mnras-latex-compile-portability-fixes

name	mnras-latex-compile-portability-fixes
description	Fix common MNRAS LaTeX portability issues on Ubuntu/Debian TeX Live installs, compile successfully, and package submission artifacts.
version	1.0.0
author	Hermes Agent
license	MIT
metadata	{"hermes":{"tags":["latex","mnras","astronomy","paper-writing","bibtex","ubuntu","texlive"],"category":"research"}}

MNRAS LaTeX compile portability fixes

When to Use

Fix common MNRAS LaTeX portability issues on Ubuntu/Debian TeX Live installs, compile successfully, and package submission artifacts.

Overview

This skill contains a reusable operational workflow. Follow the existing task-specific steps and examples in the sections below.

Verification

• Confirm required inputs and credentials are available.
• Run the smallest safe command or example before scaling up.
• Check produced files, API responses, or plots before reporting success.

Use this when an MNRAS manuscript fails to compile on a typical Ubuntu/Debian TeX Live environment, especially after adapting a generic article into MNRAS.

When this skill applies

• The user has an .tex manuscript intended for MNRAS.
• The document compiles poorly or fails due to missing font packages.
• The paper was converted from a generic article class into mnras.
• The user wants a submission-style package (main.tex, references.bib, helper files) and a compiled PDF.

Key lessons learned

1. Avoid newtxtext,newtxmath for portability unless you know the environment has them

A common failure on Ubuntu/Debian is:

• ! LaTeX Error: File 'newtxtext.sty' not found.

If the goal is successful compilation rather than exact Times-like typography, remove:

\usepackage{ae,aecompl}
\usepackage{newtxtext,newtxmath}

Keep a simpler preamble such as:

\usepackage[T1]{fontenc}
\usepackage{graphicx}
\usepackage{amsmath}

This trades typographic fidelity for portability and is often the right short-term fix.

2. longtable is not safe inside normal MNRAS two-column mode

If compilation fails with:

• Package longtable Error: longtable not in 1-column mode.

Replace longtable with a regular table layout suitable for MNRAS, usually:

\begin{table*}
\centering
\caption{...}
\label{...}
\small
\begin{tabularx}{\textwidth}{...}
...
\end{tabularx}
\end{table*}

For wide summary tables in two-column papers, table* + tabularx is a safer default than longtable.

3. Separate inline bibliography into a BibTeX file for cleaner packaging

If the working draft contains:

\begin{thebibliography}{99}
...
\end{thebibliography}

convert it into:

\bibliographystyle{mnras}
\bibliography{references}

and create references.bib.

This makes the paper easier to compile, easier to maintain, and closer to a real submission package.

4. After BibTeX conversion, expect multiple latexmk passes

Use:

latexmk -pdf -interaction=nonstopmode main.tex

latexmk may need multiple BibTeX + pdflatex rounds before citations settle. Do not stop after the first pass if the PDF already exists but references are unresolved.

5. Treat warnings differently from fatal errors

Typical non-fatal warnings:

• underfull/overfull hboxes
• font substitution warnings
• duplicate table destination warnings from float movement

Typical fatal blockers that need edits:

• missing .sty files
• longtable not in 1-column mode
• unresolved bibliography due to missing .bbl generation

A PDF can be acceptable for review even with the first category of warnings.

Recommended workflow

A. Verify tools

Check availability:

command -v pdflatex
command -v latexmk
command -v bibtex

B. Patch for portability

If newtxtext.sty is missing, remove:

\usepackage{ae,aecompl}
\usepackage{newtxtext,newtxmath}

from both the working draft and the packaged main.tex if both exist.

C. Replace problematic wide tables

If using longtable in MNRAS two-column mode, replace it with table* + tabularx.

D. Build

Run:

cd /path/to/submission/package
latexmk -pdf -interaction=nonstopmode main.tex

E. Verify success

Success indicators:

• Output written on main.pdf
• Latexmk: All targets (main.pdf) are up-to-date

Submission package layout

A practical reusable package layout is:

mnras_submission_package/
├── main.tex
├── references.bib
├── compile.sh
├── README.txt
├── figures/
│   └── README.txt
└── notes/
    ├── package_notes.txt
    └── manifest.json

Pitfalls

• Don’t assume MNRAS can use longtable in the default two-column layout.
• Don’t assume Ubuntu/Debian TeX Live has newtxtext/newtxmath installed even if mnras.cls exists.
• Don’t stop after the first pdflatex pass when BibTeX is now required.
• Don’t treat all warnings as fatal; focus first on blockers that prevent a stable PDF.

Good outcome criteria

• The document compiles to PDF successfully.
• Citations resolve via BibTeX.
• The user receives a reviewable PDF even if cosmetic warnings remain.
• The source is packaged in a clean submission-like directory for further editing.