# Calculemus!

Let us calculate.

## LaTeX for Blogger: Wrap-up

This is a summary of these previous posts (here and here): how to use LaTeX on Blogger Blogs.

Method 1
Use a script to generate an image that can be embedded in your blog post. You can use MimeTex, or the version modified by Shital Shah. You can install the script on your computer, or use an external server (Shital’s can be used freely). In order to use the latter, just write in the HTML source of your post <img src="http://shitalshah.com/?$LaTeX code here$">

For instance, write this (note that I used the HTML code for space):

<img src="http://shitalshah.com/?$*14\cdot%2001\quad[(\iota%20x)\phi x].\psi(\iota%20x)\phi%20x.=:(\exists%20b):\phi%20x.\equiv%20x.x=b:\psi%20b\quad\textrm{Df}$">

to get this:

Is this neat, or is this neat? Well, I’m cheating syntax a bit, and that’s not an inverted iota, but, if you can recognize that as the famous Principia Mathematica definition of the definite description operator, it should be neat enough.

An alternative based on the same principle involves working with Firefox, Greasemonkey, and a script that can be downloaded from here. I haven’t tried it, but from what I’ve seen (here, here, or here) it doesn’t look much better.

Pluses

• needs little tampering with the webpage;
• images load fast enough;
• the images are available to all viewers, irrespective of the browser they use.

Minuses

• the quality of the images is not great;
• cannot be used in the comments;

Method 2
If you use Firefox, or IExplorer + MathML, you can take advantage of Jeff Kinsley’s LaTeXMathML script (again, it can be downloaded, or you can use his server to resolve the LaTeX code). This is done by adding

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://math.etsu.edu/LaTeXMathML/LaTeXMathML.js"></script><link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="http://math.etsu.edu/LaTeXMathML/LaTeXMathML.standardarticle.css" />

between the <head> tags in your blog template, and then add the LaTeX code between dollar-signs:

$\displaystyle{ *14\cdot 01\quad[(\iota x)\varphi x].\psi(\iota x)\phi x.=:(\exists b):\phi x.\equiv x.x=b:\psi b\quad\textrm{Df}}$

This is how it renders the same PM definition:

$\displaystyle{*14\cdot 01\quad[(\iota x)\varphi x].\psi(\iota x)\phi x.=:(\exists b):\phi x.\equiv x.x=b:\psi b\quad\textrm{Df}}$

Pluses

• it works in the comments as well, when they are displayed in full post view;
• on Firefox with ClearType turned on, it looks really good; I think it looks better than WordPress LaTeX.

Minuses

• needs a bit of work on the CSS–but, hey, you know LaTeX :P;
• a bit slower than the other one (I’m keeping the script on my googlepage, but you can use Jeff Kinsley’s server as well);
• Plain IExplorer users won’t see the displayed equation, but a meaningless string 😛

My choice is the second method; it can be used in the comments, and it really looks nicer. Moreover, I’d rather not depend on an external server for displaying images.

Reclame

Written by Stefan Ionescu

aprilie 11, 2008 la 7:50 pm

Publicat în EN, Geekery

Tagged with , ,

### 6 răspunsuri

1. And this is the same definition in a comment:$\displaystyle{ *14\cdot 01\quad[(\iota x)\varphi x].\psi(\iota x)\phi x.=:(\exists b):\phi x.\equiv x.x=b:\psi b\quad\textrm{Df}}$

Stefan Ionescu

aprilie 11, 2008 at 8:23 pm

2. Hi, I have another solution to write latex on Blogger. It is based on mathtex.
It can write latex symbol by just putting latex code inside two dollar signs.
Check out my article here: http://watchmath.com/vlog/?p=438

Watchmath

iulie 10, 2009 at 8:39 pm

• Thanks! it looks neater than its predecessor, mimeTeX. I’ll update the post on Blogger as well.

Stefan

iulie 12, 2009 at 9:39 am

3. Hi, I just wrote an article on my blog updating the previous installation. Now it works on comments too.

watchmath

iulie 15, 2009 at 6:36 am

• Very nice! (and your tutorials are cool, too)

Did you try the LaTeXMathML version by any chance?

Stefan

iulie 15, 2009 at 9:57 am

• In fact I did take a look at it but for some reason that I don’t remember anymore I decided that it was not for me.

Watchmath

iulie 15, 2009 at 6:22 pm