Seems to me a "standard intermediate format" might be more trouble to define
and translate than it's worth, and that it's easier to adopt a more common
standard than an emerging one. I suggest we use LaTeX in the body of the
document and then either append a PostScript file with all the equations to
the end of the posting or place it in an ftp site or just make it available by
request. Since it's just the equations, it should be fairly short. LaTeX is
still the most commonly used text processor in mathematics and physics (i.e.
more freebies available), and there are free LaTeX compilers for PC and Macs
as well as Unix systems. There is even a version for the PC which makes LaTeX
like a WYSISWG but generates LaTeX code automatically (I believe it is called
Scientific Word and is fairly cheap), and Maple will output LaTeX versions of
equations on request (it does pretty well . . .). This will not get around
the problem of the varieties of PostScript (i.e. what I generate you may not
be able to print), but should make a pretty version of all equations available
to most people.
There is an active TeX newsgroup (comp.text.tex) with a FAQ listing ftp sites
and goodies. I happen to have the one from April 93 on hand (it is revised monthly)
and will be happy to send it to anyone who asks (it is rather long).
Toni Kazic
