Automatic Journal Title Abbreviation Package

Introduction

The Automatic Journal Title Abbreviation (jabbrv) package is a package for users of L^aT_eX and L_yX for automatically abbreviating the titles of journals. Please note that this package is currently beta-quality, as it has not been extensively tested. If you have any issues or would like to contribute patches then feel free to contact me by email via compholio at gmail dot com.

Download

This package is provided “AS IS” without warranty of any kind, either expressed or implied, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. The entire risk as to the quality and performance of the package is with you. Should the package prove defective, you assume the cost of all necessary servicing, repair or correction.

Download the latest version of the package (~0.38 MiB)

For Windows users that do not already have gzip-compatible archive software it is recommended that you download 7-Zip.

Installing

Basic Installation

No installation is necessary, simply work in the same folder as the L^aT_eX style file (jabbrv.sty), the language definition files (*.ldf) and the BibTeX style files (*.bst). Include the package by using \usepackage{jabbrv} in your L^aT_eX preamble and enable the package functionality by setting the BibTeX bibliography style to one of the following choices (depending on the desired bibliography format):

• jabbrv_abbrv
• jabbrv_acm
• jabbrv_alpha
• jabbrv_ieeetr
• jabbrv_plain
• jabbrv_siam
• jabbrv_unsrt

Global Installation

To attempt an automated global installation first open a terminal and change the directory to the extracted jabbrv folder. Next, run the install script by executing:

sudo ./install.sh

If the script cannot detect your local L^aT_eX installation folder, then you may pass a custom install directory like so:

sudo ./install.sh /usr/local/share/texmf

Please note that the chosen folder must be part of the directory tree recognized by your L^aT_eX installation, otherwise the package will note be properly detected.

Using Other Styles

If you wish to use a style outside of the base BibTeX package then you need to modify that style to call jabbrv. Start by copying the BibTeX style you wish to use to your working folder (and rename it appropriately). Next open the style file and search for:

"journal" output.check

This line is usually formatted like so (sometimes with an open bracket at the beginning of the line):

journal emphasis "journal" output.check

Replace this line (do not replace the open bracket if there is one) with:

format.journal "journal" output.check

Then add the following code somewhere outside of the listed functions (above the "article" function you're currently editing is fine):

FUNCTION {format.journal}
{
  "{\em\protect\JournalTitle{" journal * "}}" *
}

Please note that if the line you replaced used some other formatting (we started with an emphasized entry, corresponding to the "\em" command) then you will need to change the formatting in the above function. Once you have done this step you should be all set, just follow the basic installation instructions above.

LyX Notes

The preamble may be modified by choosing "Settings" from the "Documents" menu and then selecting "L^aT_eX Preamble" from the menu on the left.

Upgrading

Should the current version of the package not suite your needs, it is easy to upgrade to a new version without changing your document. Simply download the new version of the package and extract the style file (jabbrv.sty) and the language definition files (*.ldf), replacing the files from your existing version.

Frequently Asked Questions

• Can I include L^aT_eX commands in journal titles?

  Yes, "inner" L^aT_eX commands are expanded before \JournalTitle{} is called.

• Can I include already abbreviated journal titles?

  Yes; however, abbreviated words are currently still treated as title words — so if you are unlucky enough to get a match for that "already abbreviated" title then it will get abbreviated again.

• How do I use jabbrv with a custom BibTeX style?

  Please read the instructions for Using Other Styles.

• How can I find out the name of the journal corresponding to a particular abbreviation?

  Use the Abbreviation Search Utility.

• Where did you get this list of title abbreviations?

  From the online version of the ISSN's List of Title Word Abbreviations, which is the maintaining body for title abbreviations as set forth by the ISO 4 standard. I wrote a script that scrapes each page and then builds separate language definition files from that data.

• Why did you make this package?

  Abbreviating journal titles by hand with a large bibliography is extremely time consuming, and evil.

ChangeLog/Archive

2014-01-21:

• Updated the language definition files.
• Fixed a bug with the ampersand symbol in a journal title.
• Fixed a bug with user-entered periods with no following space character.

2010-08-19:

• Added support for diacritic marks in abbreviations.
• Added a global installation script for Unix systems.
• Fixed a bug where already abbreviated words could end up having two periods.
• Added support for "partial abbreviations" (matching the beginning of a title word).
• Fixed an issue where additional spaces are sometimes inserted between abbreviations.
• The language definition files are no-longer incompatible with the "inputenc" package (required by LyX).

2010-08-16:

• First public release.