Re: Latex export of tables

[tsd@tsdye.com (Thomas S. Dye)]

Aloha all,

Jumping in here with apologies :)

Suvayu Ali <fatkasuvayu+linux@gmail.com> writes:

> Hi Vikas,
>
> On Tue, Apr 16, 2013 at 05:26:19PM +0530, Vikas Rawal wrote:
>> > > I am using org-mode version 8.0-pre (release_8.0-pre-247-gbc3ccd @
>> > > /home/vikas/lisp/org-mode/lisp/).
>> > > 
>> > > I have a table generated by a source block in a document that I would
>> > > like to export to latex. In the exported tex file, I would like org to
>> > > insert a line like the following between \end(tabular} and \end{table}
>> > > 
>> > > \begin{minipage}{\textwidth} \tiny Note: Some descriptive text
>> > > here. \end{minipage}
>> > 
>> > I do not think this is possible.  You have to realise that Org does not
>> > aim to support everything you can do with a backend natively.  One of
>> > the primary reasons for that is the backend agnostic abstraction
>> > provided by Org.
>> 
>> I have seen some way of doing things like this. See section 13.3 at
>> http://orgmode.org/worg/org-tutorials/org-latex-export.html
>> 
>> I can't get it to work though. Will keep trying.
>
> Many of the things on that page is old exporter specific and probably
> will not work with the new exporter.

Yes, this page is all about workarounds for the old exporter.  I believe
John Hendy is reorganizing this material and at some point will either
remove the tutorial or label it clearly as specific to the old exporter.

>
>> There is also a reason for not doing it natively in latex even if the
>> org-mode solution is somewhat round-about. I am writing a research
>> paper using orgmode, with embedded R source blocks in it. I do not
>> mind embedding some latex source block into it but I would not like to
>> edit an exported latex file. After all, in the end, the objective is
>> to be able to have an org file which produces a full paper when exported.
>
> Then generate LaTeX tables from R not Org tables.  As far as I know, R
> is capable of that.  I believe you can pass the ":wrap latex" option to
> the babel block to wrap your LaTeX table with
> "#+begin_latex..#+end_latex".

One reason to stick with Org tables is to ensure stylistic consistency
in the LaTeX output for all tables, regardless of where they originated.
This is more of a convenience than anything else, since the approach you
suggest can yield arbitrarily styled tables, too.

>
> I'm suggesting this because if you continue on this path, i.e. litter
> your Org file with hacks, soon you will end up with an extremely fragile
> and complicated Org project.  I have been down that road while writing
> my thesis.  At one point I realised the problem and made the decision to
> split things into two kinds of files: static content (document
> structuring, text, plots, etc), and dynamic content (babel, TikZ blocks
> that generate tables, plots, figures, etc used by the static content
> files).  It is still reproducible research, but modular and less hacky
> (hence more stable).

The path to a fragile and complicated Org project is well-worn, I've
been down it too many times myself. The habits I've developed over time
have helped, but I think they are less systematic than what you've
devised. I'd love to see some notes on your solution as a brief tutorial
or an expanded FAQ on Worg.  I'll be happy to contribute or help if you
find time to do something like this.

All the best,
Tom

-- 
Thomas S. Dye
http://www.tsdye.com