Hyades - TeX to Unicode/ASCII Math Renderer

Convert LaTeX Formulas to Plain Text

Hyades is a free online mathematical typesetting engine that converts TeX and LaTeX formulas into beautiful Unicode or ASCII art. Unlike traditional LaTeX renderers that produce images or PDFs, Hyades outputs pure text that can be copied anywhere.

Use Cases for Unicode/ASCII Math

• Source Code Comments: Embed readable mathematical formulas directly in your code comments. Perfect for documenting algorithms, physics simulations, financial models, and scientific computing.
• Plain Text Documentation: Add beautiful math to README.md files, text documents, and anywhere Markdown or HTML isn't supported.
• Terminal Applications: Display mathematical output in command-line interfaces without requiring special rendering.
• Email and Chat: Share formulas in plain text messages where rich formatting isn't available.
• Accessibility: Text-based math works with screen readers and in low-bandwidth situations.

Supported LaTeX Commands

Hyades supports a comprehensive subset of LaTeX math notation including: fractions (\frac), square roots (\sqrt), integrals (\int, \iint, \iiint, \oint), summations (\sum), products (\prod), limits (\lim), Greek letters (\alpha, \beta, \gamma, \delta, \pi, \sigma, etc.), matrices (\pmatrix, \bmatrix), mathematical operators (×, ÷, ±, ∓, ·), relations (≤, ≥, ≠, ≈, ≡, ∈, ⊂, ⊃), arrows (→, ←, ⇒, ⇐, ↔), and many more symbols.

Example: Quadratic Formula

Input (TeX):
$$ x = \frac{-b \pm \sqrt{b^2 - 4ac}}{2a} $$

Output (Unicode):
        -b ± √(b² - 4ac)
   x = ─────────────────
             2a
        

Example: Gaussian Integral

Input (TeX):
$$ \int_{-\infty}^{\infty} e^{-x^2} dx = \sqrt{\pi} $$

Output (Unicode):
  ∞
  ⌠   -x²
  ⎮  e    dx = √π
  ⌡
 -∞
        

Technical Details

Hyades uses a sophisticated typesetting algorithm inspired by TeX, including the Knuth-Plass optimal line breaking algorithm. It runs entirely in the browser using WebAssembly for high performance. No server-side processing or installation required.

Keywords

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