amsrefs.faq  [2000/03/24] American Mathematical Society

Frequently asked questions about the amsrefs package and its companion
packages.

Suggestions? Please send mail to tech-support@ams.org.

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(1) Question: Where should I look for documentation?

Answer: User documentation is found in the file amsrefs.dvi. (DON'T
BLINDLY PRINT ALL OF IT: the first twenty pages or so are user
documentation, but the rest is technical commentary which will be a
waste of paper if you're not interested in it.)

Some example files cite-xa.tex (cite-xb, cite-xc, cite-xd) are also
provided.

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(2) How do I start using amsrefs?

Answer: First, you will need (of course) to add "\usepackage{amsrefs}"
at the top of your LaTeX file. Then probably two choices:

a. Using amsrefs with BibTeX: Change the bibliography style to amsxport:

  \bibliographystyle{amsxport}

All else can remain the same (but see the documentation concerning
some improvements for citation commands that you may wish to take
advantage of).

b. Using amsrefs without BibTeX: Convert .bib files to .ltb files and
use \bibselect instead of \bibliography to create the .bbl file.

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(3) When I add the amsrefs package to my document, I get an error
message:

  ! LaTeX Error: Command \qq already defined.

or others of these:

  ... Command \mdash already defined.
  ... Command \ndash already defined.
  ... Command \qd already defined.
  ... Command \xd already defined.
  ... Command \lqq already defined.
  ... Command \rqq already defined.
  ... Command \lq already defined.
  ... Command \rq already defined.
  ... Command \bul already defined.
  ... Command \vsp already defined.
  ... Command \pdc already defined.
  ... Command \vrt already defined.
  ... Command \cir already defined.
  ... Command \til already defined.
  ... Command \bsl already defined.
  ... Command \cwm already defined.

Answer: Use the "lite" option of the amsrefs package to avoid loading
the auxiliary package "textcmds". Or, if the error message occurs at one
of your own definitions in the preamble, change \newcommand to
\renewcommand.