MathType Editing Procedures

MathType Editing Procedures

Version 2.0




 



Table of Contents
•    Cover Sheet   
•    Table of Contents   
•    Introduction   
•    Getting Started   
•    Using MathType   
•    MathType Do’s and Don’ts   
•    Additional Help
•    Global Replacement   
•    Shortcuts in MathType   
•    Appendix A   
•    Appendix B   

Introduction
MathType is the primary editing method used when a student requests their work to be printed in Braille. The actual MathType program only inserts symbols and equations that the Tiger printer can recognize. The format that we use for Braille documents is included in this document, as well as how to set up your documents to print from the Tiger printer.

    Upon completion of editing, the page setup is changed and documents are printed on special paper with the Tiger printer. A template has already been created (11 1/2  11) to emulate the dimensions needed to print. However, for reference purposes, a detailed setup of how to change the page setup to print is located in Appendix A.


Getting Started

1)    No tabbing is to be used in this format. Make sure that ALL lines are left-aligned, as opposed to justified which we use for most other formats.

2)    Initial Setup


Method 1:

3)    Select all of the text from the RTF file you are editing and copy and paste into a new Notepad document. From Notepad, select all of the text and copy it into the MathType template located in the Formats\MathType directory on the Alternative Format Services server (MathType template.dot).

Method 2:

4)    For documents edited in Triangle, which have to be converted to Mathtype, it was found that changing the settings (Font, Font Size and Page Setup) manually using settings outlined in Appendix A worked better than Method 1, as it removed the appearance of unwanted symbols.

5)    Change the font (Format under the main menu bar then Font) to Tiger 29 and Size 29. Under the Font window, click the Character Spacing tab and make sure that Spacing is Normal.

6)    All symbols and special characters, excluding comma (,) period (.) and hyphen (-) (which should be in Tiger 29), should be from Symbol Tiger Expert. Globally replace the symbols to be done in Symbol Tiger Expert (this method is discussed later). The equal sign (=) is acceptable if it is in Tiger 29, but for consistency, replace from Symbol Tiger Expert.

7)    All subscripts and superscripts in equations are to be done in MathType. However, if equations are simple and can be done with symbols and operators from Symbol Tiger Expert, avoid doing them in MathType, as MathType equations occupy a lot of space.

8)    Try to do complete equations in MathType. Do not break a single equation into different MathType objects unless the equation is too big to fit on one line.

9)    Unlike with other formats, you are allowed to place more than one equal sign on a line.

10)    With simple equations not done in Math Type, appropriate spacing between operators should be given.

Example:

a + b  c is acceptable
a+bc is NOT acceptable

Note: When the text/equations in two lines appear too close together, use 1.5 line-spacing between them. This is useful especially for successive lines involving complicated equations with fractions. Do not give 1.5 line-spacing unnecessarily.

11)    Use apostrophes from Symbol Tiger Expert. When globally replacing apostrophes, paste the apostrophe symbol from Symbol Tiger Expert in the replace window. Do not insert an apostrophe from the keyboard.

12)    When converting a document from Triangle, pay close attention to certain symbols and formatting. Make sure that global replacement does not overwrite other symbols that you do not want to be changed.

Using MathType
MathType is a program used to insert mathematical equations and complicated expressions to be printed in Braille. In Microsoft Word, you should see a MathType menu bar (the options resemble Sigma characters). In order to print properly, certain styles, sizes and spaces need to be used. A preference file AFPG1 is created to accommodate the appropriate font type, spacing and symbols.

In order to insert a new equation, select MathType from the main menu bar then Insert Inline Equation. You can also use the shortcut CTRL + ALT + Q to open up a MathType equation window.



The preference file can be set in two different ways:

1)    From Word Document (as explained above)
MathType > Set Equation Preferences > Load from MathType Preference File > AFPG1

2)    From MathType Window
Preferences > Equation Preferences > Load from file... > AFPG1

Note: The latest preference file AFPG1 is located in the MathType folder on the Alternative Format Services server.

The MathType Template AFPG1 takes care of the required font sizes, styles and spacing, so do not give any additional spacing unless required.

    Once you are done editing an equation in the MathType window, press ALT + F4.

MathType Do’s and Don’ts

Fractions: Fractions inside MathType can also be done using the keyboard. Separate the numerator and denominator with a slash inserted from Symbol Tiger Expert.

Do use  , 
DO NOT: Use 

Problem Symbols: Some of the symbols and mathematical operators from MathType do not print properly. If you are unsure of whether the symbol will print, print to a file on ED5. A few of these exceptions are listed below:



Note: These are NOT the only exceptions...just the commonly used ones. In future if you encounter new symbols make sure they are okay by printing and checking. Also a file of unprintable symbols can be found on the Alternative Format Services server under the MathType folder (Prints_does not print_Renuka(81304).doc).

Parenthesis: In Math Type, all parentheses should be inserted only from the keyboard, even if they look bigger in the hardcopy.

Do use  ,  .
DO NOT use  ,  .

Vectors: Vectors represented as bold characters in text are usually represented with an over-arrow. The arrow above a character does not print properly, so an over-bar is used instead. If the direction of the arrow above the character is of importance, then the arrows can be inserted as over-scripts. Use similar procedures for tilde above, hat above, and dot above.

•    Never use   , the arrow doesn’t print. Use   instead.
•    Another option is   , inserting  in an over-script obtained from  .
•    Use overbar from   and NOT from  .

Limits: Limits for integrals and summations should be above and below rather than a superscript and subscript.

Do use 
DO NOT: Use 

Superscript/Subscript Spacing: The spacing for subscript and subscript is predetermined in the Preference file. A superscript should always follow the superscript.

Do use 
DO NOT: Use 


Tables: Tables in MathType can be done as a regular Word table using lines and cells. Use bigger cells than the size of the text. For normal text without any fractions/superscripts/subscripts, a row height of 0.7 inch is suggested. Vertically center-align the text and give a space at the beginning. Adjust the cells appropriately to provide some space at the end of text and the next cell. DO NOT center align horizontally. Make sure the table does not go beyond the margins. Split the table appropriately if necessary. For example look into Sample Table.doc on the Alternative Format Services server under the MathType folder.




Example:

 1     2     3     4     5
 6     7     8     9     2245

Note: Changing the described values can be done by selecting Table from the main menu bar then Table Properties. For row height, click the Row tab, check Specify height box, select 0.7", and change Row height is to At least. For vertical alignment, click the Cell tab, select Center under the Vertical alignment group.

Roman numerals: Convert all Roman numerals to regular numbers. Refer to Roman Numeral Notations in Appendix B if you need help with this process.

Spaces: Spacing in Math Type is taken care of by the AFPG1 preference file. This feature works only if the Style (Style is located on the main menu bar) is Math and not Text. So make sure that when you are editing equations, Style is set to Math. Ctrl + spacebar is the shortcut for inserting spaces in MathType. Only use this if you feel you need extra spaces in some cases.


Additional Helpful Points
1.    Save your documents frequently. MathType documents use a lot of memory; thus, there is good chance of the application locking up.

2.    The process of inserting graphics into most of the MathType documents is referred as merging. Graphics are done separately in another document and later merged with text.

3.    When using block-level shortcuts (Figure, Sidenote, etc.), change the colon to Symbol Tiger Expert.

4.    To view the whole page on the screen, change the zoom to 75%, provided the screen resolution is 1280  1024.

5.    If the equations in the MathType window are too big, reduce the viewing area to 100% by selecting View in the Mathtype main menu bar > Zoom > 100%.

Global Replacement (Very Important!)

1.    Select symbol to be replaced from the document and copy it (Ctrl + c).

2.    Press Ctrl + F to open the Find and Replace window. Click on the Replace tab.

3.    Paste (Ctrl + v) the symbol in the Find what: box.

4.    Bring the cursor to the Replace with: space. Click on the More button, then the Format button, then select Font from that list. Choose Symbol Tiger Expert as the font.

5.    Click somewhere else in your document to bring the focus away from the Find and Replace window. Go to the Insert Symbol screen (Alt + i, s). Select Symbol Tiger Expert from the Font drop-down list. Select the symbol you want to use as a replacement, click the Insert button. Finally, click on the Close button.

6.    Click the Replace All button in the Find and Replace window after you have copy and pasted this replacement symbol into the Replace with box. If it fails to replace the symbol how you wanted, undo (Ctrl + z) the operation and ask a Team Leader for assistance.




Shortcuts in MathType

For your convenience, here are some of the shortcuts in MathType:

Shortcut    Symbol    Result
Ctrl + Spacebar   
Space
Ctrl + h   
Superscript
Ctrl + l   
Subscript
Ctrl + f   
Fraction
Ctrl + /   
Fraction
Ctrl + r   
Square root
Ctrl + t, n   
nth root
Ctrl + g, q   
Theta
Ctrl + g, a   
Alpha
Ctrl + g, b   
Beta
Ctrl + g, g   
Gamma
Ctrl + g, d   
Delta (lowercase)
Ctrl + g, m   
Mu
Ctrl + g, s   
Sigma (lowercase)
Ctrl + g, l   
Lamda
Ctrl + g, p   
Pi
Ctrl + g, w   
Omega (lowercase)
Ctrl + g, r   
Rho
Ctrl + g, t   
Tau
Ctrl + g, D   
Delta (uppercase)
Ctrl + g, S   
Sigma (uppercase, summation)
Ctrl + k, d   
Partial derivative
Ctrl + k, i   
Infinity
Ctrl + k, =   
Concurrent with
Ctrl + g, w   
Belongs to



Appendix A

1)    Open any word document.

2)    Select File from the main menu bar, then Page Setup. Under the Paper tab...

Paper Size: Custom Size
Width: 11.5”
Height: 11”

3)    Click the Margins tab. Change these values:

Top: 0.5
Left: 0.25
Bottom: 0.5
Right: 0.25
Gutter position: Top



4)    All other settings should remain the same, so click OK.


Appendix B

Roman Numerals Equivalents

#    R.N. Equivalent    #    R.N. Equivalent    #    R.N. Equivalent
1    I    20    XX    300    CCC
2    II    30    XXX    400    CD
3    III    40    XL    500    D
4    IV    50    L    600    DC
5    V    60    LX    700    DCC
6    Vi    70    LXX    800    DCCC
7    VII    80    LXXX    900    CM
8    VIII    90    XC    1000    M
9    IX    100    C       
10    X    200    CC