Publishers tab in MathType Web

The Publishers tab provides advanced controls for modifying the MathML generated by MathType Web. It is intended mainly for publishers, developers, integrators, and advanced authors who need precise control over equation display, invisible operators, number separators, and monospace variants.

Applies to

MathType Web · Versions that include the Publishers tab · Web

Page layout

The Publishers tab appears as an optional section of the MathType toolbar. Its controls operate on the complete equation, the current selection, or the insertion point, depending on the selected command.

• Toolbar tab: Contains the publishing-oriented controls enabled in the toolbar configuration.
• Control groups: Provide commands for equation display, display style, invisible operators, number separators, and monospace variants.
• Editing area: Contains the equation or selected elements affected by the command.

Availability and configuration

The Publishers tab is not part of the default MathType toolbar. An administrator or integrator must enable it through the toolbar configuration before authors can use its controls.

To add the Publishers tab to the general MathType toolbar before the Contextual tab, use the following configuration:

mathTypeParameters: {
  editorParameters: {
    toolbar: "<toolbar ref='general'><tab ref='advanced' before='contextual'/></toolbar>"
  }
}

When defining a custom toolbar through editorParameters, use single quotation marks (') for XML attribute values.

Once the tab is enabled, anyone who can create or edit an equation can use its controls. Basic familiarity with MathML is recommended because several controls change the underlying mathematical structure without producing an obvious visual difference.

Controls overview

The controls are grouped below according to the type of MathML information they modify. The following sections explain each group in more detail.

Control	Icon	Description	When to use
Inline and block display
Toggle equation inline/block		Controls the display attribute of the root <math> element.	When defining whether the complete equation is intended for inline or separate display.
Display as block		Applies displaystyle="true" to the selected elements.	When selected content should use display-style layout.
Display as inline		Applies displaystyle="false" to the selected elements.	When selected content should use inline-style layout.
Invisible operators
Invisible plus		Inserts an invisible plus operator.	When the MathML must express addition without displaying a visible plus sign.
Invisible times		Inserts an invisible multiplication operator.	When adjacent terms represent multiplication but no visible multiplication sign is required.
Invisible separator		Inserts an invisible separator.	When separate mathematical items require semantic separation without a visible character.
Invisible function application		Inserts an invisible function-application operator.	When the MathML must identify that a function is being applied to an argument.
Monospace variants
Clear monospace mathvariant		Removes the monospace mathvariant attribute from selected elements.	When selected content should return to its standard mathematical font variant.
Set mathvariant to monospace		Applies mathvariant="monospace" to selected alphanumeric elements.	When letters or numbers must be represented using the monospace math variant.
Number separators
Merge separators into <mn> elements		Controls whether selected digit separators are included in the surrounding <mn> element.	When a decimal or grouping separator must form part of the number in the generated MathML.

Controls details

Inline and block display

Toggle equation inline/block

The Toggle equation inline/block button controls the display attribute of the root <math> element. If the expression contains display="inline", selecting the button removes the attribute. If the attribute is not present, selecting the button adds display="inline".

Inline expressions are intended to appear within surrounding text. Expressions without the inline display attribute are intended to be displayed separately.

Display as block or inline

The Display as block and Display as inline buttons control the displaystyle attribute of the selected elements. This differs from Toggle equation inline/block, which affects the complete equation through the root <math> element.

Inline style: displaystyle="false"		Display style: displaystyle="true"		Difference
In MathType	In browser	In MathType	In browser
				Inline style uses smaller fractions; display style uses larger fractions.
				Inline style places the limits beside the operator; display style places them above and below it.

Invisible operators

Invisible operators are mainly used to improve MathML semantics and accessibility. They may also affect spacing or line breaking in some expressions.

For example, the visual expression xy may represent two variables placed next to each other or the product of x and y. Adding an invisible times operator preserves the multiplication meaning without changing the visible expression.

Operator	In MathType	Rendered result	Meaning in MathML
No invisible operator			Two adjacent identifiers with no explicitly defined relationship.
Invisible times			x multiplied by y.

The Publishers tab provides invisible plus, invisible times, invisible separator, and invisible function-application controls. Place the insertion point where the semantic operator belongs and select the corresponding button.

Monospace variants

Set mathvariant to monospace groups the selected alphanumeric characters and applies mathvariant="monospace". Only alphanumeric characters from A to Z and digits from 0 to 9 are displayed using a monospace font. For example, applying the monospace variant to:

<mi>h</mi><mi>e</mi><mi>l</mi><mi>l</mi><mi>o</mi>

becomes:

<mi mathvariant="monospace">hello</mi>

Clear monospace mathvariant removes the monospace attribute, but the characters remain grouped. They are then displayed using the font selected in MathType:

<mi>hello</mi>

Number separators

By default, MathType may generate digit separators as separate <mo> elements rather than as part of the surrounding number.

Before entering the number, activate the Merge separators into <mn> elements control and choose which separators MathType should include in the number:

• Period and comma (. and ,)
• Period (.)
• Comma (,)

When you then type a number containing one of the selected separators, MathType includes the complete value in a single <mn> element. For example, with the period selected:

<mn>1.5</mn>

Without this setting, the same value may be generated as:

<mn>1</mn><mo>.</mo><mn>5</mn>

You can also select an existing number and separator and use the corresponding merge or unmerge control in the Contextual tab. See Contextual tab in MathType Web.

Related controls in the Contextual tab

Some publisher-oriented operations are available through the Contextual tab rather than the Publishers tab. Using both tabs provides more precise control over existing MathML structures.

The Contextual tab includes controls for merging or unmerging separators in selected <mn> elements and for editing the width, height, and depth of existing <mspace> elements.

<mspace> width, height, and depth

• <mspace> width
• <mspace> height
• <mspace> depth

Place the insertion point next to an existing <mspace> element, select the corresponding control, and enter a numerical value followed by a supported unit. MathType accepts em, ex, and px. Other units are ignored.

The following example contains an <mspace> with width 1em, height 3ex, and depth 2ex. The element is normally invisible but is selected in the image to make its dimensions visible.

For a complete description of the structure-specific controls available in that tab, see Contextual tab in MathType Web. For practical applications of those controls, see Examples using the Contextual tab in MathType Web.

Behaviour and interactions

• Some controls affect the root <math> element, while others affect only the current selection or insertion point.
• Controls that apply attributes require the relevant mathematical content to be selected.
• Invisible operators change the mathematical semantics without adding a visible operator to the rendered expression.
• The Publishers and Contextual tabs can be used together when a workflow requires both publishing-specific MathML controls and structure-specific adjustments.

Limitations

• The Publishers tab is unavailable unless it has been added to the toolbar configuration.
• Basic familiarity with MathML is recommended because several controls change attributes or insert semantic operators that may not produce an obvious visual difference.
• The inline/block toggle does not change MathML containing an explicit display="block" value.
• Monospace rendering applies only to supported alphanumeric characters.
• Existing <mspace> elements can be edited through the Contextual tab, but they cannot currently be inserted directly using the MathType user interface.

Related articles

• Contextual tab in MathType Web.
• Examples using the Contextual tab in MathType Web.
• Configure the MathType toolbar.
• Toolbar XML reference.
• MathType Web toolbar and keyboard shortcuts.