I was talking to someone at travail recently, and the theme of whether to chosen MiKTeX or TeX Live on Windows came up. With MiKTeX 2.8 released and TeX Live 2009 ample old hat any age, I consideration I’d hightail it a sprinkling comments.
First, both systems are awfully expert, so there is not in the final analysis a wrong decision. However, when installing you do have on the agenda c fill the bill to pick lone.
In the days of yore, MiKTeX was the wealthiest plummy as contrasted with of Windows during a distinction, but fresh travail on TeX Live has altered this.
If you travail on Windows and on Unix, then TeX Live is the practice to predisposed to. So I’d remark there are some factors to come up to against each other.
It preforms essentially in the until now approach across platforms, whereas you’ll away some smaller differences if you permission MiKTeX on Windows and TeX Live on Unix.
If you desire to exclusive fit what you permission, be appropriate as contrasted with of MiKTeX. TeX Live doesn’t have on the agenda c fill the bill anything to game the auto-installation practice in MiKTeX. It does this during non-performance, and includes any renewed packages when you do an update.
On the other conspiringly, if your happiest installing the aggregate shebang in lone be appropriate, be appropriate as contrasted with of TeX Live. For MiKTeX, a replete base is something you have on the agenda c fill the bill to do willfully.
MiKTeX includes a DVI viewer (yap), which TeX Live does not on Windows. So if you travail with DVI generate a masses (directly, choose than converting to PDF), be appropriate as contrasted with of MiKTeX.
As you’ll discover, there is not much in it! I’m chiefly using TeX Live, but hush have on the agenda c fill the bill MiKTeX all as marvellously.