latex-citation-reference-validator

name: latex-citation-reference-validator description: Checks and fixes LaTeX paper drafts for citation and reference issues across multiple .tex files with a .bib bibliography file. Verifies that all \cite{}, \label{}, \ref{}, and \autoref{} commands work properly and cross-reference correctly across all files. Identifies broken, misnamed, or incorrect citations and references, then fixes them to use the correct names from the .bib file and LaTeX labels.

Instructions

Overview

This skill validates and repairs LaTeX citation and reference integrity in a multi-file project. It systematically scans all .tex files and the .bib file to identify:

1. Broken Citations: \cite{} commands referencing non-existent .bib entries.
2. Empty Citations/References: \cite{}, \ref{}, or \autoref{} with empty braces.
3. Broken References: \ref{} or \autoref{} commands pointing to non-existent \label{}s.
4. Incorrect References: References to labels that exist but are likely typos (e.g., fig:call-api-v0 vs. fig:call-api).

The core logic is implemented in the bundled Python script validate_and_fix.py. You should primarily execute this script, which provides a deterministic, repeatable analysis and repair process.

Step-by-Step Procedure

1. Initial Exploration: First, understand the workspace structure. List the allowed directories and examine the directory tree to locate all .tex and .bib files.

2. Run the Validation Script: Execute the primary script /workspace/latex-citation-reference-validator/scripts/validate_and_fix.py. This script will:

   • Recursively find all .tex files in the workspace.
   • Read the .bib file to extract all citation keys.
   • Parse all .tex files for \cite{}, \label{}, \ref{}, and \autoref{} commands.
   • Perform a comprehensive analysis, identifying all four categories of issues listed above.
   • Automatically fix the identified issues by editing the source .tex files in place.
   • Generate a detailed summary report of all changes made.

3. Review and Confirm: After the script runs, review its output summary. The summary will detail every file modified and the specific changes applied (e.g., "Fixed empty citation \citep{} -> \citep{brown2020language}"). You should verify that the fixes are correct and appropriate for the context of the paper.

4. Manual Verification (Optional): For complex projects or if you suspect edge cases, you may manually spot-check a few fixed locations in the .tex files to ensure the corrections are contextually accurate (e.g., the added citation key brown2020language is indeed the correct paper for the phrase "learn in-context").

Key Decisions & Heuristics

• Empty Citation Fixing: The script uses a heuristic lookup table (CITATION_FIX_MAP in the script) to map common phrases to probable citation keys (e.g., "learn in-context" -> brown2020language, "SimCSE retriever" -> gao2021simcse). You must review these automatic fixes for accuracy. If the heuristic fails, you will need to manually determine and apply the correct citation key.
• Broken Reference Resolution: The script identifies the closest matching existing label for a broken reference using string similarity. For example, fig:call-api-v0 will be corrected to fig:call-api. You must verify that the suggested correction is semantically correct (i.e., references the intended figure/table/section).
• Scope: The script operates on all .tex files within the /workspace directory. Ensure your target paper files are located there.

Triggers

Use this skill when the user request involves:

• "Check my LaTeX citations and references."
• "Fix broken \ref{} commands in my paper."
• "Validate that all \cite{} commands match my .bib file."
• "Help me find missing labels or citations."
• Working with file extensions .tex and .bib.

Bundled Resources

• scripts/validate_and_fix.py: The main analysis and repair script. Run this.
• references/common_citations.md: A reference list of common NLP/ML paper citation keys and the contexts they typically appear in. Consult this if you need to manually determine a correct citation key not covered by the script's heuristics.