From: huang@deakin.OZ.AU (Weiguang Huang)
Newsgroups: sci.math.symbolic,sci.math,sci.math.num-analysis,sci.math.stat
Subject: SymbMath (was RE Derive)
Date: 13 Dec 1992 22:22:26 +1100
Organization: Deakin University, Victoria, Australia
Distribution: inet
Expires: 6/6/1993
NNTP-Posting-Host: sol.deakin.oz.au

In article <yel1H9db4b@atlantis.psu.edu> mek@guinan.psu.edu (Mark E. Kotanchek) writes:
>   Does anyone have experience with a package called Derive?
>   It seems a to be less expensive than Maple, etc.
>   
>Terrific little program--unfortunately, it is only available for MS-DOS.  
>However, it runs effectively on 8 MHz 8086-class machines (i.e., my old  
>AT&T 6300) which is something Maple and Mathematica wouldn't do. Despite  
>the minimal hardware requirements, it is ahead of maple and mma in the  
>sense that it understands variable types and ranges--for example, you can  
>declare a variable to be bounded, real, positive, non-negative, matrix,  
>vector, etc. with appropriate transformations being made. 
>
>Mark.
>--
>Mark Kotanchek
>Guidance & Control Dept - 363 ASB
>Applied Research Lab/Penn State
>P.O. Box 30
>State College, PA 16804

	SymbMath also runs effectively on a small IBM PC 8086-class machines
and you can declare a variable to be real, positive, negative, etc. 
Here is some info about it.


        SymbMath 2.1: A Symbolic Calculator with Learning

		by Dr. Weiguang HUANG
	5/6 Cara Road, Geelong, Vic. 3216, Australia
	Phone: 61-52-443282,	Email: huang@deakin.oz.au

        SymbMath (an abbreviation for Symbolic Mathematics) is not
only a symbolic calculator but also an expert system that can solve 
symbolical math problems. SymbMath will also perform exact numeric 
computation. It can manipulate complicated formulas and return answers 
in terms of symbols, formulas and exact numbers. 
	SymbMath is different from other software:
        (1) It is able to learn from users.  If users only input one 
	    formula (e.g. one derivative) without writing any code, 
            it will automatically learn many problems (e.g. 
	    derivatives, indefinite and definite integrals) related 
	    to this formula.
        (2) Users edit the library (e.g. integral tables) in "formula 
	    format" by any text editor. 
        (3) It runs on small IBM PCs (8086) with 640 KB RAM under MS-DOS. 
        Its capabilities include facilities to provide analytical and 
numerical answers for:
         o  Differentiation: regular or higher order, partial or
            total, mixed and even implicit differentiation,
	    one-sided derivatives.
         o  Integration: indefinite or definite integration, 
            multiple integration, infinity as a bound, parametric
            integration, iterated integration, line or surface 
            integrals, discontinuous or implicit integration.
         o  Solution of equations: roots of a polynomial, systems of
            algebraic or differential equations.
         o  Manipulation of expressions: simplification, factoring or 
	    expansion, substitution, evaluation, built-in standard or 
	    user-defined functions.
         o  Calculation: exact and floating-point numerical 
            computation of integer, rational, real and complex
            numbers in the range from minus to plus infinity, even
            with different units.
         o  Limits: real or complex limits, one-sided limits, 
            indeterminate forms.
	 o  Complex: calculation, functions, derivatives, integration.
	 o  Sum and product: finite or infinite, partial.
         o  Chemical calculation: molecular and atomic weights,
            concentrations (all by entering the symbols of the
            chemical elements).
         o  Chemical reactions: inorganic and organic. 
         o  Other: series, lists, arrays, vectors, matrices, tables, etc.
	Also included are:
         o  Pull-down and pop-up menus, resizable and colourable windows.
         o  Twin screen text editor with syntax check.
         o  Programming in integrated edit-interpret-debug environment.
         o  Reading and generating BASIC and FORTRAN codes.
         o  Displaying two-dimensional math notation.
         o  On-line help, and on-line manual.
         o  Interface with other software (e.g. with PlotData for graph).
	It has three versions: Shareware, Student, and Advanced. The 
shareware version is available from SIMTEL20 archives on anonymous FTP sites 
(wsmr-simtel20.army.mil as /calculator/sm21a.zip, rana.cc.deakin.oz.au as 
/huang/sm21a.zip, etc) or by e-mail from listserv@ndsuvm1.bitnet. 
Xref: sparky sci.math.symbolic:3293 sci.math:17019 alt.uu.math.misc:19