brycewang-stanford/overleaf-collaboration-guide

Overleaf Collaboration Guide

Set up and manage collaborative LaTeX projects on Overleaf with best practices for multi-author workflows, version control, and project organization.

Getting Started with Overleaf

Creating a Project

Overleaf (overleaf.com) is a browser-based LaTeX editor that provides real-time collaboration, automatic compilation, and integrated version history.

Project creation options:

| Method | When to Use | |--------|-------------| | Blank project | Starting from scratch | | Upload project | Migrating existing local LaTeX project | | Import from GitHub | Existing repo-based project | | Use a template | Conference/journal submissions (IEEE, ACM, Springer, Elsevier templates available) | | Copy from existing | Forking a previous project |

Recommended Project Structure

project-root/
├── main.tex              # Main document (entry point)
├── preamble.tex          # Packages, macros, custom commands
├── sections/
│   ├── 01-introduction.tex
│   ├── 02-related-work.tex
│   ├── 03-methods.tex
│   ├── 04-results.tex
│   ├── 05-discussion.tex
│   └── 06-conclusion.tex
├── figures/
│   ├── fig1-overview.pdf
│   ├── fig2-results.pdf
│   └── fig3-comparison.pdf
├── tables/
│   └── results-table.tex
├── references.bib        # Bibliography database
└── README.md             # Project notes (not compiled)

Main File Setup

% main.tex
\documentclass[conference]{IEEEtran}  % or article, etc.
\input{preamble}  % load packages and macros

\begin{document}

\title{Your Paper Title}
\author{Author One \and Author Two \and Author Three}
\maketitle

\begin{abstract}
Your abstract here.
\end{abstract}

\input{sections/01-introduction}
\input{sections/02-related-work}
\input{sections/03-methods}
\input{sections/04-results}
\input{sections/05-discussion}
\input{sections/06-conclusion}

\bibliographystyle{IEEEtran}
\bibliography{references}

\end{document}

Multi-Author Collaboration

Sharing and Permissions

| Role | Capabilities | |------|-------------| | Owner | Full control, can delete project, manage collaborators | | Editor | Can edit all files, cannot manage collaborators | | Viewer | Read-only access, can download but not modify |

Share via:

• Link sharing: Generate a read-only or edit link (anyone with the link can access)
• Email invitation: Invite specific collaborators by email with role assignment

Author Coordination Best Practices

1. Assign sections: Each author owns specific .tex files to minimize merge conflicts.
2. Use comments: Overleaf supports inline comments (% TODO: revise this paragraph) and threaded review comments.
3. Use custom commands for notes:

% In preamble.tex, define author-specific annotation commands
\usepackage{xcolor}
\newcommand{\alice}[1]{\textcolor{blue}{[Alice: #1]}}
\newcommand{\bob}[1]{\textcolor{red}{[Bob: #1]}}
\newcommand{\todo}[1]{\textcolor{orange}{[TODO: #1]}}

% In text:
This result is surprising \alice{Should we add more analysis here?}
and warrants further investigation \todo{Add statistical test}.

4. Track changes: Overleaf Premium includes a track-changes mode. For free plans, use the changes package:

\usepackage{changes}
\definechangesauthor[name={Alice}, color=blue]{AL}
\definechangesauthor[name={Bob}, color=red]{BO}

% Usage:
\added[id=AL]{This is new text added by Alice.}
\deleted[id=BO]{This text was removed by Bob.}
\replaced[id=AL]{new text}{old text}

Git Integration

Overleaf + GitHub Sync

Overleaf Premium supports bidirectional GitHub sync:

1. In Overleaf, go to Menu > Sync > GitHub
2. Link your GitHub account and select or create a repository
3. Pull/push changes between Overleaf and GitHub

Overleaf + Local Git

# Clone your Overleaf project via git
git clone https://git.overleaf.com/YOUR_PROJECT_ID my-paper
cd my-paper

# Edit locally, then push back to Overleaf
git add -A
git commit -m "Updated results table"
git push origin master

# Pull changes made on Overleaf
git pull origin master

Credentials: Use your Overleaf email as username and an Overleaf-generated token as password.

Compilation and Debugging

Common Compilation Errors

| Error | Cause | Fix | |-------|-------|-----| | Undefined control sequence | Missing package or typo in command | Check \usepackage or spelling | | Missing $ inserted | Math symbol outside math mode | Wrap in $...$ or \text{...} | | File not found | Incorrect path in \input or \includegraphics | Check file names (case-sensitive on Overleaf) | | Overfull \hbox | Content too wide for column | Resize figure, adjust text, or add \sloppy | | Citation undefined | BibTeX entry missing or key mismatch | Verify .bib entry key matches \cite{} |

Debugging Tips

• Use Recompile from scratch (Ctrl+Shift+Enter) to clear cache
• Check the Logs and output files panel for detailed error messages
• Use \listfiles in preamble to see which packages are loaded
• Overleaf uses TeX Live 2024; check package compatibility if using older templates

Submission Workflow

Preparing for Journal Submission

1. Flatten the project: Some journals require a single .tex file.

# Use latexpand to flatten \input commands
latexpand main.tex > submission.tex

2. Check formatting: Verify page limits, font sizes, margin requirements.
3. Download as zip: Menu > Download > Source to get all files.
4. Convert figures: Ensure all figures are in accepted formats (PDF, EPS, or high-res PNG/TIFF).
5. Clean up: Remove TODO comments, author annotation commands, and debug code.

% Add to preamble for submission: disable all annotation commands
\renewcommand{\alice}[1]{}
\renewcommand{\bob}[1]{}
\renewcommand{\todo}[1]{}

Useful Overleaf Keyboard Shortcuts

| Action | Shortcut (Mac) | Shortcut (Windows) | |--------|---------------|-------------------| | Compile | Cmd+Enter | Ctrl+Enter | | Bold | Cmd+B | Ctrl+B | | Italic | Cmd+I | Ctrl+I | | Comment toggle | Cmd+/ | Ctrl+/ | | Find & replace | Cmd+H | Ctrl+H | | Go to line | Cmd+Shift+L | Ctrl+Shift+L | | Toggle PDF | Cmd+Shift+O | Ctrl+Shift+O |