`<latex>`

A snippet of LaTeX that can be rendered as math

<latex> is a Text component that stores a LaTeX-formatted string. It is equivalent to <text> with the isLatex attribute defaulted to true.

The primary reason <latex> exists is that the latex property of a <math> (or any math-valued component) returns a <latex>. That makes round-tripping through the LaTeX form natural: a reference like $myMath.latex is itself a <latex>, and feeding it back into a <math> produces the original expression — without having to set format="latex" on the outer <math>.

<latex> is rarely useful as a display tag — <m>, <me>, and <md> always parse their children as LaTeX, so for typeset output they do the job whether you wrap the LaTeX in <latex>, in <text>, or leave it bare. <latex> becomes distinguishable from <text> only when the surrounding context is going to parse the content, not just render it. The canonical such context is a <math>.

How `<math>` consumes a `<latex>` child

Each text-like child of a <math> parses its own value with its own parser before being incorporated as a math sub-expression: a <latex> (or any <text> with isLatex="true") uses the LaTeX parser, a plain <text> uses the text parser. This is independent of the outer <math>’s format attribute, which only controls how the outer math parses its own string content.

So <math><latex>…</latex></math> parses the contents as LaTeX even though the outer <math>’s format is still its default "text".

Attributes and Properties

Attributes for `<latex>`

Positioning (2)

anchor

point. Default value: $\left( 0, 0 \right)$. Coordinates of the anchor point used to position this component on a graph.

positionFromAnchor

keyword. Where this component sits relative to its anchor point.

Value	Description
`upperRight`	Place the component above and to the right of the anchor point.
`upperLeft`	Place the component above and to the left of the anchor point.
`lowerRight`	Place the component below and to the right of the anchor point.
`lowerLeft`	Place the component below and to the left of the anchor point.
`top`	Place the component directly above the anchor point.
`bottom`	Place the component directly below the anchor point.
`left`	Place the component directly to the left of the anchor point.
`right`	Place the component directly to the right of the anchor point.
`center` (default)	Center the component on the anchor point.

Other (3)

draggable

boolean. Default value: true. Whether the text can be dragged on a graph.

isLatex

boolean. Default value: true. Whether the text content is treated as LaTeX.

layer

number. Default value: 0. Z-order layer index when shown on a graph.

Common to all components (9)

copy

reference. Create an independent copy of another component by reference. Enter a references a $name.

disabled

boolean. Default value: false. Whether this component is disabled and cannot be interacted with.

extend

reference. Extend another component by reference, inheriting its children and attributes. Enter a reference as $name.

fixed

boolean. Default value: false. Whether this component's value is fixed and cannot be modified.

fixLocation

boolean. Default value: false. Whether this component's location is fixed (preventing it from being moved while still allowing other modifications).

hide

boolean. Default value: false. Whether to hide this component from the rendered output.

isResponse

boolean. Default value: false. Whether this component is treated as a response for the purposes of assessment.

name

text. The name used to reference this component from elsewhere in the document.

styleNumber

integer. Default value: 1. The style number used to select this component's visual styling from the available style definitions.

Properties for `<latex name="l">`

Positioning (2)

$l.anchor

point. The coordinates where this component is anchored on the graph.

$l.positionFromAnchor

text. Where this component sits relative to its anchor point.

Other (21)

$l.backgroundColor

text. Human-readable name for this component's background color, derived from the active style and theme.

$l.characters

[ text ]. The text value split into characters (graphemes).

$l.disabled

boolean. Whether this component is disabled and cannot be interacted with.

$l.draggable

boolean. Whether the text can be dragged on a graph.

$l.fixed

boolean. Whether this component's value is fixed and cannot be modified.

$l.fixLocation

boolean. Whether this component's location is fixed (preventing it from being moved while still allowing other modifications).

$l.hidden

boolean. Whether this component is hidden from the rendered output.

$l.isLatex

boolean. Whether the text content is treated as LaTeX.

$l.latex

latex. The LaTeX content as a string.

$l.layer

number. Z-order layer index when shown on a graph.

$l.list

[ text ]. The text value split into items at commas.

$l.math

math. The text parsed as a math expression.

$l.number

number. The text parsed as a number.

$l.numCharacters

integer. The number of characters (graphemes) in the text value.

$l.numListItems

integer. The number of comma-separated items when the text is interpreted as a list.

$l.numWords

integer. The number of words in the text value.

$l.text

text. The text rendered as a plain text string.

$l.textColor

text. Human-readable name for this component's text color, derived from the active style and theme.

$l.textStyleDescription

text. Human-readable description of this component's text styling (color and any background color).

$l.value

latex. The text value.

$l.words

[ text ]. The text value split into words.

Common to all components (4)

$l.doenetML

text. The DoenetML source code that produced this component.

$l.hide

boolean. Whether to hide this component from the rendered output.

$l.isResponse

boolean. Whether this component is treated as a response for the purposes of assessment.

$l.styleNumber

integer. The style number used to select this component's visual styling from the available style definitions.

Examples

Example: Round-trip math → `latex` → math

The first two paragraphs show the original expression and its LaTeX-formatted string. The third places $m.latex (which is a <latex> component) inside a <math>. The outer <math> has no format attribute, yet the round trip works: the <latex> child uses the LaTeX parser to convert its own contents back into a math expression, which the outer <math> then incorporates.

Example: Why a plain `<text>` does not round-trip

Wrapping $m.latex in a <text> instead of a <latex> loses the isLatex flag. The <text> parses its own value using its own isLatex setting (false by default), so the text parser tries to read the LaTeX string and fails — the result renders as a blank box, ＿. Setting format="latex" on the outer <math> does not help, because that attribute only controls how the outer math parses its own string content; the <text> child is still parsed by the <text>’s own parser. The real fix is to mark the child as LaTeX — either with isLatex="true" on the <text>, or by using a <latex>, which is just that case spelled more concisely.

Example: Reuse one LaTeX string in multiple places

A named <latex> value can be referenced anywhere a text or math component is accepted. The <math> parses the LaTeX into an expression (via the round-trip mechanism above); <me> renders it as display math. Storing the LaTeX once keeps every consumer in sync.

label lcm

<latex>

How <math> consumes a <latex> child

Attributes and Properties

Attributes for <latex>

Properties for <latex name="l">