What options should I pass to a package when using it with TexpadTeX?

A small number of packages historically needed to be passed an option depending on which typeset engine they were being used with. For example you would write \usepackage[dvips]{hyperref} when using hyperref with LaTeX->dvips->ps2pdf and \usepackage[pdftex]{hyperref} when using hyperref with pdfLaTeX.

Thanks to packages such as iftex, this has long since stopped being necessary, as the packages are able to swap their backend drivers automatically. If you do use the options, then your document will only typeset with the engine specified, and not others.

This will cause problems when using TexpadTeX, as it is not exactly equivalent to any one of these engines. As these options are unnecessary, we suggest our users omit them. The document will typeset without problems on all engines.

A non-exclusive list of packages for which this practice is common are

  • hyperref
  • graphics
  • graphicx
  • crop