pdftex.js/README.md

pdftex in pure js

# pdftex.js
> A pure javascript port of pdftex which compiles latex directly in your
> browser! - [Demo](https://dmonad.github.io/pdftex.js)

*pdftex.js* compiles latex code at near-native speed, and does not require a
server. *pdftex.js* ships with custom service worker for caching dependencies.

### Get Started

Install dependencies using bower, or download a GitHub release.

```
$ bower install --save pdftex.js
```

Include the main js file (also works well with module loaders)

```
<script src="bower_components/pdftex.js/pdftex.js"></script>
```

In order to locate the pdftex-worker you must set the location of the pdftex.js
directory.

```
pdftex.setPdftexDir('/bower_components/pdftex.js/')
```

The texlive distribution is rather big, so you should use service worker to
cache it. *pdftex.js* ships with an optimized (it's actually not difficult)
service worker to cache the texlive distribution. I recommend to use it event
if you are already implemented a service worker for your project (you can run
them in parallel).

```
if ('serviceWorker' in navigator) {
  navigator.serviceWorker
  .register(
    './bower_components/pdftex.js/pdftex-service-worker.js',
    { scope: '/bower_components/pdftex.js/' }
  ).then(function (reg) {
    // registration worked
    console.log(
      'Pdftex service worker registration succeeded. Scope is ' +
      reg.scope
    )
    // Optionally you can preload the worker and the resources for a faster
    // initial compilation. You should only do that if the service worker is
    // activated
    if (reg.active != null) {
      pdftex.preload()
    }
  }).catch(function (error) {
    // registration failed
    console.log('Pdftex service worker registration failed with ' + error)
  })
}
```

Start a process

```
var latexSource = '\documentclass[12pt]{article} ..'
var compile = pdftex(latexSource)
compile.on('finish', function (event) {
  if (event.success) {
    console.log('Url to compiled latex document: ', event.url)
  }
})
compile.on('log', function (message) {
  console.log(message)
})

compile.on('err', function (message) {
  console.error(message)
})
```

The [source code for the demo](index.html) is also a good point to start

### API

##### pdftex(latexSource: String, options : Object) : PdfTeXCompilation
Starts a compilation process. Calling it will terminate the previous
compilation. Options may have the following properties:

* **debug : Boolean** - If true, logs all messages to the console

##### PdfTeXCompilation
This is returned when calling `pdftex(latexSource)`. Has the following methods:

* **on(eventName : String, eventHandler : Function)** - Possible values for
  eventName:
  * **'log'**
  * **'err'**
  * **'finish'** - Called when the compilation ends (succes or failure)

##### pdftex.preload()
Preload the worker and the resources for a faster initial compilation.

##### pdftex.setPdftexDir(dir : String)
Set the path to the *pdftex.js* directory. This is required in order to
determine the location of the pdftex-worker.

### Contribution
This project wouldn't be possible without [emscripten]
(https://github.com/kripken/emscripten). [@manuels](https://github.com/manuels)
did all the pioneering work on porting pdftex. [His project]
(https://github.com/manuels/texlive.js) was very helpful in figuring out how
emscripten works.