All

First follow the operating system specific directions below, then continue from here

• Nice UI with spellchecker http://texstudio.sourceforge.net/
• Reference manager http://jabref.sourceforge.net/

Important:  Make sure all files are encoded as UTF-8.  Some programs choose other encoding depending on what operating system you are running.  In particular, always check the JabRef setting.

Important:  To make your bibliography/references appear, you need to run the pdflatex/latex command multiple times.  So if you add a reference, you will need to run: (pdf)latex, bibtex, (pdf)latex, (pdf)latex

If you still don't see the reference, chances are that you made a typo in the reference name or forgot to save the .bib file.  Check the .log file and look for "undefined reference"

A frequently updated document with hints for working with LaTeX is at http://afs.rnd.ru.is/project/htgaru/trunk/how-to-get-around-projects.pdf

Overleaf (WebBased)

You can now develop your documents completely through a web browser while still using the power of LaTeX: https://overleaf.com

RU templates: https://www.overleaf.com/gallery/tagged/reykjavik#.V_TkReiLRpg

Windows

MikTex is the windows LaTeX installer and package manager.   It will automatically download and install packages for you.

http://miktex.org/download

IMPORTANT:  Only install the 32 bit version.  The 64-bit version is missing some packages and is still in the testing stage.

IMPORTANT:  Run the MikTeX Update wizard after installing.  This can avoid many weird LaTeX errors.

Windows 10:  There are some permissions issues with Windows Defender if you install the package "For all Users".  It is recommended that you only install it for the current user unless you are on a multi-user system and can adjust security settings.

Mac

MacTex is the OSX LaTeX distribution built upon TexLive

http://tug.org/mactex/

Linux

TeXLive is the distribution for everything else:  https://www.tug.org/texlive/

Most Linux distributions have a package manager that can install TeXLive.  Packages are often grouped, so you may have to do a bit of searching to find the right set of packages for you.  You can also install TeXLive on Windows. 

Debian

There are two paths:  either install the packaged versions or texlive directly (see above).  The packaged versions sometimes get a little old.

Debian Package Method

sudo apt-get install -y texlive-latex-recommended

For the RU Thesis template, you want something like this:

sudo apt-get install -y texlive texlive-latex-extra texlive-science texlive-generic-extra texlive-lang-european texlive-lang-german latex-xcolor texlive-pictures pgf texlive-bibtex-extra texlive-publishers chktex evince fonts-lmodern lmodern

Frequently Asked Questions

TeXStudio

How do I spellcheck Icelandic?

1. Open TeXStudio and go to 'Options' > 'Configure TexStudio'
2. Click on "Language Checking" on the left.
3. Look at the Category "Spell Check" and look at the path marked "Spelling Dictionary Directories".
4. Open the path in "Spelling Dictionary Directories" in another window.
5. Download the latex libreoffice dictionary at https://extensions.libreoffice.org/extensions/hunspell-is-the-icelandic-spelling-dictionary-project
6. Decompress the .oxt file using 7zip or unzip.  You may have to rename it to end in .zip
7. Go in the folder and then go to the 'dicts' folder.
8. Copy all of these files into the "Spelling Dictinoary Directories' path
9. Restart TeXStudio
10. Return to "Language Checking" and see if Icelandic can be set in "Default Language"