10.5: Use Preview to instantly see changes to PDFs

This is more an observation that I have not seen elsewhere. As far as I'm concerned, this should have been feature 301 because it is so important to the way I work.

I use LaTeX extensively, and my workflow involves using BBEdit to write and edit the source, using Terminal to issue compilation commands, and then using a PDF viewer to view the output. I like to have all three application open at the same time so that I can instantly see the effect of any changes I make to the source. Yes, I know there are alternatives such as TeXShop, but I prefer the simplicity of BBEdit, Terminal, and a PDF viewer.

Under Tiger, I could never use Preview as the PDF viewer because it did not auto-reload PDF files that had changed on disk. Instead, I had to use alternatives such as PDFView or Skim. Tonight I made a pleasant discovery: Preview under Leopard will auto-reload a PDF file that changes on disk. Now my LaTeX workflow involves just BBEdit, Terminal, and Preview. This is a nice addition to Preview. If this were the only new feature in 10.5, I might have bought it just for that.

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10.5: Use Preview to instantly see changes to PDFs | 6 comments | Create New Account

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10.5: Use Preview to instantly see changes to PDFs
Authored by: JaxMyers on Wed, Nov 14 2007 at 2:22PM PST

That's pretty good to know! Thanks for the tip. I actually use TexShop but I might try it out your way at some point.

10.5: Use Preview to instantly see changes to PDFs
Authored by: stottm on Wed, Nov 14 2007 at 4:08PM PST

I use TextMate instead of BBEdit but this was a welcome addition to Preview.

10.5: Use Preview to instantly see changes to PDFs
Authored by: stottm on Wed, Nov 14 2007 at 4:18PM PST

Actually, with Textmate you can eliminate most of the need for Terminal as well. You can execute makeindex, makebibtex, invoke pdflatex, etc. All without leaving Textmate.

Three screencasts showing LaTeX editing in Textmate
http://skiadas.dcostanet.net/afterthought/2006/01/24/textmate-latex-screencast-no-3/

10.5: Use Preview to instantly see changes to PDFs
Authored by: synosure on Wed, Nov 14 2007 at 4:33PM PST

A very good tip to know, and I will use it in the future for short, 1-page docs. However, for large documents, might I recommend a two-step process. I use vi to write all my LaTeX documents. However, first I create a base document that holds nothing but the formatting, the header includes, and a bunch of: \input{...}. This way, the basic doc looks like:


{insert header detail here}

\begin{document}

\input{FrontMatter}

\input{Piddle}

\input{Diddle}

\input{Appendix}

\end{document}

This document never really changes, so I can open it in TeXShop. When creating my LaTeX docs, I merely edit a file in vi (such as FrontMatter.tex), quick-save it with :w, then hit Apple-T in the TeXShop window. TeXShop handles the compilation and instant display of the PDF, but I still get all the power and functionality inherent in vi. (Okay, really vim with syntax highlighting turned on, but who's counting?) It's practically a 1 and a half-step process, just save file then hit Apple-T. Done.

This method also encourages you to organize your documents better.

10.5: Use Preview to instantly see changes to PDFs
Authored by: hackerssidekick on Mon, Nov 19 2007 at 5:01PM PST

I've found that you need to activate the preview window for it to reload.
Is there a way to tell it to reload without clicking on the window?

10.5: Use Preview to instantly see changes to PDFs
Authored by: bodger on Mon, Nov 26 2007 at 5:50PM PST

Under Tiger, I used to use File > Revert to manually force a reload. There's no keyboard command by default, so I bound it to cmd-opt-R (using the system keyboard preferences). It wasn't quite as fast as an auto-reload, but with the keyboard shortcut it was good enough for me.

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