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Using Version Control, Markdown and LaTeX for Academic Writing

Introduction

Muhammad Mustafa Monowar
Nov 4 · 3 min read

Academic writing workflow is a very essential part of academic research. Having a feasible and sustainable writing system is a growing concern for many academics. This post will describe a writing method that was tested for writing a paper.

The goal is to have a system that is feasible, sustainable over time and accessible from anywhere. Central to this mechanism is the philosophy of Version Control. According to Atlassian -

“Version control systems are a category of software tools that help a software team manage changes to source code over time. Version control software keeps track of every modification to the code in a special kind of database. If a mistake is made, developers can turn back the clock and compare earlier versions of the code to help fix the mistake while minimizing disruption to all team members.”

There are many tools which can be used for Version Control. GitHub is one prominent tool. According to Kinsta -

“GitHub is a website and cloud-based service that helps […] store and manage […] as well as track and control changes to code.”

Although primarily used for software testing, academics can make use of this service for academic writings.

The other tools needed for this method are Markdown and LaTeX editors. According to Ultraedit, Markdown is -

“a plain text formatting syntax aimed at making writing for the internet easier.”

It is a good tool for drafting papers.

LaTeX is document preparation system which can be used for preparing final product of the draft for presentation and submission.

Atom and Overleaf are two services that were used for this method.

Methodology

The following methods were followed for setting up the system. First, a GitHub repository was opened. Second, GitHub Desktop was downloaded and installed. The software can be logged in to using respective GitHub Account. Third, Atom was downloaded and installed. Atom can be integrated with GitHub.

The annotations for sample papers were pre-collected. Each section of the paper were divided into single .md file. These files were edited in Atom. Each .md file had multiple quotes, references and questions. The quotes were used and elaborated to answer the questions as well as evaluated when necessary. The references were collected in a separated .md file called “References” and the BibTeX format was pasted in the References section.

Finally, when the drafting was done, all the references were pasted in .bib file of Overleaf project. The sections were copied and pasted in the corresponding parts of the Overleaf project. The Overleaf back end was scanned for citation linking and errors. Afterwards, the project was ready for compilation.

Evaluation

The method has several benefits. Markdown software are easy to set up and the protocol for markdown is same regardless of software. Version control enables tracking the changes in markdown file which is good for reviewing. GitHub provides cloud service, meaning it can be accessed and edited from most compatible devices. Furthermore, Atom can be customized and adapted to suit the visual and technical needs of the writer. GitHub also allows for project management and collaboration. The method described is manual, and might take a lot of effort to learn and deploy. It is therefore recommended to test several times before actually using for a project.

Final thoughts

A good drafting strategy can take away the burden of organizing new systems over and over again. The described system have been proven to be feasible and sustainable to the author. GitHub, Markdown and LaTeX are often closely compatible. It may also be possible to automate this method further.

Conflict of Interest

The author was not sponsored by any of the product or website mentioned.

References

Atlassian. What is version control. Retrieved from {https://www.atlassian.com/git/tutorials/what-is-version-control}, accessed 11–04–2019.

Kinsta. What Is GitHub? A Beginner’s Introduction to GitHub. Retrieved from {https://kinsta.com/knowledgebase/what-is-github/}, accessed 11–04–2019.

Ultraedit. What is Markdown, and why should you use it? (4 reasons). Retrieved from {https://www.ultraedit.com/company/blog/community/what-is-markdown-why-use-it.html}, accessed 11–04–2019.

Muhammad Mustafa Monowar

Written by

Dreamer of a Better World

The Wall of Winter Blues

A personal blog of Muhammad Mustafa Monowar

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