Document support for ` \(` and `\[` math delimiters

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Assessment

Difficulty
2/5
Estimated time
1-3 hours
Newbie friendliness
72/100
Issue type
Documentation
Clarity
Clearly specified
Activity status
Quiet
Tech stack
latex, markdown
Domain
documentation

Research direction

Start with the equations section of quarto.org’s Markdown basics documentation, linked in the issue, and verify how the markdown+tex_math_single_backslash extension is presented. Update the documentation with the (...) and [...] delimiters and examples; done means users can find the extension setting and understand inline versus block usage.

Written by the indexing model from the issue text.

Description

documentation
What would you like to do?

Report an issue on quarto.org

Description

Originally suggested by @JamesSmith20, moved from https://github.com/quarto-dev/quarto-cli/issues/11761 :

2. Support for \( and \[ Math Delimiters

Currently, the Quarto documentation on equations does not mention support for LaTeX-style math delimiters \(...\) (inline) and \[...\] (block). It states that only $...$ and $$...$$ are supported for inline and block math. However, using Pandoc’s markdown+tex_math_single_backslash extension, Quarto can support these delimiters seamlessly across Word, HTML, and PDF formats.

Here is an example:

---
title: "Quarto Playground"
from: markdown+tex_math_single_backslash
format:
  docx
---

Inline math example: \( E = mc^2 \)

Inline math example: $E = mc^2$

Block math example:

\[ a^2 + b^2 = c^2 \]

$$
a^2 + b^2 = c^2
$$

This works well to render equations using the preferred LaTeX-style delimiters, which are consistent with LaTeX standards and widely used by large language models and other AI tools. Including this information in the official documentation would help users integrate equations more easily without manual adjustments.

Suggested Improvements:
  1. Document Support for \( and \[ Delimiters:
    • Update the math documentation to mention the use of markdown+tex_math_single_backslash for LaTeX-style math delimiters.
    • Include examples to show how \(...\) and \[...\] can be used for inline and block math.
Benefits:
  • Makes Quarto’s capabilities more transparent to users.
  • Enhances usability for academic and technical writing by providing official guidance on:
    • LaTeX-style math delimiters for consistency.
Related Discussions:

This request builds upon Discussion #11753 on Quarto’s GitHub platform.

Thank you for considering this enhancement to the documentation!

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