LaTeX Paper Linter

This script checks for common mistakes in LaTeX source files of scientific papers.

Usage

python3 paperlint.py <file.tex/path> [-i/x <include/exclude switch>] [--error]

Provide either a single .tex file to check or a path to recursively check all .tex files in that directory! By default, all rules are used for checking the document. The switches can be configured with the -x and -i parameters to exclude and include entire categories of rules or single rules. The include/exclude switches are evaluated in the order they are specified. For example, -i typography only activates the typography rules, whereas -i all -x typography -i cite-space enables all rules without the typography rules, but enables the cite-space rule from the typography category.

If --error is provided, the tool exits with error code 1 if there are warnings.

Warnings

Warnings are grouped in five different categories:

• General
• Typography
• Visual
• Style
• References

General

This category includes general mistakes and discouraged things (switch general).

TODOs

• Description: Warns if the string "TODO" appears in the paper
• Switch: todo

Notes

• Description: Warns if there are \note or \todo notes in the paper
• Switch: note

Multiple Sentences per Line

• Description: Warns if there are multiple sentences per line
• Switch: multiple-sentences

Will Future

• Description: Warns if there are sentences with "will" future
• Switch: will

Short Forms

• Description: Warns if short forms, such as "can't", "shouldn't", etc., are used
• Switch: short-form

Numerals

• Description: Warns if numbers 3 to 12 are written as words instead of numbers
• Switch: numeral

Typography

This category includes typography-related issues, such as wrong punctuation (switch typography).

No Space before Citation

• Description: Warns if there is no space before a \cite command
• Switch: cite-space

Numbers in math Environment

• Description: Warns if the math environment is used purely to format numbers
• Switch: math-numbers

Large Numbers without siunit

• Description: Warns if large numbers are not formatted with the sinuit package
• Switch: si

Percentage without siunit

• Description: Warns if percentages are not formatted with the siunit package
• Switch: percentage

Wrong Quotation Marks

• Description: Warns if the wrong quotation marks (") are used
• Switch: quotes

Space before Punctuation

• Description: Warns if there is a space before a punctuation character
• Switch: punctuation-space

Unbalanced Brackets

• Description: Warns if the number of opening and closing brackets per line does not match
• Switch: unbalanced-brackets

Usage of and/or

• Description: Warns if "and/or" is used
• Switch: and-or

Ellipsis with ...

• Description: Warns if an ellipsis with three dots ("...") is used
• Switch: ellipsis

Footnote before Period

• Description: Warns if a footnote is before the period
• Switch: footnote

No Punctuation Mark at End of Line

• Description: Warns if a line does not end with a punctuation mark
• Switch: punctuation

No Space before Comment

• Description: Warns if there is no space before a comment
• Switch: comment-space

Brackets with Wrong Spacing

• Description: Warns if the spacing for brackets are wrong, i.e., if there is no space before an opening bracket, a space after an opening bracket, or a space before a closing bracket
• Switch: bracket-spacing

Acronym Capitalization

• Description: Warns if a (potential) acronym is not written in upper case
• Switch: acronym-capitalization

Visual

This category includes warning regarding code that is visually not optimal and can be improved to make the paper look better (switch visual).

hlines in Tables

• Description: Warns if \hline is used in tables instead of \toprule, \midrule, and \bottomrule
• Switch: hline

No Text between Two Headers

• Description: Warns if there are two section headers without text in between
• Switch: two-header

Single Sentence Paragraphs

• Description: Warns if a paragraph consists of only a single sentence
• Switch: single-sentence

Tables with Vertical Lines

• Description: Warns if vertical lines are used in tables
• Switch: vline

Single subsection in a Section

• Description: Warns if a section has only one explicit subsection
• Switch: single-subsection

Mixed Compact and Regular Lists

• Description: Warns if both compactitem and itemize (or compactenum and enumerate) are used
• Switch: mixed-compact

Center instead of \centering in Floats

• Description: Warns if float contents are centered with the center environment instead of \centering
• Switch: float-center

Usage of eqnarray instead of align Environment

• Description: Warns if the eqnarray environment is used instead of the align environment
• Switch: eqnarray

Section-Title Capitalization

• Description: Warns if the capitalization for section titles is wrong
• Switch: capitalization

Style

This category includes warning of things that are discouraged or wrong for the style of an academic paper (switch style).

Wrong Appendix

• Description: Warns if the appendix environment is used instead of \appendix
• Switch: appendix

Non-generic Dimensions

• Description: Warns if dimension macros are used that do not always work, such as \linewidth or \textwidth
• Switch: dimensions

Usage of "etc"

• Description: Warns if "etc" is used
• Switch: etc

Enlarged Tables

• Description: Warns if resizebox (instead of adjustbox) is used for tables
• Switch: resize-table

Caption above Tables

• Description: Warns if the caption for a table is not above the table
• Switch: table-top-caption

Figure Alignment

• Description: Warns if a figure has no explicit alignment
• Switch: figure-alignment

Table Alignment

• Description: Warns if a table has no explicit alignment
• Switch: table-alignment

Listing Alignment

• Description: Warns if a listing has no explicit alignment
• Switch: listing-alignment

Non-inclusive Wording

• Description: Warns if non-inclusive terms are used (based on the ACM Guidelines)
• Switch: inclusion

Citation as Noun

• Description: Warns if a citation is used as a noun
• Switch: cite-noun

Sentence starting with a Conjunction

• Description: Warns if a sentence starts with a conjunction ("And", "But", "Or")
• Switch: conjunction-start

References

This category includes warnings for everything related to (cross-)references (switch references).

Figure without Label

• Description: Warns if a figure has no label
• Switch: figure-label

Table without Label

• Description: Warns if a table has no label
• Switch: table-label

Listing without Label

• Description: Warns if a listing has no label
• Switch: listing-label

Switched Order of Label and Caption in Figure

• Description: Warns if the label is defined before the caption inside a figure
• Switch: figure-caption-order

Switched Order of Label and Caption in Table

• Description: Warns if the label is defined before the caption inside a table
• Switch: table-caption-order

Switched Order of Label and Caption in Listing

• Description: Warns if the label is defined before the caption inside a listing
• Switch: listing-caption-order

Non-referenced Labels

• Description: Warns if there is a label defined that is never referenced
• Switch: label-referenced

Tabular not in Table Environment

• Description: Warns if a tabular environment is not within the table float
• Switch: tabular-float

TikZ not in Figure Environment

• Description: Warns if a tikzpicture environment is not within the figure float
• Switch: tikz-float

Code Listing not in Listing Environment

• Description: Warns if an lstlisting environment is not within the listing float
• Switch: listing-float

Duplicate Keys in Citations

• Description: Warns if a cite command has duplicate entries
• Switch: cite-duplicate