parentheses | |||
brackets | |||
braces | |||
vertical bars | |||
other delims... | |||
half-open interval | |||
half-closed interval | |||
big parentheses | |||
big brackets | |||
big braces | |||
big vertical bars | |||
other big delims... | |||
big left brace | |||
other mixed big delims... |
TeX is particularly adept at ``delimiting'' arbitrary-sized mathematical expressions. Examples include parenthesized equations, matrices, and determinants. Since the left and right delimiters need not be of the same type, there are a host of options from which to choose, which presents an interesting design problem. A workable compromise was achieved by implementing a handful of common delimiters explicitly, and then providing access to other more esoteric combinations via dialogs. Consequently, commands for big parentheses, big brackets, big braces, and big vertical bars (i.e., absolute value signs) will be found on the Delimiters submenu, along with a big left brace (commonly used to define multi-part functions or systems of equations), as well as commands called other big delims and other mixed big delims. The latter two commands are interactive--the user either types the delimiter name directly into a text box or chooses the desired name from a pop-up menu of available options. Also on the Delimiters submenu are normal-sized parentheses, brackets, braces, vertical bars, and other fixed-size delimiters.
multi-line big parentheses | |||
multi-line big brackets | |||
multi-line big braces | |||
multi-line big vertical bars | |||
other multi-line big delims... | |||
multi-line big left brace | |||
other multi-line mixed big delims... |
All of the big delimiters have multi-line counterparts (i.e, a vertical, as opposed to a horizontal construct). To access these commands, press the <OPT> key while the Delimiters submenu is down.