Original date: December 2004
Last revision: Thu, Dec 15, 2011, 12:37 PM EST
Publisher: Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD, United States of America
Beamer is a LaTeX documentclass for producing slides. The default output is a PDF file which is suitable for on-screen viewing.
The aim of this document is to get you started quickly with Beamer. It gives you enough of the basics to let you begin using Beamer in a productive way. I have avoided calling this a Tutorial because a tutorial implies a certain thoroughness which this limited presentation lacks.
Beamer’s manual is over 200 printed pages. When you feel the need to go beyond the basics, you should consider reading the manual. There is more to Beamer than what appears here.
These pages were created in December 2004. The information herein is based on version 3.01 of Beamer except for the section Complete set of Beamer themes which is based on Beamer version3.06. See Beamer on the Web for references and Web resources.
The Gallery page shows a sampler of slides produced by Beamer.
I have written this Quickstart primarily for the use of graduate students in the Department of Mathematics and Statistics at UMBC. I have assumed throughout, without elaboration, that the underlying operating system is Linux or something Unix-like, because that’s what we have in the department.
I have also assumed throughout that you know the ins and outs of LaTeX; this is certainly not a LaTeX tutorial.
LaTeX and Beamer are platform-independent, therefore examples and advice given here should carry over to other platforms, in principle. The specifics of compilation and execution may vary; you will have to consult with your local TeXnician if you need help with these.