Project structure

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Revision as of 12:57, 28 July 2004 by Hraban (talk | contribs) (added diagram)
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< The ConTeXt Way, Structurals

ConTeXt knows no document classes (as LaTeX does). You can define your layout yourself. If you use the same layout for several projects, save it as an environment file.

How to split up a large project, say a book, in several handy parts? – Use ConTeXt's project management facilities.

  • a project contains one ore more products
  • a product contains several components
  • an environment defines the common layout (etc.) of a project

The environment could also contain different versions (Modes) of the layout, e.g. print and screen (like Pragma's manuals) or final and correction etc.

Example 1: Magazine

  • project: magazine
  • product: one volume of the magazine
  • component: an single article

Example 2: Book

  • project: book
  • product: part of the book
  • component: chapter

File:project-structure.png

If you tex (compile) one single component (e.g. a chapter of a book) or product (e.g. one volume of a magazine), the settings of the project's environment are used. Hraban uses the following naming conventions

  • project_foo
  • prd_foo
  • c_foo
  • env_foo

Project

\startproject project_mymag
\environment env_mymag % only mentioned here!

\product prd_year2004-01
\product prd_year2004-02
\product prd_year2004-03
\product prd_year2004-04

\completetableofcontents

\stopproject

Environment

\startenvironment env_mymag

\setuplayout[...]
% all setups...

\stopenvironment

Product

\startproduct prd_year2004-01
\project project_mymag

\component c_editorial
\component c_article01
\component c_article_by_me
% ...

\stopproduct

Component

\startcomponent c_editorial
\product prd_year2004-01 % but you can use it in other products anyway
\project project_mymag

\title{Editorial}

Dear reader...

\stopcomponent

There's a Perl script makeproject.pl at Hraban's site fiëé teXnique to help creating the files (.ini files can be used for initial content).