[reportlab-users] ReportLab vs LaTex

[Tim Roberts]

François Pinard wrote:

> Hi, Warren, and gang.

>

> The last time I really looked into this, long ago, there were three 

> basic areas where LaTeX (TeX, really) was quite competent:

>

>   - ligatures

>   - kerning

>   - word segmentation

>   


I would agree with that.  The primary focus of TeX and LaTeX is beauty. 
LaTeX has a vast set of rules that define what makes a manuscript
beautiful to human eyes.  LaTeX will place each character, each
punctuation mark, each word, each box, each line, and each paragraph to
adhere to those rules, making for a consistent and attractive
manuscript.  If you need to override those rules, you are in for a bumpy
ride.

ReportLab, on the other had, has only a rudimentary set of rules, but it
allows you to place your pieces of text and graphics very precisely, to
suit your particular needs.

Each one has its place.  If I were writing a book or a research paper,
I'd use LaTeX.  If I were creating a registration form or an inventory
report, I'd use ReportLab.

-- 
Tim Roberts, timr at probo.com
Providenza & Boekelheide, Inc.