Install LaTex under Windows - how it works

Unfortunately, installing LaTeX with one click under Windows does not work. We show you which programs you need and the first steps to convert the LaTeX code into a PDF file.

Install LaTeX distribution

At the beginning you have to install a LaTeX distribution. Here is MiKTeX.

1. Download the "Basic MiKTeX Installer" and open the file.
2. Follow the installation instructions.
3. So only the packages that are really needed are downloaded. If you want to download packages now, go to "MiKTeX"> "Maintenance (Admin)"> "Package Manager (Admin)" in the start menu. Now select the packages you want to install and confirm with the plus sign at the top left.

Set up the LaTeX editor

To be able to create LaTeX documents, you now need an editor like "Texmaker".

1. Open the "Texmaker" program after installation.
2. Now start a new project on "File"> "New". You can call up a basic structure for the LaTeX code via "Assistant"> "Assistant for a new document". For example, select your desired font size or page format here.
3. Write your LaTeX code between \ begin {document} and \ end {document}.
4. Now save the file under any name as a tex file.
5. In the toolbar in the second dropdown box, switch from the right to the "PDFLaTeX" item and click on the arrow to the left. In the folder where your tex file is also saved, you will now find the PDF file created.

If you want to add diagrams to your work, it is worth taking a look at Origin compared to everyday programs such as Excel or OpenOffice.