Chapter 2. pdfTeX
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## 2.2 Environment

See the Kpathsearch library documentation (the `Path specifications' node) for the details of how the environment variables are used when searching. The kpsewhich utility can be used to query the values of the variables.

One caveat: In most pdfTeX formats, you cannot use ~ in a filename you give directly to pdfTeX, because ~ is an active character, and hence is expanded, not taken as part of the filename. Other programs, such as Metafont, do not have this problem.

`TEXMFOUTPUT`

  Normally, pdfTeX puts its output files in the current directory. If any output file cannot be opened there, it tries to open it in the directory specified in the environment variable `TEXMFOUTPUT`. There is no default value for that variable. For example, if you say pdftex paper and the current directory is not writable, if `TEXMFOUTPUT` has the value `/tmp`, pdfTeX attempts to create `/tmp/paper.log` (and `/tmp/paper.pdf`, if any output is produced.)

`TEXINPUTS`

  Search path for `\input` and `\openin` files. This should probably start with ``.'', so that user files are found before system files. An empty path component will be replaced with the paths defined in the `texmf.cnf` file. For example, set `TEXINPUTS` to `".:/home/usr/tex:"` to prepend the current direcory and ```/home/user/tex''` to the standard search path.

`TEXFONTS`

  earch path for font metric (`.tfm`) files.

`TEXFORMATS`

  Search path for format files.

`TEXPOOL`

  Search path for pdfinitex internal strings.

`TEXEDIT`

  Command template for switching to editor. The default, usually vi, is set when pdfTeX is compiled.

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