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It was a rhetorical question. I understand how TeXmacs works. It does use LaTeX: it contains a usable LaTeX importer/exporter. Yes, the importer and exporter a

It was a rhetorical question. I understand how TeXmacs works. It does use LaTeX: it contains a usable LaTeX importer/exporter. Yes, the importer and exporter aren’t perfect, but they are used in a nontrivial capacity nevertheless. LaTeX is such an integral part of the research workflow for so many academics that leaving it behind entirely is not an option. So instead many people use TeXmacs to generate LaTeX for submission e.g. to a journal. To me, this means that it is a LaTeX tool. Maybe this is not exactly the intended use case, but here we are.

mgubi 4y ago
The phrase "it uses LaTeX" means that it runs the program LaTeX or that it need the "LaTeX format". Neither is true. Similarly you would say that "PanDoc uses Word?" or that a program that export to Word use Word. To me if you want to say that a program exports to a particular format just say so. If you want to say that a program needs a working installation of another program Y to work then you can say "it uses Y". So I think it is not correct to say that TeXmacs uses LaTeX. It can import/export it, like it can export/import PDF, HTML and other formats. TeXmacs does not need a working LateX installation to work. It comes with all its batteries included and on the Mac the app weight < 150 MB. That's all you need (including the LaTeX importer/exporter which is written in Scheme).
- sfpotter 4y ago
  Part of the problem is that LaTeX is meant in multiple senses: there is the LaTeX installation along with all relevant programs, and then there is the LaTeX format/programming language. When I say I "use C", it means that I write C programs. In this sense, TeXmacs does use (the) LaTeX (programming language). It includes Scheme code which translates the internal TeXmacs format to LaTeX for obvious and extremely useful reasons. To me that means it uses LaTeX. YMMV.

mgubi 4y ago

The phrase "it uses LaTeX" means that it runs the program LaTeX or that it need the "LaTeX format". Neither is true. Similarly you would say that "PanDoc uses Word?" or that a program that export to Word use Word. To me if you want to say that a program exports to a particular format just say so. If you want to say that a program needs a working installation of another program Y to work then you can say "it uses Y". So I think it is not correct to say that TeXmacs uses LaTeX. It can import/export it, like it can export/import PDF, HTML and other formats. TeXmacs does not need a working LateX installation to work. It comes with all its batteries included and on the Mac the app weight < 150 MB. That's all you need (including the LaTeX importer/exporter which is written in Scheme).

sfpotter 4y ago
Part of the problem is that LaTeX is meant in multiple senses: there is the LaTeX installation along with all relevant programs, and then there is the LaTeX format/programming language. When I say I "use C", it means that I write C programs. In this sense, TeXmacs does use (the) LaTeX (programming language). It includes Scheme code which translates the internal TeXmacs format to LaTeX for obvious and extremely useful reasons. To me that means it uses LaTeX. YMMV.