The LaTeX typesetting system (pronounced "Lay-Tek" or "Lah-Tek") is widely used to produce well-formatted mathematical and scientific writing. With LaTeX, it is very easy to produce expressions like

Nearly every serious student of math and science will use LaTeX frequently. Through these web pages, you will learn much of what you'll need to express math and science like a pro.

Please note: These pages are no longer updated and maintained. We have moved all the information in these pages into the AoPSWiki. Click here to go to the corresponding page in the AoPSWiki.

1. Download and install MiKTeX and TeXnicCenter, in that order. See instructions on the Downloads page. All of these packages are FREE. They are not developed or distributed by Art of Problem Solving. (You will also need a PDF viewer such as the free Adobe Reader; however this program is already installed on most computers.)
2. Work through the "Basics" pages:
   • The First Document page walks you through creating your first LaTeX document.
   • The Math page shows you how to typset mathematics in LaTeX.
   • The Style page shows you how to control the basic appearance of your document.
3. Learn how to add images to your LaTeX documents.
4. Use our LaTeX quick-reference guides to learn more about:
• the layout of your document
• the different symbols available in LaTeX
• some of the commands in LaTeX, and how to define your own new commands
• various external packages that can increase LaTeX's abilities, and how to create your own new packages
5. Use the TeXer to experiment and practice writing mathematical formulas.
6. Use the Help/FAQ pages and the LaTeX forum for more help.