[ale] graphing calculator

[Mills John M-NPHW64]

Sean -

I would try SciLab (http://www.scilab.org/). It has Win and *NIX binaries, CLI and GUI control, graphing output, and can do computation and simulation (including simultaneous differential equations). Also comes with a lot of different pre-built examples. I've used it to model a heavy pedestal under electrodynamic braking, based on the pedestal's equations of state (simultaneous 1st-order l.d.e's).

SciLab's objective was a 'Maple' work-alike with strong simulation and illustration capabilities for automatic controls problems. I don't know if they're ahead or behind that target by now. I think I exported the graphs as EPS somehow, but that was in Linux so the mechanisms would be different in MsWin.

Another option would be iterating a spreadsheet (OpenOffice, naturally), then graphing the results. That would be simpler to explain to the students and they could probably do some for themselves. Depends on the class topics and level.

There are plenty of other candidates, naturally.

 - Mills

-----Original Message-----
From: ale-bounces at ale.org on behalf of drifter
Sent: Fri 12/4/2009 1:28 PM
To: ALE
Subject: [ale] graphing calculator
 
Gentle folk,
my brother needs your help.
He is retired navigator for the USN. Now tutoring kids in math in
New Bern, NC, and finds the textbooks (middle school/high school)
the kids are forced to use just about impossible.  From his point of
view he is amazed they can learn any algebra/geometry/trig at all.

So he is struggling to write his own textbook he can give to the teens he 
is working with.  To that end he needs an app (windoze, cough, cough)
that will allow him to input an algebraic equation and get out a graph in
a file format (jpg, etc) that he can then import into the Open Office file
he is creating.

I will take credit on weaning him away from Office. :)

Any thoughts?

Sean
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