XeTeX

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In computing, XeTeX (pronounced [ziːtɛx]) is an alternative TeX typesetting engine for Mac OS X and Linux. It is written and maintained by Jonathan Kew. There is a Windows port of XeTeX available, thanks to Akira Kakuto. It natively supports Unicode while its input file is assumed to be in UTF-8 encoding.

Comparing to other TeX solutions, its font installation is vastly simplified, as XeTeX can use any installed fonts in the operating system without configuring TeX font metric. XeTeX uses AAT when working on Mac OS X, or OpenType when working on other systems. As a result, XeTeX can access font features such as special ligatures and variable font weights.

Examples of special ligature include the long archaic "s" found in Hoefler Text font, and end-of-word swashes, which are normally inaccessible unless an application enables certain font options.

XeTeX works well with both LaTeX and ConTeXt. Its LaTeX counterpart is invoked as XeLaTeX.

[edit] External links

• The XeTeX homepage

[edit] See also

• Omega: another Unicode capable TeX extension.