Re: doc-view.el --- View PDF/PostStript/DVI files in Emacs

[Tim X]

Martin Rubey <axiomize@yahoo.de> writes:

> Dear all,
>
> I saw doc-view.el this week and was hoping that it would be the thing I was
> looking for since years.  Well, unfortunately, it doesn't *quite* do what I
> want: I'd really like to have a (reasonably fast,) full-featured dvi/ps/pdf
> viewer that I can control from within emacs.
>
> In particular, I'd like to be able to search and copy text as in kdvi / kpdf.
> Furthermore, rendering should be fast, so that modifying the LaTeX and 
> pressing
> C-c C-c Ret should update the buffer quickly.
>
> I wonder why this is appears so difficult to achieve.  Wouldn't it be possible
> to have an X application running inside an emacs buffer?  The standard
> application for me would be to have my LaTeX source in one buffer, kdvi in
> another, and C-x b gets me to that buffer.  Using the window-managers
> keybinding for switching to another application really does only half the job,
> it's just not "as nice"...
>

This would be very difficult, if not impossible. Firstly, if you wanted to
run an X application *within* emacs (not call an external process), then
emacs would need to implement an X server. Secondly, although emacs can
display graphics, it isn't really setup/designed as a true graphical
environment i.e. fast low level rendoring at the pixel level. thirdly, how
would  you handle the different architectures (such as platforms like MS
that don't support X. 


> I saw the xwem project a while ago, but it looks roughly dead, does more than 
> I
> need and moreover it doesn't work for gnu emacs...
>

xwem is a window manager - thats a fairly simple role compared to the whole
rendering process which the X server takes care of - essentially, the
window manager just puts some frills around the edges. You can actually run
under X without any window manager, you just don't have higher level
functionality, such as the ability to iconify windows etc. 

Writing a program that will render dvi or ps/pdf files is not a trivial
task. doing one AND writing or the rendering libraries etc is even more
work. I think you will only ever see three solutions, all of which are
already available -

        1. Display via a call to an external program
        2. Conversion to a png image a la doc-view.el
        3. Conversion to a text representation and displayed in a buffer. 

each have advantages and disadvantages, but anything else is really pushing
emacs as a text editor past its design goals and way too much effort for
the return you get.

Tim



-- 
tcross (at) rapttech dot com dot au