equationsmath-mode
Is there a way to replace the $$ ... $$ macro with the \[ ... \] macros? (and replace inline mathmode as well)
I realised the only way I can write the \sum_{i=1}^{10} t_i is between the \[ ... \] LaTeX maths-mode. It also seems to layout the maths nicer (bigger, with gaps).
However, $$ ... $$ is faster to write… so is there a way to replace the $$ ... $$ macro, to act in the LaTeX fashion?
You could play around with the regular text adjustments or by using \scalebox{<factor>}{<stuff>} from the graphicx package in the following way:
\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{amsmath}% http://ctan.org/pkg/amsmath
\usepackage{graphicx}% http://ctan.org/pkg/graphicx
\begin{document}
\begin{align*}
\chi^2_0 =& \tfrac{1}{2} \\
\mbox{\Large$\chi$}^2_0 =& \tfrac{1}{2} \\
\scalebox{1.5}{$\chi$}^2_0 =& \tfrac{1}{2}
\end{align*}
\end{document}
amsmath was just used for the align* and \tfrac functionality. If cluttering your input is a problem, you can put this in a macro (here I've chosen the first enlargement style):
\newcommand*{\bigchi}{\mbox{\Large$\chi$}}% big chi
and use it as \bigchi=\frac{1}{2}. You can play around with different font sizes or scaling values.
You can do it, but I strongly recommend you not doing it. You gain nothing in using [ and ] as delimiters for a mandatory argument.
\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{amsmath}
\makeatletter
\newcommand\bmat{{\ifnum\z@=`}\fi\@bmat}
\def\@bmat[#1]{\begin{bmatrix}#1\end{bmatrix}\ifnum\z@=`{\fi}}
\makeatother
\begin{document}
$\bmat[1&0\\0&1]$
\begin{align}
M &= \bmat[1&0\\0&1]
\end{align}
\end{document}
(Note: I have reduced the text width to shorten the output.)
When you understand the trick, you are allowed to use it. :) Hint: look for \eegroup in Appendix D of the TeXbook.
Defining \mat to look for the next token in order to decide a delimiter is, in my opinion, wrong. I'd do like this:
\newcommand{\mat}[2][]{\begin{#1matrix}#2\end{#1matrix}}
so that
\mat{1&2\\3&4} % no fences
\mat[b]{1&2\\3&4} % brackets
\mat[p]{1&2\\3&4} % parentheses
\mat[v]{1&2\\3&4} % vertical lines
\mat[V]{1&2\\3&4} % double vertical lines
\mat[B]{1&2\\3&4} % braces
would do even better, with minimum hassle and better readability.
Personally, I would stick with the long form, but it's a matter of taste.
Best Answer
This is not a direct answer to your question but maybe a better solution: use snippet management to ease writing
\[ ... \]constructions. This of course requires an editor with support for snippets management.You could create a snippet that activates when writing
$Tab (or some key command) and when it's activates it inputsand places the cursor between them.
In many snippets managers this snippet is simply:
For an explanation of how YASnippet, a snippet manager for Emacs, works, see Working with templates.