with additional information provided for each figure (the default)

b : A proof sheet with the graphics only

c : One figure per page, with the page clipped to the bounding box of the figure

See also --paperoffset, which allows you to specify an offset to be added to the page, as in

texexec --figures --method=c --paperoffset=.5cm *.pdf *.png *.jpg