TestTableFormatting 2025-06-03 05:24:11 2026-09-06 16:46:39 Definition test render fail % this is the default PhysicsLibrary preamble. as your knowledge % of TeX increases, you will probably want to edit this, but % it should be fine as is for beginners. % almost certainly you want these \usepackage{amssymb} \usepackage{amsmath} \usepackage{amsfonts} % used for TeXing text within eps files %\usepackage{psfrag} % need this for including graphics (\includegraphics) %\usepackage{graphicx} % for neatly defining theorems and propositions %\usepackage{amsthm} % making logically defined graphics %\usepackage{xypic} % there are many more packages, add them here as you need them % define commands here % ============================================================ % PhysicsLibrary Table Rendering Test Suite % Object: TestTableFormatting % % PREAMBLE ADDITIONS FOR THIS VERSION: % % \usepackage{array} % \usepackage[table]{xcolor} % \usepackage{hyperref} % % Optional hyperlink styling: % % \hypersetup{ % colorlinks=true, % linkcolor=blue, % urlcolor=blue % } % % The examples below deliberately increase in complexity. % If rendering breaks, the first failing example should help % identify which LaTeX feature is responsible. % ============================================================ \section*{LaTeX Table Rendering Examples} This entry is both a collection of useful LaTeX table examples and a rendering test suite for the Physics Library publication pipeline. The examples are intentionally arranged from simple to more complicated. Each example introduces only a small number of new features so that rendering problems can be isolated more easily. \subsection*{Rendering Test Ladder} \begin{center} \begin{tabular}{|c|l|l|} \hline \textbf{Level} & \textbf{Feature} & \textbf{Primary Test} \ \hline 1 & Basic table & column alignment \ \hline 2 & Grid lines & vertical and horizontal rules \ \hline 3 & Mathematical content & inline mathematics in cells \ \hline 4 & Paragraph columns & automatic text wrapping \ \hline 5 & Merged columns & \texttt{multicolumn} \ \hline 6 & Spacing & row height and column padding \ \hline 7 & Text color & \texttt{xcolor} support \ \hline 8 & Cell and row color & colored table backgrounds \ \hline 9 & Alternating rows & automatic row coloring \ \hline 10 & Hyperlinks & links inside table cells \ \hline 11 & Combined example & multiple features together \ \hline \end{tabular} \end{center} \subsection*{1. Basic Column Alignment} The simplest useful table contains no rules at all. The column specification $$ \texttt{\{lcr\}} $$ means left aligned, centered, and right aligned. \begin{center} \begin{tabular}{lcr} Left & Center & Right \ Apple & 12 & $1.25 \ Orange & 7 & $2.50 \ Banana & 103 & $0.75 \end{tabular} \end{center} This example tests only the basic \texttt{tabular} environment and column alignment. \subsection*{2. Full Grid Table} Vertical bars in the column specification produce vertical rules, while \texttt{\textbackslash hline} produces horizontal rules. \begin{center} \begin{tabular}{|c|c|c|} \hline \textbf{ID} & \textbf{Name} & \textbf{Score} \ \hline 1 & Alice & 85 \ \hline 2 & Bob & 92 \ \hline 3 & Carol & 78 \ \hline \end{tabular} \end{center} This is intentionally similar to the original Physics Library rendering test and serves as a known-good baseline. \subsection*{3. Horizontal Rules Without Vertical Rules} Many technical and scientific tables are easier to read without a full grid. \begin{center} \begin{tabular}{lcr} \hline \textbf{City} & \textbf{Population} & \textbf{Area (km$^2$)} \ \hline New York & 8,336,817 & 783.8 \ Los Angeles & 3,979,576 & 1,302.2 \ Chicago & 2,693,976 & 606.1 \ \hline \end{tabular} \end{center} This tests ordinary rules while avoiding any additional table packages. \subsection*{4. Mathematics Inside Table Cells} Tables used in Physics Library articles frequently contain mathematical notation. Mathematics can be placed directly inside individual cells. \begin{center} \begin{tabular}{|l|c|c|} \hline \textbf{Quantity} & \textbf{Equation} & \textbf{SI Unit} \ \hline Velocity & $v=\dfrac{dx}{dt}$ & $\mathrm{m,s^{-1}}$ \ \hline Acceleration & $a=\dfrac{d^2x}{dt^2}$ & $\mathrm{m,s^{-2}}$ \ \hline Force & $F=ma$ & $\mathrm{N}$ \ \hline Energy & $E=\dfrac{1}{2}mv^2$ & $\mathrm{J}$ \ \hline Momentum & $p=mv$ & $\mathrm{kg,m,s^{-1}}$ \ \hline \end{tabular} \end{center} This table tests inline mathematics, fractions, superscripts, subscripts, roman mathematical text, and spacing commands inside table cells. \subsection*{5. Fixed-Width Paragraph Columns} The \texttt{p{}} column type allows text to wrap automatically. \begin{center} \begin{tabular}{|l|p{8cm}|} \hline \textbf{Feature} & \textbf{Description} \ \hline Tabular & The standard LaTeX environment for arranging information into rows and columns. \ \hline Paragraph column & A column declared with \texttt{p{width}} automatically wraps long text rather than allowing the table to grow indefinitely in the horizontal direction. \ \hline Scientific use & Paragraph columns are useful when a table contains equations, definitions, experimental notes, or explanatory text. \ \hline \end{tabular} \end{center} This is an important HTML-rendering test because fixed-width LaTeX columns may be represented differently by PDF and HTML renderers. \subsection*{6. Merged Column Headings} The standard \texttt{multicolumn} command can create headings that span several columns. \begin{center} \begin{tabular}{|l|c|c|} \hline \multicolumn{3}{|c|}{\textbf{Student Grades}} \ \hline \textbf{Student} & \textbf{Physics} & \textbf{Mathematics} \ \hline David & A & A- \ \hline Emma & B+ & A \ \hline Maria & A- & B+ \ \hline \end{tabular} \end{center} A second example demonstrates several grouped headings. \begin{center} \begin{tabular}{|l|cc|cc|} \hline & \multicolumn{2}{c|}{\textbf{Position}} & \multicolumn{2}{c|}{\textbf{Velocity}} \ \hline \textbf{Time} & $x$ & $y$ & $v_x$ & $v_y$ \ \hline 0 s & 0 & 0 & 10 & 20 \ 1 s & 10 & 15.1 & 10 & 10.2 \ 2 s & 20 & 20.4 & 10 & 0.4 \ \hline \end{tabular} \end{center} \subsection*{7. Controlling Table Spacing} LaTeX allows row height and horizontal cell padding to be adjusted. The following changes are enclosed in braces so that they affect only this table. \begin{center} { \renewcommand{\arraystretch}{1.6} \setlength{\tabcolsep}{12pt} \begin{tabular}{|c|c|c|} \hline \textbf{Parameter} & \textbf{Symbol} & \textbf{Value} \ \hline Mass & $m$ & $2.5\ \mathrm{kg}$ \ \hline Velocity & $v$ & $12.0\ \mathrm{m/s}$ \ \hline Acceleration & $a$ & $9.81\ \mathrm{m/s^2}$ \ \hline \end{tabular} } \end{center} This example checks whether spacing changes survive the conversion to the web representation. \subsection*{8. Colored Text} The following examples require the \texttt{xcolor} package. \begin{center} \begin{tabular}{|l|c|l|} \hline \textbf{Status} & \textbf{Value} & \textbf{Meaning} \ \hline \textcolor{green!50!black}{Nominal} & 1.00 & Normal operation \ \hline \textcolor{orange!90!black}{Warning} & 1.25 & Check system \ \hline \textcolor{red}{Critical} & 1.75 & Immediate attention \ \hline \textcolor{blue}{Information} & 0.50 & Informational state \ \hline \end{tabular} \end{center} This isolates text color from background color. \subsection*{9. Colored Cells and Rows} Background colors can be applied to complete rows or individual cells. \begin{center} \begin{tabular}{|l|c|c|} \hline \rowcolor{blue!20} \textbf{Sensor} & \textbf{Value} & \textbf{Status} \ \hline GPS & 12 & \cellcolor{green!25}Good \ \hline IMU & 5 & \cellcolor{yellow!35}Check \ \hline Barometer & 0 & \cellcolor{red!25}Offline \ \hline \end{tabular} \end{center} This example deliberately tests both \texttt{rowcolor} and \texttt{cellcolor}. \subsection*{10. Alternating Row Colors} Alternating colors can improve readability in longer tables. \begin{center} { \rowcolors{2}{gray!15}{white} \begin{tabular}{|c|l|c|} \hline \rowcolor{blue!25} \textbf{Run} & \textbf{Test} & \textbf{Result} \ \hline 1 & Basic rendering & Pass \ 2 & Mathematics & Pass \ 3 & Column wrapping & Pass \ 4 & Color rendering & Pass \ 5 & Hyperlinks & Pending \ 6 & Combined test & Pending \ \hline \end{tabular} } \end{center} This provides a useful test of whether alternating row styles are preserved by the HTML conversion pipeline. \subsection*{11. Hyperlinks Inside Table Cells} The \texttt{hyperref} package allows ordinary web links to be embedded inside table cells. \begin{center} \begin{tabular}{|l|l|} \hline \textbf{Resource} & \textbf{Link} \ \hline Physics Library & \href{https://physicslibrary.org/}{PhysicsLibrary.org} \ \hline Physics Library Encyclopedia & \href{https://physicslibrary.org/encyclopedia/}{Encyclopedia} \ \hline LaTeX Project & \href{https://www.latex-project.org/}{LaTeX Project} \ \hline \end{tabular} \end{center} A raw URL can also be tested: \begin{center} \begin{tabular}{|l|p{9cm}|} \hline \textbf{Type} & \textbf{Example} \ \hline Clickable text & \href{https://physicslibrary.org/}{Visit Physics Library} \ \hline Displayed URL & \url{https://physicslibrary.org/} \ \hline \end{tabular} \end{center} This example tests whether links remain active and correctly styled in the generated HTML output. \subsection*{12. Local References to Tables} A table can also be placed inside the floating \texttt{table} environment and assigned a label. \begin{table}[h] \centering \begin{tabular}{|l|c|} \hline \textbf{Planet} & \textbf{Surface Gravity (m/s$^2$)} \ \hline Mercury & 3.70 \ Venus & 8.87 \ Earth & 9.81 \ Mars & 3.71 \ \hline \end{tabular} \caption{Example planetary surface gravity values.} \label{tab:planet-gravity} \end{table} Table~\ref{tab:planet-gravity} tests the combination of a table, caption, label, and internal cross-reference. The precise placement of a floating table may differ between PDF and HTML output. That difference is acceptable as long as the table, caption, and reference remain logically connected. \subsection*{13. Combined Renderer Stress Test} The final table combines many of the features introduced above. \begin{center} { \renewcommand{\arraystretch}{1.4} \begin{tabular}{|l|c|c|p{5cm}|} \hline \rowcolor{blue!25} \multicolumn{4}{|c|}{\textbf{Physics Library Rendering Status}} \ \hline \rowcolor{gray!20} \textbf{Feature} & \textbf{Math} & \textbf{Status} & \textbf{Notes} \ \hline Basic table & $F=ma$ & \cellcolor{green!25}\textcolor{green!40!black}{Pass} & Standard rows and columns. \ \hline Math rendering & $\displaystyle E=\frac{1}{2}mv^2$ & \cellcolor{green!25}\textcolor{green!40!black}{Pass} & Fractions, superscripts, and mathematical symbols. \ \hline Background color & $\lambda=\dfrac{c}{f}$ & \cellcolor{yellow!30}Test & Tests colored cells and row backgrounds. \ \hline Hyperlink & $k=\dfrac{2\pi}{\lambda}$ & \cellcolor{yellow!30}Test & \href{https://physicslibrary.org/}{Open Physics Library}. \ \hline Wrapped text & $\Delta\phi=k\Delta r$ & \cellcolor{yellow!30}Test & This intentionally contains a longer explanation so that the renderer must wrap text inside a fixed-width paragraph column. \ \hline \end{tabular} } \end{center} \section*{Renderer Interpretation} When this page is used for pipeline testing, the preferred debugging procedure is to work downward through the examples. If Examples 1--7 render correctly but Example 8 fails, investigate \texttt{xcolor} support. If text colors work but Example 9 fails, investigate table-specific color handling such as \texttt{rowcolor} or \texttt{cellcolor}. If color examples work but Example 11 fails, investigate \texttt{hyperref} and HTML-link conversion. If all isolated examples work but Example 13 fails, investigate interactions between packages or generated CSS rather than the individual LaTeX commands. \section*{Future Rendering Tests} The next revisions of this entry can progressively add tests for: \begin{itemize} \item \texttt{booktabs}: \texttt{toprule}, \texttt{midrule}, and \texttt{bottomrule}; \item \texttt{multirow}: vertically merged cells; \item \texttt{tabularx}: automatic-width columns; \item \texttt{longtable}: tables that span multiple pages; \item nested tables; \item tables inside lists; \item tables inside theorem environments; \item footnotes inside tables; \item very long equations inside cells; \item Unicode characters; \item colored hyperlinks; \item links inside colored cells; \item custom RGB and HTML colors; \item mathematical arrays and matrices embedded inside cells; \item rotated text; \item scientific notation and significant figures; \item images inside table cells; \item captions containing mathematics; \item labels and cross-references; \item tables wider than the normal text area; \item intentionally malformed or extreme cases for graceful-failure testing. \end{itemize} The objective is not merely to demonstrate attractive tables. The entry should serve as a reproducible compatibility suite showing exactly which LaTeX table features are supported by the Physics Library rendering pipeline.