Re: Bib file path relative to home using tilde ~ in Ubuntu

[Nick Dokos <nicholas.dokos@hp.com>]

Sanjib Sikder <sanjibju2002@gmail.com> wrote:

> Hi,
> 
> "The easiest way to update is logout from the computer, login again and start emacs."
> 
> I did that. Still not working :(
> 

When you have problems like this, you need to take it in small
steps.

o What shell are you using? Yagnesh's recommendation assumes
  that you are running bash as your shell (presumably on some
  Linux/Unix system). Is this assumption correct?

o Assuming you are using bash, there are two relevant initialization
  files: a login shell sources $HOME/.profile and any shell (be it a login
  shell or one that is started as a descendant of your login shell) sources
  $HOME/.bashrc.

o Adding

  export FOO=bar

  to such an initialization file causes the variable FOO to be defined (with value "bar")
  and to be exported (i.e. it is available in the environment of *any* subprocess of
  this shell).

o So log out and log back in[fn:2], start a shell and at the prompt say

  echo $FOO

  Does it say "bar"? If not, don't go any further: the problem has nothing to do with
  emacs (note that this is the first time I mention emacs).

o If this part is OK, start emacs *from this shell*: it should inherit the variable.
  You can check by evaluating this form:

  (getenv "FOO")

  Then the variable will also be available to any subprocesses started by emacs.

o In particular, if you define BIBINPUTS as Yagnesh suggests, then the bibtex invoked
  by the latex exporter under emacs will find the bib file where you told it.
  
o What can go wrong? The usual problem is that you use some graphical
  desktop environment and start emacs by clicking on some icon. Then
  the emacs process does not have a bash shell as its parent, so it does
  not inherit the exported variables. Try starting emacs from a bash
  command line.[fn:2]

Nick

Footnotes:
[fn:1] If you define it in .bashrc, you shouldn't have to log out and log
       back in: just start a new bash shell.

[fn:2] I prefer defining variables in my .profile and I have arranged
       for my .profile to be sourced by the appropriate initialization
       file of my graphical desktop environment, so I get it whether I
       log in at the console or through the graphical login. That
       way *every* process, no matter how it is started, has the
       variables available to it. I use .bashrc only for aliases (which
       I use very rarely, so most of the time I don't have a .bashrc
       file at all).