``TeX by Topic is a systematic reference manual designed as a companion to tutorial guides on the system. Packed with original, practical ideas, this book provides an invaluable information source that will give the TeX user the essential insight needed to solve TeX problems.'' [From the back cover]
A beautifully written, concise and comprehensive discussion of TeX as a programming language [...] Eijkhout's book is not a loose collection of unconnected entries but a very systematic account of how TeX works as a programming language. Not the ideal first introduction, but an absolute must-read if you want to understand the deeper foundations of the TeX language. On many occasion when one of my macros didn't work, only by consulting Eijkhout's book was I able to find the source of my problem. [From a review by Martin Diedrich]
TeX by Topic has long been out of print. Now that the publisher has reverted the rights to me, I have decided to make the book freely available in PDF form. Go ahead, download and enjoy it. What you are getting here is a conversion to LaTeX of the original book, which used a non-standard macro package. In other words, you get the text, but not the original formatting.
If you think that getting this book for free, which originally sold for almost 30 dollars, is worth something, please make a donation to my PayPal account with the button below. Go on, it's safe. If you make a donation, I will also notify you of any revisions of the book.
If you have problems of whatever sort in dealing with PayPal, you can always send me a few dollar bills to
Victor Eijkhout Department of Computer Science 203 Claxton Complex University of Tennessee Knoxville TN 37996 USAWrap the bills in some plain typing paper and the mail will never find out.
And here is the link to download the book in letter format and in a4 format. If you want to tell other people about this book, please send them to the page you are reading, and not to the download link, which will probably move. Besides, I want to give people an opportunity to send me a donation.
New: the source of the book is now available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
Here is how to reach me for comments and questions: victor@eijkhout.net
30 September 2007.