Pick whichever one you are most comfortable with. MacSyma and MuPad are alternatives that work fairly well. Maple, or MathCAD, is easier to deal with. I know Mathematica, and I find the syntax irritating. There are particular branches of physics where mathematica is absolutely the tool of choice. If you are just using it for undergraduate class work, there is no difference between them that ought to really get in your way. For some more abstract uses, Mathematica has a strong community. Maple and Mathematica are mostly interchangeable computer algebra systems. MatLab is a bit easier-MatLab is a matrix manipulator, optimized for matrix and vector processing, and particularly strong withnumeric code. But please keep in mind that I'm a college student, so funds are limited. Is that far from the truth? Which would you recommend, and why?Alternatively, if you have a program (CAS) that you like even better than Maple or Mathematica, please feel free to speak up. Has anyone used both extensively? Do you have a preference? It seems to me that my professors tend to use Maple for matrices and linear systems while they use Mathematica for symbolic manipulation. It's marginally more expensive, but only comes as WIN or LIN or MAC meaning that I'd have to pay each time I want to switch OS's (which is not uncommon.) The idea of spending $420 vs $130 isn't one I'm particularly looking forward to.So I turn to Ars for a little help. As an additional bonus, the v7 CD comes with WIN/LIN/MAC so I only have to buy it once regardless of which OS I choose to work with.On Mathematica's side, I'm not nearly as comfortable with it, but I'm more than willing to learn if it proves to be a better program than Maple. ![]() Maple is $10 cheaper (a negligible bonus), but I'm used to it. I'm thinking about buying the student's version to either Maple or Mathematica, but I'm undecided on which to buy. If you want to use it on Windows, you must install a Linux virtual machine using either VirtualBox or VMWare.Well, I've finally reached the stage where our professors take integration to be a rote part of the class, and instead focus on technique and process. Now I would say that the package has gone a long way, though it still doesn’t work on Windows. I first tried installing Sage on my Linux machine about 3 years ago, and when I tried doing it then it took a lot of effort and a lot of command-line agony to get it to start working. I picked up a new, much, much, much needed book, the Sage Beginner’s Guide, which should give me a basic working knowledge of the program. Known bugs and tasks that need to be completed are posted online and users are free to take on these challenges. Sage, released in 2005 is relatively new compared to other CAS programs and still has a lot of raw edges. ![]() However, if you use Sage, you can utilize Maxima even if you only know Python. For example, Maxima is written in Lisp, so you would have to learn some of it to become proficient with the program. ![]() Sage is actually made out of more than 90 different mathematical packages – one of which is Maxima – all integrated under a single interface with which you can communicate using only Python. If you already know Python, you won’t be bogged down learning a new language just to use the software.ģ) Sage includes Maxima. Python is a free programming language and it’s very easy to learn. With Sage, it’s affordable, you don’t have to pay more for newer versions, and the fact that it’s open source means you can actively participate in the development community.Ģ) Sage uses Python. ![]() If you want to use it for work, it’s a whopping $2500 for an individual license – and you can only install it on one machine. Mathematica, on the other hand, is proprietary software and a home license costs $300. Sage, in particular, has several benefits over Mathematca:ġ) Sage is open source software, which means you can freely download, modify and distribute its source code. After spending some time experimenting with Mathematica, Maxima, and Sage, I’ve finally decided to use Sage as my primary computer algebra system (CAS)! In short, computer algebra systems act like high-performance calculators, and their primary strength lies in the fact that they can manipulate mathematical expressions in symbolic form.
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