Usage: Difference between revisions
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=== Global Options === | === Global Options === | ||
The global iMath options are accessed through the standard Office dialog Extras-Options. They appear | The global iMath options are accessed through the standard Office dialog Extras-Options. They appear in the section Writer. | ||
==== Include files ==== | |||
* Include init.imath: This should always be marked unless you know exactly what you are doing. It reads important definitions of built-in iMath functions. | |||
* Include units.imath: This file needs to be included if you intend working with units other than the standard SI units (Newton, Pascal, etc.). | |||
* Include substitutions.imath: This file contains a small library of mainly trigonometric substitutions. See the iMath-tour document for a usage example. | |||
* Include further files: Here you can specify up to three files that contain definitions which you want to have available in all your iMath documents. | |||
==== Formatting ==== | |||
* Units: Specify a list of units separated by ';' which should be used for printing physical quantities. If no such list is specified, the SI base units are used. A useful list of units for mechanical engineering might be <code>{%mm; %N; %Nm; %Nosqmm}</code>. The order in which the units are specified is important! Simple units should be specified first, more complex ones later on. The reason is that the complex units usually imply the simpler ones, for example, <code>N</code> implies <code>mm</code> because <code>1 N</code> equals <code>1 kg m/s^2</code>. | |||
* Precision: Specify what precision should be used for printing floating point numbers. The precision is the number of digits printed, more digits are rounded away. The precisions is 4 by default. | |||
* Fixed point notation: This option influences the interpretation of the precision. If floating point numbers should be printed with a fixed number of digits after the decimal marker, choose this option. Otherwise, a fixed number of significant digits, not counting leading zeros, will be printed (this is the default behaviour). | |||
* Automatic formatting: Specify whether iMath should do automatic formatting of your input equations. By default this option is turned off, meaning that the equations are printed exactly as you typed them in. This of course is only possible for original equations, not for equations obtained by symbolic operations. | |||
* Automatic alignment: Specify whether iMath should automatically align multi-line formulas at the equation symbol. Consecutive formulas must be merged (e.g. using the context menu) for this option to have any effect. | |||
* Automatic chaining: Specify whether iMath should omit the left hand side of an equation in multi-line formulas if it is identical to the previous line's left hand side. Consecutive formulas must be merged (e.g using the context menu) for this option to have any effect. | |||
==== Miscellaneous ==== | |||
=== Document-specific options === | === Document-specific options === | ||
Revision as of 15:12, 11 May 2014
How to use iMath
The best way to learn how to use iMath is to look at the iMath-tour.odt document corresponding to your version of iMath in this folder.
iMath Options
The behaviour of iMath can be changed by setting options. There are three ways of doing this
- Globally for all documents
- Specifically for one document
- Specifically for one formula line
Global Options
The global iMath options are accessed through the standard Office dialog Extras-Options. They appear in the section Writer.
Include files
- Include init.imath: This should always be marked unless you know exactly what you are doing. It reads important definitions of built-in iMath functions.
- Include units.imath: This file needs to be included if you intend working with units other than the standard SI units (Newton, Pascal, etc.).
- Include substitutions.imath: This file contains a small library of mainly trigonometric substitutions. See the iMath-tour document for a usage example.
- Include further files: Here you can specify up to three files that contain definitions which you want to have available in all your iMath documents.
Formatting
- Units: Specify a list of units separated by ';' which should be used for printing physical quantities. If no such list is specified, the SI base units are used. A useful list of units for mechanical engineering might be
{%mm; %N; %Nm; %Nosqmm}. The order in which the units are specified is important! Simple units should be specified first, more complex ones later on. The reason is that the complex units usually imply the simpler ones, for example,Nimpliesmmbecause1 Nequals1 kg m/s^2. - Precision: Specify what precision should be used for printing floating point numbers. The precision is the number of digits printed, more digits are rounded away. The precisions is 4 by default.
- Fixed point notation: This option influences the interpretation of the precision. If floating point numbers should be printed with a fixed number of digits after the decimal marker, choose this option. Otherwise, a fixed number of significant digits, not counting leading zeros, will be printed (this is the default behaviour).
- Automatic formatting: Specify whether iMath should do automatic formatting of your input equations. By default this option is turned off, meaning that the equations are printed exactly as you typed them in. This of course is only possible for original equations, not for equations obtained by symbolic operations.
- Automatic alignment: Specify whether iMath should automatically align multi-line formulas at the equation symbol. Consecutive formulas must be merged (e.g. using the context menu) for this option to have any effect.
- Automatic chaining: Specify whether iMath should omit the left hand side of an equation in multi-line formulas if it is identical to the previous line's left hand side. Consecutive formulas must be merged (e.g using the context menu) for this option to have any effect.
Miscellaneous
Document-specific options
The document-specific options are accessed through document properties File-Properties-User defined properties. Note that because of a bug in Office, a new document does not show any user-defined properties until it has been saved and re-opened once.
=== Formula-specific options
The formula-specific options can be accessed through the context menu (this is the preferred way) or by editing the formula text (see Reference#Options for details).