LaTeX Comments

Add a visible, attributable, removable layer of NOTES to a LaTeX document — remarks ABOUT the text, never a rewrite of it. Insert a macro call next to the relevant text. See papyrus-writing for the behaviour rules and the comment taxonomy. To propose concrete replacement text (accept/reject), use papyrus-latex-suggestions.

Step 1 — Setup (idempotent)

todonotes ships with TeX Live, so normally nothing needs installing. Do not probe for it with kpsewhich and do not try to install it: the app may compile with Tectonic (its managed install, or a ~/texlive not on PATH), where kpsewhich is absent and an empty answer proves nothing. Inject the preamble below; if the author's next compile reports File 'todonotes.sty' not found, handle it with papyrus-diagnose-compilation.

If the document has no comment preamble yet, inject this once at the end of the preamble, after all existing \usepackage lines (never duplicate it if it is already there):

% ==== Papyrus comment layer — safe to leave in; flip to hide ====
% Load todonotes ONLY if the document hasn't already loaded it (avoids an option clash).
\makeatletter
\@ifpackageloaded{todonotes}{}{\usepackage[textsize=scriptsize]{todonotes}}
\makeatother
\newcommand{\aicomment}[1]{\todo[color=cyan!25,bordercolor=cyan]{\textbf{AI:} #1}}   % margin note
% FINAL BUILD: hide every note by adding the `disable` option to todonotes
% (wherever it is loaded): \usepackage[disable]{todonotes}.
% ================================================================

Margin space is tight, so textsize=scriptsize keeps notes readable in a one-column margin. Comments live in the margin only — a note must never change the paper's length or reflow the text. In a two-column or narrow-margin paper, keep each note short rather than pushing it into the text flow.

Step 2 — Insert comments

Add a macro call next to the relevant text. Do NOT rewrite the prose. Tag every note with the taxonomy ([claim] [cite] [clarity] [structure] [contribution] [rigor] [style] [typo]).

The method is fast.\aicomment{[claim] by how much? add a number + CI}
This paragraph reads like Related Work.\aicomment{[structure] consider moving it there}
We imitate the baseline.\aicomment{[clarity] ``imitate'' is imprecise — say exactly what you did to the baseline}

A comment flags a problem or asks a question — it never carries the replacement text; proposing concrete old→new wording is papyrus-latex-suggestions.

Do NOT add \listoftodos — it inserts a full page and changes the paper's length. The margin notes themselves are the review list: the author addresses each one and deletes its macro call.

Step 3 — Finalize

Hide every note in one edit: switch the package line to \usepackage[disable]{todonotes}. Remove leftover macro calls once a note is addressed.

Rules

• Comments live in the margin and must not change the paper's length — no \listoftodos, no full-width inline blocks.
• Insert macro calls; never rewrite prose the author did not ask you to change.
• Never fabricate a citation to fill a [cite] note.
• One sentence per line in the source keeps every suggested diff minimal.
• Never rename or "tidy" the author's macros, labels, or bib keys.