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From: eijkhout@s41.csrd.uiuc.edu (Victor Eijkhout)
Newsgroups: comp.text.tex
Subject: Re: why do we need initex.exe AND tex.exe?
Message-ID: <1991Feb28.155654.3623@csrd.uiuc.edu>
Date: 28 Feb 91 15:56:54 GMT
References: <62097@eerie.acsu.Buffalo.EDU> <1991Feb27.184944.1@euler.claremont.edu>
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dhosek@euler.claremont.edu (Don Hosek) writes:

>In article <62097@eerie.acsu.Buffalo.EDU>, xiaofei@acsu.buffalo.edu (Xiaofei Wang) writes:

>> I think we just need initex.exe.

>You know what? You're right. In most implementations, IniTeX is
>nearly as fast as VirTeX (that is, TeX with no format preloaded).

The speed is not the question. IniTeX has lots of temporary
data structures for building the hyphenation patterns.
And in terms of the original memory sizes (suggested
main mem for TeX in 'the program': 30k words!)
this was very important.

But in these days of unix-boxes where we run big-TeXs
with 250k words of main mem it all doesn't matter anymore.

>An interesting note: when I talked to Knuth at the Stanford TUG
>meeting back in 89, I commented that I was thinking of making TeX
>and iniTeX into a single executable under VMS. He responded by
>telling me that on his personal system, he hasn't even compiled
>TeX and uses IniTeX for everything!

Nice story.

Victor.