# phpman > man > etex(1) [ETEX(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/ETEX/1/markdown) General Commands Manual [ETEX(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/ETEX/1/markdown) ## NAME etex - extended (plain) TeX ## SYNOPSIS **etex** [_options_] [**&**_format_] [_file_|**\**_commands_] ## DESCRIPTION Run the e-TeX typesetter on _file_, by default creating _file.dvi_. If the file argument has no extension, ".tex" will be appended to it. Instead of a filename, a set of e-TeX commands can be given, the first of which must start with a backslash. With a **&**_format_ argument e-TeX uses a different set of precompiled commands, contained in _format_**.fmt**; it is usually better to use the **-fmt** _format_ option instead. e-TeX is the first concrete result of an international research & development project, the NTS Project, which was established under the aegis of DANTE e.V. during 1992. The aims of the project are to perpetuate and develop the spirit and philosophy of TeX, whilst respecting Knuth's wish that TeX should remain frozen. e-TeX can be used in two different modes: in _compatibility_ _mode_ it is supposed to be com‐ pletely interchangable with standard TeX. In _extended_ _mode_ several new primitives are added that facilitate (among other things) bidirectional typesetting. An extended mode format is generated by prefixing the name of the source file for the format with an asterisk (*). e-TeX's handling of its command-line arguments is similar to that of the other TeX programs in the _web2c_ implementation. ## OPTIONS This version of e-TeX understands the following command line options. ### -fmt Use _format_ as the name of the format to be used, instead of the name by which e-TeX was called or a _%&_ line. ### -enc -ini For documentation of the encTeX extensions see ****. ### -etex -ini ### -file-line-error Print error messages in the form _file:line:error_ which is similar to the way many com‐ pilers format them. ### -no-file-line-error Disable printing error messages in the _file:line:error_ style. ### -file-line-error-style This is the old name of the **-file-line-error** option. ### -halt-on-error Exit with an error code when an error is encountered during processing. ### -help ### -ini setting, but no format is preloaded, and basic initializations like setting catcodes may be required. ### -interaction Sets the interaction mode. The mode can be either _batchmode_, _nonstopmode_, _scrollmode_, and _errorstopmode_. The meaning of these modes is the same as that of the correspond‐ ing \commands. ### -ipc available is the choice of the installer. ### -ipc-start As **-ipc**, and starts the server at the other end as well. Whether this option is available is the choice of the installer. ### -jobname Use _name_ for the job name, instead of deriving it from the name of the input file. ### -kpathsea-debug Sets path searching debugging flags according to the bitmask. See the _Kpathsea_ manual for details. ### -mktex Enable mktex_fmt_, where _fmt_ must be either _tex_ or _tfm_. ### -mltex -ini ### -no-mktex Disable mktex_fmt_, where _fmt_ must be either _tex_ or _tfm_. ### -output-comment Use _string_ for the _DVI_ file comment instead of the date. ### -output-directory Write output files in _directory_ instead of the current directory. Look up input files in _directory_ first, the along the normal search path. ### -parse-first-line If the first line of the main input file begins with _%&_ parse it to look for a dump name or a **-translate-file** option. ### -no-parse-first-line Disable parsing of the first line of the main input file. ### -progname Pretend to be program _name_. This affects both the format used and the search paths. ### -recorder Enable the filename recorder. This leaves a trace of the files opened for input and output in a file with extension _.fls_. ### -shell-escape Enable the **\write18{**_command_**}** construct. The _command_ can be any shell command. This construct is normally disallowed for security reasons. ### -no-shell-escape Disable the **\write18{**_command_**}** construct, even if it is enabled in the _texmf.cnf_ file. ### -src-specials Insert source specials into the _DVI_ file. ### -src-specials Insert source specials in certain placed of the _DVI_ file. _where_ is a comma-separated value list: _cr_, _display_, _hbox_, _math_, _par_, _parent_, or _vbox_. ### -translate-file Use the _tcxname_ translation table to set the mapping of input characters and re-map‐ ping of output characters. ### -default-translate-file Like **-translate-file** except that a _%&_ line can overrule this setting. ### -version Print version information and exit. ## ENVIRONMENT See the Kpathsearch library documentation (the `Path specifications' node) for precise de‐ tails of how the environment variables are used. The **kpsewhich** utility can be used to query the values of the variables. One caveat: In most e-TeX formats, you cannot use ~ in a filename you give directly to e-TeX, because ~ is an active character, and hence is expanded, not taken as part of the filename. Other programs, such as Metafont, do not have this problem. **TEXMFOUTPUT** Normally, e-TeX puts its output files in the current directory. If any output file cannot be opened there, it tries to open it in the directory specified in the environ‐ ment variable TEXMFOUTPUT. There is no default value for that variable. For example, if you say _etex_ _paper_ and the current directory is not writable, if TEXMFOUTPUT has the value _/tmp_, e-TeX attempts to create _/tmp/paper.log_ (and _/tmp/paper.dvi_, if any output is produced.) TEXMFOUTPUT is also checked for input files, as TeX often gener‐ ates files that need to be subsequently read; for input, no suffixes (such as ``.tex'') are added by default, the input name is simply checked as given. **TEXINPUTS** Search path for _\input_ and _\openin_ files. This should start with ``.'', so that user files are found before system files. An empty path component will be replaced with the paths defined in the _texmf.cnf_ file. For example, set TEXINPUTS to ".:/home/user/tex:" to prepend the current direcory and ``/home/user/tex'' to the standard search path. **TEXFORMATS** Search path for format files. **TEXPOOL** search path for **etex** internal strings. **TEXEDIT** Command template for switching to editor. The default, usually **vi**, is set when e-TeX is compiled. **TFMFONTS** Search path for font metric (_.tfm_) files. ## FILES The location of the files mentioned below varies from system to system. Use the **kpsewhich** utility to find their locations. _etex.pool_ Text file containing e-TeX's internal strings. _texfonts.map_ Filename mapping definitions. _*.tfm_ Metric files for e-TeX's fonts. _*.fmt_ Predigested e-TeX format (.fmt) files. ## NOTES Starting with version 1.40, pdfTeX incorporates the e-TeX extensions, so in this installation eTeX may be just a symbolic link to pdfTeX. See [**pdftex**(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/pdftex/1/markdown). This manual page is not meant to be exhaustive. The complete documentation for this version of e-TeX can be found in the info manual _Web2C:_ _A_ _TeX_ _implementation_. ## BUGS This version of e-TeX implements a number of optional extensions. In fact, many of these ex‐ tensions conflict to a greater or lesser extent with the definition of e-TeX. When such ex‐ tensions are enabled, the banner printed when e-TeX starts is changed to print **e-TeXk** instead of **e-TeX**. This version of e-TeX fails to trap arithmetic overflow when dimensions are added or sub‐ tracted. Cases where this occurs are rare, but when it does the generated _DVI_ file will be invalid. ## SEE ALSO [**pdftex**(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/pdftex/1/markdown), [**tex**(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/tex/1/markdown), [**mf**(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/mf/1/markdown). ## AUTHORS e-TeX was developed by Peter Breitenlohner and the NTS team; Peter later continued its devel‐ opment outside of the team. TeX was designed by Donald E. Knuth, who implemented it using his Web system for Pascal pro‐ grams. It was ported to Unix at Stanford by Howard Trickey, and at Cornell by Pavel Curtis. The version now offered with the Unix TeX distribution is that generated by the Web to C sys‐ tem (**web2c**), originally written by Tomas Rokicki and Tim Morgan. The encTeX extensions were written by Petr Olsak. Web2C 2015 1 March 2011 [ETEX(1)](https://www.chedong.com/phpMan.php/man/ETEX/1/markdown)