How LaTeX changed my work: away from MS Word
Why I moved from Microsoft Word to LaTeX and what changed
Word annoyed me for years. Lists restarting at 1. Tables shifting when you edit a paragraph. Large documents freezing. For technical writing it was maintenance, not a tool.
LaTeX
LaTeX is not Word with buttons. You write markup, compile, get PDF. Sounds old. Works.
Consistency comes from the system, not styles you break by accident. Formulas look like formulas, not pasted images. In Git, .tex files diff cleanly.
What I do now
Reports, specs, long structured texts. BibTeX for sources. TikZ when a sketch should live in the document. Overleaf only when clients require it. Local TeX Live is my default.
The start costs time. Templates help. Once it clicks, you save hours of formatting anger.
Limits
LaTeX is wrong for quick one-pagers with free layout. Sometimes overkill for formal letters without a template. For my technical work it fits.
Word stays on machines I must use. LaTeX is my default when I choose.
If you switch: one small project, one template, not everything at once. That is usually enough.