┌─ FILE ANALYSIS ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ┐
│ DEVELOPER : Leslie Lamport / LaTeX Project
│ CATEGORY : Document
│ MIME TYPE : application/x-tex
└ ──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────── ┘
What is a TEX file?
TEX files contain LaTeX source code, a document preparation system built on Donald Knuth’s TeX typesetting engine. LaTeX is the standard for producing scientific papers, theses, books, and technical documents. It excels at mathematical typesetting, bibliography management, and consistent formatting.
How to open TEX files
- Overleaf (Web) — Online LaTeX editor, collaborative
- TeXstudio (Windows, macOS, Linux) — Free IDE
- VS Code (Windows, macOS, Linux) — With LaTeX Workshop extension
- Any text editor — TEX files are plain text
Technical specifications
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Language | LaTeX (macro layer over TeX) |
| Output | PDF (via pdflatex, xelatex, lualatex) |
| Encoding | UTF-8 (recommended) |
| Package Manager | CTAN / TeX Live / MiKTeX |
| Bibliography | BibTeX, BibLaTeX |
Common use cases
- Academic papers: Research articles for journals and conferences.
- Theses: University dissertations and theses.
- Books: Technical books and textbooks.
- Mathematical documents: Equations, proofs, and formulas.