Show HN: LaTeX Salon, a Trystero-based multiplayer LaTeX scratchpad

[ashivkum]

Hello HN!

When I was an undergrad during the pandemic doing math homework in a group chat, I always wanted a quick way to type out an argument and share it without necessarily starting a new LaTeX document and compiling it. I also wanted a way to collaborate that was lower friction than creating an Overleaf document. This vibe-coded website is my attempt to satisfy this fairly niche desire.

This is a Trystero-based multiplayer LaTeX workspace for temporary collaboration: quick math sessions, office hours, an alternative to trying to communicate a long exact sequence over text etc. It’s intentionally not a full document platform.

What it does:

- Live KaTeX preview while typing (no compilation required)

- Real-time peer-to-peer sync in shared rooms (WebRTC via Trystero) with no login, and with shared carets and presence pills à la Google Docs

- No app backend stores documents; multiplayer state is shared only among peers in the room.

- Mixed mode (text + math) and Classic mode (all math)

- PNG/PDF export

- Matrix/table/cases helpers + custom \newcommand shortcuts

- Preliminary mobile support

What it isn’t:

- Not for long-term document management/versioning

- Room codes are lightweight and unauthenticated (treat them as temporary shared secrets)

There's also a single-player mode: latex.salon/local. In practice, I mostly use this for writing up problems and solutions for my discussion sections.

Source: github.com/ultravioletcatastrophe/LaTeX-Lab

Feedback welcome!