mcpbeat

Latex Compile Qa

willoscar/latex-compile-qa

| Compile a LaTeX project and run basic QA (missing refs, bib errors, broken citations), producing `latex/main.pdf` and a build report.

3k tokens
context cost
the whole folder, loaded on every use
2
files
ships runnable scripts
0
copies elsewhere
how many repositories repackaged it
496
stars on the repo
on the repository, not the skill itself

Install

one command, takes just this skill from the repository
npx skills add https://github.com/WILLOSCAR/research-units-pipeline-skills --skill latex-compile-qa

What comes with it

9 578 bytes besides the instruction
scripts/run.py

The instruction itself

15 sections, as written by the author

LaTeX Compile + QA

Compile the LaTeX project and produce a PDF (when the toolchain is available), plus a short build report.

This step is deterministic; if compilation fails, record actionable diagnostics rather than guessing.

Inputs

  • latex/main.tex
  • citations/ref.bib

Outputs

  • latex/main.pdf (if compilation succeeds)
  • output/LATEX_BUILD_REPORT.md (recommended)

Workflow

  • Run a LaTeX build (e.g., latexmk) if available.
  • Fix missing packages, missing bib entries, and unresolved references.
  • Record remaining issues in a build report.

Quality checklist

  • [ ] latex/main.pdf exists only when compilation succeeds; failed builds must remove stale PDFs and explain the failure in output/LATEX_BUILD_REPORT.md.
  • [ ] For arxiv-survey-latex deliverables: latex/main.pdf is >= 8 pages and has no undefined citations/references (strict gate).

Script

Quick Start

  • uv run python .codex/skills/latex-compile-qa/scripts/run.py --help
  • uv run python .codex/skills/latex-compile-qa/scripts/run.py --workspace <workspace>

All Options

  • See --help (inputs/outputs are taken from the unit runner when used via pipeline)

Examples

  • Compile + produce report:
  • uv run python .codex/skills/latex-compile-qa/scripts/run.py --workspace <workspace>

Notes

  • Uses latexmk -xelatex -bibtex when available.
  • Always writes output/LATEX_BUILD_REPORT.md (success or failure).
  • Report includes page count + warning summary when available.

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Issue: latexmk not found

Symptom:

  • Build report says “latexmk not found in PATH”.

Causes:

  • LaTeX toolchain is not installed.

Solutions:

  • Install a TeX distribution that includes latexmk.
  • If you can’t install tools, still use latex-scaffold to generate latex/main.tex and compile elsewhere.
Issue: Build fails with bib/ref errors

Symptom:

  • Report shows missing citations/refs or BibTeX errors.

Causes:

  • citations/ref.bib missing/miswired, or draft contains invalid cite keys.

Solutions:

  • Ensure latex/main.tex points to ../citations/ref.bib (or the correct relative path).
  • Ensure all citation keys exist in citations/ref.bib.

Recovery Checklist

  • [ ] Read output/LATEX_BUILD_REPORT.md tail for the first actionable error.
  • [ ] Confirm latex/main.tex exists and bibliography path is correct.

How to use it

Copy the folder

Take willoscar/latex-compile-qa from the repository into ~/.claude/skills for personal use, or into .claude/skills inside a project.

Check the name does not clash

The agent identifies a skill by the name field in its header. Two skills with the same name cannot sit side by side — one of them will be ignored.