Mathematical and scientific equation software

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sitnet

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Hey guys :)

Ok so today I have quite a strange request that I need help with. I am looking for software (Windows) that I can use to type maths and science equations with. For example it should support symbols like positive and negative powers, and fractions, and also things like the Alfa, Beta etc symbols (Those that are used to represent corner degrees).

I have found a few softwares, but they all seem to be old and not very user friendly.

I know I am taking a long shot, but here goes. A while back on my Nokia 5800 I had a maths app with text recognition (writing on screen with stylus), and if you wrote say a fraction it would automatically convert it to text and could then also calculate the answer. Now is there any chance that there exits something like that for PC, using a tablet (Like the wacom tablets)?

Thanx very much, all suggestions are greatly appreciated! :)
 
Perhaps have a look at Wolfram Mathematica, Matlab or even Microsoft Mathematics. They can model anything from linear systems to molecules or pretty much any system you can implement. Unfortunately these packages are quite pricey but I hope that points you in the right direction :)
 
Thanx for the suggestions so far, will definitely look into it.

To clarify exactly what I am looking for: I want to tutor some people a few things like trigonometry (Functions, identities, equations etc), algebra, chemistry(organic chemistry, different types of reactions, quantum mechanics (basics) etc) and physics(Newtons laws and it's equations, momentum, acceleration, vector calculations etc.)

And I don't want to do this all on paper, since it is very inconvenient, and will make this a very frustrating task. That's the reason I asked for something that supports tablet input, as this will make it even easier(but I know this is very specialized...)

Once again, thanx :)
 
Microsoft Word-> Insert Equation (or Insert Object-> Equation 3.0).

If you need advanced stuff, LaTeX or MATLAB's symbolic toolbox.
 
sitnet said:
Thanx for the suggestions so far, will definitely look into it.

To clarify exactly what I am looking for: I want to tutor some people a few things like trigonometry (Functions, identities, equations etc), algebra, chemistry(organic chemistry, different types of reactions, quantum mechanics (basics) etc) and physics(Newtons laws and it's equations, momentum, acceleration, vector calculations etc.)

And I don't want to do this all on paper, since it is very inconvenient, and will make this a very frustrating task. That's the reason I asked for something that supports tablet input, as this will make it even easier(but I know this is very specialized...)

Once again, thanx :)
Click to expand...

Will this suffice?

www.wolframalpha.com/
 
ponder said:
So you only need to type equations and not solve them?

The most powerful software use in academia is LaTeX but it has a learning curve. People use it for typesetting thesis, books etc.
There is however a GUI for it that's supposed to make it easier to use for beginners called LyX.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LaTeX
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LyX
Click to expand...

+1 for LaTeX
If you only want to write equations etc., then this will do the job as well or better than anything else. The learning is very steep though, it's more like programming than simply typing a document in MS Word for example.
 
hawker said:
I was going to suggest this, if you don't want to spend any cash.
Click to expand...

OpenOffice (or LibreOffice) works fairly well. I'd say that it's much easier than MS Word for typing equations, but not quite on LaTeX's standard.

For typing equations:

LaTeX > OpenOffice > MS Word
 
Proseal said:
Wonderfull all built into Ms Word no 3rd party software needed.
Click to expand...

Yes, but it is very time consuming to use. You can't really type equations, so you're forced to click multiple buttons to get your equation. In OO and LaTeX you can type equations without lifting your hands from the keyboard. LaTeX equations looks better than those typed in MS as well.
 
There is only one solution for your problem and it has been mention above. LaTeX!
 
KhoisanX said:
+1 for LaTeX
If you only want to write equations etc., then this will do the job as well or better than anything else. The learning is very steep though, it's more like programming than simply typing a document in MS Word for example.
Click to expand...

phiber said:
There is only one solution for your problem and it has been mention above. LaTeX!
Click to expand...

Guys do have a look at LyX as it provides you with a WYSIWYG word processor style front end to LaTeX making things much easier for newcomers.

http://www.lyx.org/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LyX

730px-LyX1.6.3.png
 
Thank you guys so much for all the suggestions! :)

I have taken a look at all the software mentioned. LaTeX looks very good, but for my purposes the learning curve is a bit harsh.

On the other side, Microsoft Mathematics 4 is great! Firstly is solves things like equations, showing the steps. Secondly, it has tablet support, WIN!

Derive also looks very good but might also be a little overkill for what I want to achieve...

How would I survive without MyBroadband? :D
 
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