[texhax] mac os x putting beamer .sty and .cls in right place

[Robin Fairbairns]

> I downloaded a few extra templates. One is called *beamer* which is a 
> nice package for making slides.
> 
> The README comes with some instructions:
> -------
> Put beamer.cls, *.sty, and beamericon* in a directory pointed to by  
> the TEXINPUTS variable. If you have not specified the TEXINPUT 
> variable, specify something like ".:" or ".:/home/tex:". Do not forget 
> to place a colon at the end (corresponding to an empty path), which 
> will include all standard directories.
> 
> Alternatively, put the files in a texmf tree, for example at
> texmf/tex/latex/macros/contrib/beamer and run mktexlsr.

this bothered me, when i read it.  and i know how to do the job on my
own machine.

> You will also need the pgf package.

(once you know how to deal with beamer, pgf will be a doddle.)

> I've checked my tex installation and there are a few templates but 
> really I have zero idea how to install this or whatever. The texmf tree 
> does not look like the one listed above.

which is one reason the instructions are a crock.

the trick is, find where some other class like seminar.cls lives.

the location of that file will be something like

  <TEXMF>/tex/latex/seminar/seminar.cls

[for some value of "/" -- i was once told about mac directory
structures, but i don't suppose they're the same any more and i can't
recall what the rules were anywhere.]

<TEXMF> is a shorthand for something-or-other, which is the root of
the texmf tree.

now beamer is _just_ like seminar, so make a directory

  <TEXMF>/tex/latex/beamer

and stick beamer.cls and its friendly .sty files in there.

till tantau goes wilder still when he's telling you how to install
pgf.sty.  that (and its friends and relations) should go into a
directory

  <TEXMF>/tex/latex/pgf

having put those things in place, you need to create a file index
hash.  this is mktexlsr (or equivalently texhash) on a tetex-like
system; on a miktex it's all different anyway.  i don't know if that
business has been abstracted on the mac port.

> When I get other templates they seem to work fine within the same 
> folder they came in.

the folder they came in being something on ctan?  (i don't think i
understand your remark...)

robin

[i shall send a copy of this to till tantau; perhaps he and i can work
out better install instructions for the two packages, which in every
other respect seem pretty brilliant.]