Overleaf memos

Some work that would usually be done in JIRA (for projects behind a firewall where we do not have access to GitHub) is instead done in overleaf. This is especially true for work that:

• Involves a PI other than Peter or Pascal
• Requires a large amount of math

The purpose of this guide is to outline practices that allow us to best replicate the flow of GitHub/JIRA within Overleaf.

1. Set-up

Each project will have an overleaf project with a main.tex file including \usepackage[subpreambles=true]{standalone} and an input folder for inputs that need to be sent to Chase for disclosure. Create a folder within the project named issue_XXX_short_name (same name as issue branch). Within your issue folder, create an input folder and .tex file for your memo. Include \documentclass[class=article, crop=false]{standalone} at the top of the memo. You can input your figures and tables from the input folder using the input{} function in LaTeX.

In order to avoid memos getting long and unwieldy, it is the responsibility of both the PIs and the RAs to determine what work warrants a new memo. Whenever you are assigned a task related to an Overleaf thread you have been working on, ask yourself if it would be better to transfer it to a completely new memo. A good starting point (but not the only possibility) is "if you create a different branch, then it should live in a separate memo".

2. Tracking Changes

Although you can look through version history in Overleaf, it isn't explicitly linked to version control, like posting a comment in Git. Thus, it is important to track and push the coding changes you're making to your memo to the associated branch and make a brief comment at least once a week in the Git ticket posting any figures/tables and linking to the commits with changes.

In general, every comment you add on Overleaf should include a permalink to the most recent commit containing the work for this ticket.

3. Getting Feedback

Try to mirror the comment structure of GitHub within your Overleaf ticket. Each day's comment should be a separate section labeled with the date and yourself to PI (e.g. 2025-09-29 GR to GGG). The PI should respond in a separate section. It is important to clarify where in the memo the PI needs to provide feedback. In your EOD message, make sure to include a longer description clarifying what is ready for review within the memo. You can also use %__ to NNN or GGG within the memo and note in your message that sections needing feedback are tagged in this way.

Whenever you or a PI read the comment, the three-letter string in the header should be changed to your initials. For example, if pascal read a comment, he will replace the section label from NNN to PN to indicate that it has been reviewed.

4. Closing Tasks and Managing the File Limit

Overleaf project have a hard limit of 2,000 files. This can become problematic for large projects that persist for a very long time, particularly due to exhibits. As such, whenever work associated to an Overleaf memo is closed, you should do the following:

1. Add a final comment to the memo permalinking to the state of the code as of writing the comment
2. Save a PDF version of the memo as of closing the work
3. Delete all the exhibits that go into the memo (and don't feed into the paper or other active memos)
4. Delete the memo's the .tex file

File pruning becomes more frequent when a paper approaches production. Keep an eye on the file limit, and communicate with PIs and fellow RAs about what to delete and when.

5. Tips

1. To make comments that you can fold (using % does not enable this functionality), include \usepackage{comment} in the preamble and wrap your comment you want to fold in begin{comment} and end{comment}. This is a good way to save old comments and conversations without having them take up too much space in your memo.
2. To create a to-do list that you can track progress on, include \newcommand{\checkboxUnchecked}{\(\square\)} \newcommand{\checkboxChecked}{\(\boxtimes\)} in your preamble and use \item[\checkboxUnchecked] to create an unchecked box and \item[\checkboxChecked].
3. Use `` and " or '' for quotations marks.
4. To get rid of indents for the whole document instead of using \noindent, use \setlength\parindent{0pt} in your preamble.