Mathcad alternative

[MachineEngr]

Does anybody know of an inexpensive alternative to Mathcad. I am looking for graphical display of very basic calculations that are higher level than a text editor.

I do pages of similar hand calcs (job after job) and want to put the equations into a standardized editor that will allow me to put in angle and square feet, then reshuffle the results via my equations and generate my force results. The most advanced feature I need is a working 'e'.

In the end, I need to print out a tidy sheet of equations and values as I've seen Mathcad output from other engineers.

Seems everything out there costs $1000. Any suggestions?

Thanks

 

[GregLocock]

Yes, try

http://www.excelcalcs.com

I'd sign up with a throwaway email account tho.

Cheers

Greg Locock

Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.

 

[wfn217]

http://www.download.com/SciCalc/3000-2053_4-10428260.html?tag=lst-0-1

 

[swertel]

You can also try CalcCenter from Wolfram Research, makers of Mathematica. CalcCenter is similar to MathCAD, and Mathematica, but only US$495.

--Scott

http://wertel.eng.pro

 

[pstuckey]

I've seen older versions of Mathcad on ebay from time to time, usually very cheap. It sounds like almost any relatively recent version would work for you, but especially look for V11, which is still in many ways the 'gold standard' of Mathcad, and avoid V12.

Peter

 

[IRstuff]

If you're using Word, why not use the Equation Editor that comes with it? It's free and probably already installed on your computer

TTFN

Eng-Tips Policies FAQ731-376

 

[Maike13]

I'm not sure if it will do what you want but check out Mathlook for Excel ($99).

http://www.uts.com/ItemDetails.asp?ItemID=1100-40-0000-00

Mike

 

[mrMikee]

The following link compares CAS "computer algebra systems" software:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_computer_algebra_systems

Note that some are free and may be useful depending on your needs.

If you find something to be interesting don't forget to search the eng-tips site for comments, I know many of these have been discussed.

I use CalcCenter which is very powerful but probably not the easiest to learn. My biggest complaint is that the output is not very attractive when compared to Mathcad, but then very few CAS programs are. While $595 is not cheap it is much better that the $1200 to $1800 range of Mathcad, Maple, and Mathematica.

Regards,
-Mike