PDF Generation

Overview

Quick Start

# Desktop/Print PDF (A4 format)
pandoc doc.md -o doc.pdf --pdf-engine=xelatex --toc --toc-depth=2 -V geometry:margin=2.5cm -V fontsize=11pt -V documentclass=article

# Mobile-friendly PDF (6x9 phone screen optimized)
pandoc doc.md -o doc-mobile.pdf --pdf-engine=xelatex --toc --toc-depth=2 -V geometry:paperwidth=6in -V geometry:paperheight=9in -V geometry:margin=0.5in -V fontsize=10pt -V linestretch=1.2

# Russian PDF with EB Garamond
pandoc doc-ru.md -o doc.pdf --pdf-engine=xelatex --toc --toc-depth=2 -V geometry:margin=2.5cm -V fontsize=11pt -V documentclass=article -V mainfont="EB Garamond"

# Russian Mobile PDF
pandoc doc-ru.md -o doc-mobile.pdf --pdf-engine=xelatex --toc --toc-depth=2 -V geometry:paperwidth=6in -V geometry:paperheight=9in -V geometry:margin=0.5in -V fontsize=10pt -V linestretch=1.2 -V mainfont="EB Garamond"

Document Theme Colors

• White Papers - Blue (1e3a8a)
• Marketing - Green (059669)
• Research - Purple (7c3aed)
• Technical - Gray (374151)

YAML Frontmatter Example

---
title: "Document Title"
subtitle: "Subtitle"
author: "Author"
date: "2025-11-18"
titlepage: true
titlepage-color: "1e3a8a"
titlepage-text-color: "ffffff"
book: true
---

Markdown Formatting Best Practices

1. Blank lines before lists - Required for proper list rendering
2. Blank lines after headings - Improves spacing
3. Nested list indentation - Use 3 spaces for sub-items

Common Claude Code Pattern

Your data spans 9 years with complete tracking:

- Item 1
- Item 2

Automatic Fix

scripts/fix_markdown.py input.md output.md

• Lists after colons (Claude Code format)
• Lists after headings
• Nested list spacing

Layout Options

Desktop/Print Layout (A4)

• Paper: 210mm x 297mm (A4)
• Margins: 2.5cm
• Font size: 11pt
• Best for: Printing, reading on large screens, archival

Mobile Layout (Phone-optimized)

• Paper: 6in x 9in (phone aspect ratio)
• Margins: 0.5in (minimal for screen space)
• Font size: 10pt with 1.2 line spacing
• Best for: Phone/tablet reading, Telegram/messaging apps

Generation Workflows

Workflow 1: Simple PDF

1. Check context (Telegram = mobile, otherwise desktop)
2. Check if Russian (use EB Garamond if yes)
3. Run appropriate pandoc command
4. Verify output

Workflow 2: Professional Title Page

1. Add YAML frontmatter with theme color
2. Include metadata (title, author, date)
3. Choose layout (mobile vs desktop)
4. Generate with xelatex

Workflow 3: Using Script

scripts/generate_pdf.py doc.md -t white-paper
scripts/generate_pdf.py doc.md -t marketing --russian
scripts/generate_pdf.py doc.md --mobile  # Mobile layout

Resources

• scripts/generate_pdf.py - Automated generation
• references/frontmatter_templates.md - YAML templates
• references/pandoc_reference.md - Command reference

Troubleshooting

brew install pandoc

brew install --cask mactex

Mobile-Friendly PDFs

# Using script (recommended)
scripts/generate_pdf.py doc.md --mobile

# Direct pandoc command
pandoc doc.md -o doc-mobile.pdf \
  --pdf-engine=xelatex \
  --toc --toc-depth=2 \
  -V geometry:paperwidth=6in \
  -V geometry:paperheight=9in \
  -V geometry:margin=0.5in \
  -V fontsize=10pt \
  -V linestretch=1.2 \
  -V colorlinks=true \
  -V linkcolor=blue \
  -V urlcolor=blue

• 6x9 inch page size (optimal for mobile screens)
• 10pt font (readable on smaller screens)
• 0.5in margins (maximizes content area)
• 1.2 line spacing (improved readability)
• Auto-generated

  -mobile.pdf

  filename suffix

• Sharing research via Telegram/messaging apps
• Reading on phones or tablets
• Creating portable reference documents
• Quick consumption on the go