Learn how to customize the IITJ MTP Template Generator templates to match your needs.

Table of Contents

  1. Formatting Options
  2. Modifying Templates
  3. Custom Logos
  4. Adding Custom Sections
  5. Bibliography Styles
  6. Advanced Customization

Formatting Options

Font Size

Change the base font size in your config:

formatting:
  font_size: 12  # Options: 10, 11, 12

Or modify the template directly in proposal.tex or main.tex:

\documentclass[12pt]{article}  % Change 12pt to 10pt or 11pt

Line Spacing

Adjust line spacing in your config:

formatting:
  line_spacing: 1.5  # Options: 1.0, 1.5, 2.0

Or in the template:

\setstretch{1.5}  % Change to 1.0 or 2.0

Page Margins

Modify margins in the template:

\geometry{
    paper=a4paper,
    left=0.75in,      % Left margin
    right=0.75in,     % Right margin
    top=1in,          % Top margin
    bottom=1in        % Bottom margin
}

Font

The template uses Times New Roman font. To change fonts, modify the template:

\usepackage{times}  % Times New Roman
% Or for other fonts:
% \usepackage{helvet}  % Helvetica
% \usepackage{palatino}  % Palatino

Colors

For Beamer presentations (Phase 2), you can customize colors:

\usecolortheme{default}  % blue
\usecolortheme{crane}    % orange
\usecolortheme{beaver}   % red

For reports, add custom colors:

\usepackage{xcolor}
\definecolor{primarycolor}{RGB}{0, 102, 204}

Modifying Templates

Directory Structure

Templates are located in:

Jinja2 Syntax

Templates use Jinja2 syntax with LaTeX-friendly delimiters:

Example: Adding a Custom Variable

  1. In your config file:
custom:
  project_code: "CS-2024-001"
  1. In scripts/utils/template_engine.py, add to prepare_context():
'PROJECT_CODE': config.get('custom', {}).get('project_code', ''),
  1. In your template:
Project Code: \VAR{PROJECT_CODE}

Custom Logos

  1. Via Config File:
assets:
  logo_path: "./path/to/logo.png"
  1. Via Command Line:
python scripts/generate.py --config config.yaml --logo path/to/logo.png

Logo Requirements

Adjusting Logo Size

In titlePage.tex:

\includegraphics[width=0.3\textwidth]{logo.png}  % Change 0.3 to adjust size

Adding Custom Sections

For Proposal Reports

  1. Create a new section file in templates/proposal/sections/:
touch templates/proposal/sections/my_section.tex
  1. Add content to my_section.tex:
% TODO: Add your custom section content here

\subsection{Custom Subsection}
Content goes here...
  1. Include it in proposal.tex:
\section{My Custom Section}
\input{sections/my_section.tex}

For Major Project Reports

Same process, but use templates/major-project/chapters/ directory.

Bibliography Styles

Using IEEE Style (Default)

\bibliographystyle{IEEEtran}
\bibliography{refs}

Using APA Style

  1. Download apa.bst from CTAN
  2. Place it in your template directory
  3. Update the template:
\bibliographystyle{apa}
\bibliography{refs}

Using ACM Style

  1. Download ACM-Reference-Format.bst
  2. Place it in your template directory
  3. Update the template:
\bibliographystyle{ACM-Reference-Format}
\bibliography{refs}

Custom Bibliography Format

Modify the .bst file or create your own using makebst tool.

Advanced Customization

Custom Chapter Formatting

Modify chapter headings using titlesec:

\usepackage{titlesec}

\titleformat{\section}
  {\normalfont\Large\bfseries\centering}  % Format
  {\thesection}                            % Label
  {1em}                                    % Sep
  {}                                       % Before code

\titleformat{\subsection}
  {\normalfont\large\bfseries}
  {\thesubsection}
  {1em}
  {}

Custom Headers and Footers

Add page headers and footers:

\usepackage{fancyhdr}

\pagestyle{fancy}
\fancyhf{}
\fancyhead[L]{\leftmark}
\fancyhead[R]{\thepage}
\fancyfoot[C]{Your University Name}

Custom Title Page Layout

Modify titlePage.tex to change the layout:

% Change from right-aligned to centered
\begin{center}
\Huge{\textbf{\ttitle}}
\end{center}

Adding a Table of Abbreviations

  1. Create abbreviations.tex:
\section*{List of Abbreviations}
\begin{tabular}{ll}
API & Application Programming Interface \\
HTML & HyperText Markup Language \\
WCAG & Web Content Accessibility Guidelines \\
\end{tabular}
  1. Include it in main file:
\newpage
\input{abbreviations.tex}

Custom Figure and Table Numbering

Change numbering style:

% Chapter.Section.Number format
\counterwithin{figure}{section}
\counterwithin{table}{section}

% Continuous numbering
\counterwithout{figure}{section}
\counterwithout{table}{section}

Adding Appendices

\appendix

\section{Appendix A: Additional Data}
\input{appendices/appendix_a.tex}

\section{Appendix B: Code Listings}
\input{appendices/appendix_b.tex}

Template Inheritance

Creating a University-Specific Template

  1. Copy the base template:
cp -r templates/proposal templates/proposal-myuni
  1. Modify the copied template
  2. Update generator to support new template type

Sharing Custom Templates

  1. Fork the repository
  2. Add your custom template
  3. Submit a pull request
  4. Document your customizations

Tips and Best Practices

  1. Test Changes: Always test template modifications by generating a sample report
  2. Version Control: Keep your customizations in version control
  3. Document Changes: Add comments explaining custom modifications
  4. Backup Originals: Keep a copy of original templates before modifying
  5. Validate LaTeX: Use a LaTeX editor with syntax checking
  6. Incremental Changes: Make small changes and test frequently

Common Customizations

Remove List of Figures/Tables

In main.tex or proposal.tex, comment out:

% \listoffigures
% \listoftables

Change Date Format

\usepackage{datetime}
\newdateformat{mydate}{\THEDAY\ \monthname[\THEMONTH] \THEYEAR}
\mydate\today

Add Line Numbers (for Review)

\usepackage{lineno}
\linenumbers

Two-Column Layout

\documentclass[12pt,twocolumn]{article}

Getting Help

Need more customization options? Open an issue on GitHub!