The following tables provide a comparison of

computer algebra system A computer algebra system (CAS) or symbolic algebra system (SAS) is any mathematical software with the ability to manipulate mathematical expressions in a way similar to the traditional manual computations of mathematicians and scientists. The de ...

s (CAS). A CAS is a package comprising a set of algorithms for performing symbolic manipulations on algebraic objects, a language to implement them, and an environment in which to use the language. A CAS may include a user interface and graphics capability; and to be effective may require a large library of algorithms, efficient data structures and a fast kernel.

General

These computer algebra systems are sometimes combined with "front end" programs that provide a better user interface, such as the general-purpose

GNU TeXmacs GNU TeXmacs is a scientific word processor and typesetting component of the GNU Project. It originated as GNU Emacs with TeX functionalities, though it shares no code with those programs, while using TeX fonts. It is written and maintained by Jori ...

Functionality

Below is a summary of significantly developed ''symbolic'' functionality in each of the systems.

via SymPy
via qepcad optional package

Those which do not "edit equations" may have a

GUI The GUI ( "UI" by itself is still usually pronounced . or ), graphical user interface, is a form of user interface that allows users to interact with electronic devices through graphical icons and audio indicator such as primary notation, inste ...

, plotting, ASCII graphic formulae and math font printing. The ability to generate plaintext files is also a sought-after feature because it allows a work to be understood by people who do not have a computer algebra system installed.

Operating system support

The software can run under their respective

operating system An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware, software resources, and provides common services for computer programs. Time-sharing operating systems schedule tasks for efficient use of the system and may also in ...

s natively without

emulation Emulation may refer to: *Emulation (computing), imitation of behavior of a computer or other electronic system with the help of another type of system :*Video game console emulator, software which emulates video game consoles *Gaussian process em ...

. Some systems must be compiled first using an appropriate compiler for the source language and target platform. For some platforms, only older releases of the software may be available.

Graphing calculators

Some

graphing calculator A graphing calculator (also graphics calculator or graphic display calculator) is a handheld computer that is capable of plotting graphs, solving simultaneous equations, and performing other tasks with variables. Most popular graphing calculat ...

s have CAS features.

References

External links