bibClean is a tool designed to help clean .bib files for LaTeX projects based on the citations used in the .tex files.
The tool will provide a clean .bibfile as well as summary file with an overview of unused and used citations.
The tool expects a single .bib file, but can read all .tex files in the project. If only some .texfiles should be considered, these can be specified.

This document describes the CLI option, but the tool can also be used from a notebook.

API documentation.
Development
How does the tool work?

• bibClean - a LaTeX Citation Cleaner
  • Additional documentation
  • Table of contents
  • Features
  • Installation
  • Usage
    • Command-Line Arguments
    • Examples
      • 1. Process All .tex Files in a Folder
      • 2. Process All .tex Files in a Zip File
      • 3. Process Specific .tex Files with a .bib File (Folder-Based)
      • 4. Process Specific .tex Files with a .bib File (Zip-Based)
    • Notes
  • License

• Process all .tex files in a folder or zip archive.
• Process specific .tex files with a given .bib file.
• Support for both folder-based and zip-based input.
• Produce a .bib file containing only used entries from the .tex files
• Produce a summary of used and unused entries in an excel file
• Automatically assumes --all_tex when only --folder or --zip is specified.

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/eztaban/bibtex-cleaner.git
   cd bibtex-cleaner

2. Install required dependencies:

   conda env create -f environment_linux.yaml --name NEW_ENV_NAME

   Drop the --name-flag to inherit the environment name from the yaml file
   Get miniconda: Miniconda

   conda env create -f environment_windows.yaml --name NEW_ENV_NAME

   • pandas
   • openpyxl
   • python 3.10
   • ipykernel (for jupyter notebook interface)
   • pytest (not included in environment file)

• Create folder called input at same level as main.py
• Place folder or zip-file with latex project in folder input
• Run the CLI tool using Python's main.py:

python main.py [OPTIONS]

Alternately, use the notebook

If only the --folder argument is provided, the program assumes --all_tex:

python main.py --folder /path/to/folder

Equivalent to:

python main.py --all_tex --folder /path/to/folder

If only the --zip argument is provided, the program assumes --all_tex:

python main.py --zip example.zip

Equivalent to:

python main.py --all_tex --zip example.zip

Process specific .tex files file1.tex and file2.tex with references.bib in the folder /path/to/folder:

python main.py --spec_tex file1.tex file2.tex --bib references.bib --folder /path/to/folder

Process specific .tex files file1.tex and file2.tex with references.bib in the zip file example.zip:

python main.py --spec_tex file1.tex file2.tex --bib references.bib --zip example.zip

• Automatic --all_tex: If you provide only --folder or --zip, the tool will automatically assume --all_tex and process all .tex files in the specified location.

• Temporary Folder for Zip Files: If you provide a zip file, the tool unpacks it into a temporary directory. Ensure you have enough space for unpacking.

• Error Handling:

  • If you specify --spec_tex, you must also provide --bib.
  • Either --folder or --zip must be specified to locate input files.
  • The tool validates the input to ensure no conflicts.

This project is licensed under the MIT License.