How To Clean Up a Messy LaTeX Project Automatically

We've All Been There

You inherited a LaTeX project. Or your thesis has grown organically over 3 years. Now it's a mess:

• Unused packages

• Dead code

• Inconsistent formatting

• Orphaned files

• Deprecated commands

Let's clean it up automatically.

Step 1: Find Unused Packages

The problem: Your preamble has 30 packages. You use maybe 15.

Traditional approach: Remove one package at a time, compile, check for errors. Tedious.

AI approach: "List all packages that are imported but never used"

Result: AI scans your entire project, identifies unused packages, offers to remove them.

Common unused packages:

• \usepackage{color} (when you already have xcolor)

• \usepackage{epsfig} (deprecated)

• Packages from templates you never used

Step 2: Find Dead Code

The problem: Commented-out sections, old versions, experimental code you forgot about.

Traditional approach: Read through everything manually.

AI approach: "Find all commented-out LaTeX code blocks larger than 5 lines"

Then:

• Review each block

• Delete if obsolete

• Restore if needed

Step 3: Fix Inconsistent Formatting

The problem: Some equations are \[ \], some are $$ $$, some are equation environment.

Traditional approach: Find/replace with careful regex.

AI approach: "Convert all display math to equation environment with consistent numbering"

One click: All equations standardized.

Other consistency fixes:

• "Use \textit consistently instead of mixing {\it }"

• "Standardize all figure widths to \textwidth fractions"

• "Use \enquote instead of straight quotes"

Step 4: Update Deprecated Commands

The problem: LaTeX evolves. Old commands stick around but shouldn't be used.

Common deprecations:

| Old | New |

|-----|-----|

| \bf | \textbf or \bfseries |

| \it | \textit or \itshape |

| \rm | \textrm or \rmfamily |

| $$ | \[ \] or equation |

| \centerline | \centering |

| \over | \frac |

AI approach: "Update all deprecated LaTeX commands to modern equivalents"

Step 5: Clean Up Bibliography

The problem: 200 entries, half unused. Inconsistent formatting.

AI approach: 1. "List all bibliography entries not cited in the document" 2. "Standardize author names to Last, First format" 3. "Remove unnecessary fields from @article entries" 4. "Check for duplicate entries"

Step 6: Organize File Structure

The problem: Everything in root folder. No clear structure.

Recommended structure:

AI approach: "Reorganize my flat file structure into a proper project hierarchy"

AI can move files and update all \input{} and \includegraphics{} paths.

Step 7: Audit Labels and References

The problem: Labels like "eq1", "fig3" that don't describe anything. Missing references.

AI approach: 1. "List all labels that don't follow a descriptive naming convention" 2. "Find all figures without labels" 3. "Find all labeled items never referenced"

Then: Rename labels to descriptive names like "eq:convergence-theorem"

Step 8: Final Audit

Run these checks:

• [ ] All packages are used

• [ ] No deprecated commands

• [ ] Consistent formatting style

• [ ] Bibliography is clean

• [ ] File structure is organized

• [ ] Labels are descriptive

• [ ] No orphaned files

AI approach: "Perform a full project audit and list all remaining issues"

Automation Tips

1. Version control: Commit before and after cleanup 2. Incremental changes: Fix one category at a time 3. Test compilation: Verify after each major change 4. Keep AI in the loop: Let it handle tedious parts

Don't clean up manually. Let Octree's AI handle the tedious work. Try it free — no credit card required.