LyX is a text editor for LaTeX, built on the WYSIWYM idea. It is designed for users who require high quality and convenience when entering text. LyX allows an author to focus on a document's content and logical structure.

LyX saves documents in a text format, similar to XML. When editing a document, LyX converts it from its format to LaTeX format. No knowledge of LaTeX is required to use the program, although this knowledge allows users to use all features of the program. This software is available for macOS devices, so that we will tell you more about it.

What is this program?

LyX is a free document processor based on the LaTeX desktop publishing system. LyX is cross-platform software with ready-made builds for Windows, Mac OS X, and various Linux distributions, as well as an unofficial build for OS/2. LyX adheres to the WYSIWYM (What You See Is What You Mean) paradigm in contrast with the WYSIWYG ideas used in conventional text editors.

According to this paradigm, a user writes text and defines its semantic structure, marking the content according to its meaning and the purpose in the document. The editor establishes the appearance of the document. It generates the output file according to a set of rules defining the arrival of the document.

Working with templates

In LyX, the structure of a document is partially determined by the template selected for it. These templates correspond to LaTeX document classes. The process of generating the output file is performed in two steps. The first step is converting from an internal format to LaTeX.

In the second step, the LaTeX processor generates the output document in the desired format, such as DVI, PDF, etc. The advantage of this approach is that LyX can provide any format the LaTeX file can be converted into.

Document structure

The different parts of a document (they are called environments) are used for other purposes. Most documents consist of plain text. Section (chapter, subsection, etc.) headings let the user know that a new thematic section or subsection has begun. Some types of documents have unique environments. A journal article contains a summary and a title. A letter contains neither but perhaps has an environment with a sender's address.

Environments are a big part of LyX's WYSIWYM philosophy. A particular environment may require certain font styles and sizes, indentation sizes, line spacing, etc. LyX can help you avoid learning all sorts of formatting styles.

Program features

The program is responsible for the entire document structuring, including numbering and the correct changing and supplementing elements of text structure, such as parts, sections, subsections, paragraphs, authors, dates, pictures, tables, links, and so on.

The program also automatically creates lists and pages of lists of these structural elements with automatic numbering at the user's request. The program also has a simple mechanism for creating a cross-reference and a subject and author index (it can be any element of a text).

These features are helpful when writing books and newspapers with summary tables, figures, or lists of them. This frees a user from re-entering these elements. All you need to do is point to them when creating the text using the user-friendly LyX tools.