ConTEXt : reference manual
(2013)Abstract
This manual is about ConTEXt, a system for typesetting documents. Central element in this name is the word TEX because the typographical programming language TEX is the base for ConTEXt.
People who are used to TEX will probably identify this manual as a TEX document. They recog- nise the use of \textbackslash. One may also notice that the way pararaphs are broken into lines is often better than in the avarage typesetting system.
In this manual we will not discuss TEX in depth because highly recommended books on TEX already exist. We would like to mention:
1. the unsurpassed The TEXBook by Donald E. Knuth, the source of all knowledge and TEXnical inspiration,
2. the convenient TEX by Topic by Victor Eijkhout, the reference manual for TEX programmers, and
3. the recommended The Beginners Book of TEX by Silvio Levy and Raymond Seroul, the book that turns every beginner into an expert
For newcomers we advise (3), for the curious (1), and for the impatient (2). ConTEXt users will not necessarly need this literature, unless one wants to program in TEX, uses special characters, or has to typeset math. Again, we would advise (3).
You may ask yourself if TEX is not just one of the many typesetting systems to produce docu- ments. That is not so. While many systems in eighties and nineties pretended to deliver perfect typographical output, TEX still does a pretty good job compared to others.
TEX is not easy to work with, but when one gets accustomed to it, we hope you will appreciate its features,
Hans Hagen, 1996--2002