Comment on I 🖤 LaTeX

• thisisbutaname@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

  From another comment:

  The ‘X’ at the end of \LaTeX is actually a uppercase chi, so it pronounced with a ‘k’ sound.

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  • ChairmanMeow@programming.dev ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    It’s also wrong, it’s supposed to be a ch-sound as in Bach.

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    • lugal@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Depending on the time. In ancient Greek it was /k^h^/ (aspirated k, basically the normal k in English) which turned to /x/ as you said but neither is wRoNG, especially when your native language doesn’t have one if the sounds

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      • ChairmanMeow@programming.dev ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        The k-sound is used when the chi is prefixed in front of certain vowels. The ch-sound is the truly correct pronunciation here, there’s no history involved for that.

        Knuth, the guy who coined it, also says the ch-sound is the correct one, though he also says the k-sound is also acceptable. As long as you do not use the ks-sound at least :)

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      • merc@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        I had no idea that a software typesetting system was that old. Is that what Homer used to typeset the Odyssey?

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• qjkxbmwvz@startrek.website ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

  Because it’s not an X at the end, it’s a Greek chi. Same with the arXiv preprint distribution — it’s “archive,” not are-ex-iv.

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  • merc@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    The greek χ should be a “ch” sound like “Bach” or “Loch”. And if you copy that last character from the project page or anything it’s definitely an X, not a χ.

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    • jerkface@lemmy.ca ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      Indeed, “CH” like “Bach” or “loch” is an accepted pronunciation of LaTeX. We didn’t have unicode in the 1980s and LaTeX is a logotype so it doesn’t really get to evolve.

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      • merc@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

        Meh, it’s pronounced Latex. I’ve chosen my hill to die on. Pretending it’s a “k” or “ch” sound is dumb.

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  • lugal@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    Petition to change the name to RX4

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    • qjkxbmwvz@startrek.website ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

      99 what you did there…

      (I know, IC isn’t valid Roman numeral representation of 99, but it was the only joke I could think of.)

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• Gyroplast@pawb.social ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

  Among the lovely revival of arguing the One True Pronunciation, I personally see lay-tech as a portmanteau of “layout technology”. Meaning in German discourse, it’s [tɛç], and in English [tɛk]. Simple to remember, easy to derive, and matching the Gospel.

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  • merc@sh.itjust.works ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago

    Except that it’s spelled “Latex” with all letters from the English alphabet and there is already an existing word with that spelling, therefore it is pronounced the same way as that word. You don’t pronounce “Laser” as “Lah Seer” even though the “A” comes from “Amplification” and the “E” from “Emission”. Once it became a word, it was pronounced using standard English pronunciation rules.

    Latex, like the rubber stuff.

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    • Gyroplast@pawb.social ⁨1⁩ ⁨day⁩ ago

      “Read the instructions”, he was told, so he read them. And then he did lead Sean to the lead pipe.

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