compile-latex

name	compile-latex
description	Compile a Beamer LaTeX slide deck with XeLaTeX (3 passes + bibtex). Use when compiling lecture slides.
argument-hint	[filename without .tex extension]
allowed-tools	["Read","Bash","Glob"]

Compile Beamer LaTeX Slides

Compile a Beamer slide deck using XeLaTeX with full citation resolution.

Steps

1. Navigate to Slides/ directory and compile with 3-pass sequence:

cd Slides
TEXINPUTS="../Preambles;$TEXINPUTS" xelatex -interaction=nonstopmode $ARGUMENTS.tex
TEXINPUTS="../Preambles;$TEXINPUTS" xelatex -interaction=nonstopmode $ARGUMENTS.tex
TEXINPUTS="../Preambles;$TEXINPUTS" xelatex -interaction=nonstopmode $ARGUMENTS.tex

Note: Use semicolon (;) for Windows, colon (:) for Mac/Linux.

Alternative (latexmk):

cd Slides
TEXINPUTS="../Preambles;$TEXINPUTS" latexmk -xelatex -interaction=nonstopmode $ARGUMENTS.tex

2. Check for warnings:

   • Grep output for Overfull \\hbox warnings
   • Grep for undefined citations or Label(s) may have changed
   • Report any issues found

3. Open the PDF for visual verification:

   open Slides/$ARGUMENTS.pdf          # macOS
   # xdg-open Slides/$ARGUMENTS.pdf    # Linux
   

4. Report results:

   • Compilation success/failure
   • Number of overfull hbox warnings
   • Any undefined citations
   • PDF page count

Why 3 passes?

1. First xelatex: Creates .aux file with labels and references
2. Second xelatex: Resolves cross-references
3. Third xelatex: Finalizes all references with correct page numbers

Important

• Always use XeLaTeX, never pdflatex
• TEXINPUTS is required: your Beamer theme lives in Preambles/
• Use semicolon (;) path separator on Windows, colon (:) on Mac/Linux