Convert from "Math Style" to "Spreadsheet Style" equation? 1

[tsgrue]

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Does anyone know of a software package that will convert big, long, ugly equations entered 'math style' into 'spreadsheet style'? My hp48 can do this using the equation editor and then placing the equation on the stack, but it is a cumbersome process. Does this make sense? Any help is appreciated!

Thanks!

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tsgrue: site engineering, stormwater
management, landscape design, ecosystem
rehabilitation, mathematical simulation

http://hhwq.blogspot.com

 

[IDS]

Could you post an example of what you want?

Doug Jenkins
Interactive Design Services

http://newtonexcelbach.wordpress.com/

 

[MortenA]

I dont know if matchcad has this feature - but its a tool meant for wrting beautiful equations using computers.

Best regards

Morten

 

[IRstuff]

Unless you have to do the calculations in Excel, or the math is too complex, an inexpensive solution would be to get a copy of Studyworks, which is a stripped down version of Mathcad, for a mere pittance:

http://cgi.ebay.com/StudyWorks-Math...emQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item3efd66da83

As an added benefit, Studyworks and Mathcad come with built-in, live, unit conversions.

An alternative, which goes from Excel to symbolic, is Mathlook, from the makers ot TkSolver, but I don't think it goes the other way:

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

TTFN

FAQ731-376

 

[cowski]

Are you looking to enter this equation into Excel? If so, you can enter it as is and use named ranges for your inputs.

For example, if your formula is (base * height)/2, you can enter "=(base * height)/2" into cell A1, rename cell B1 to 'base' and rename cell C1 to 'height' and the formula will work (when you enter values).

 

[electricpete]

I'm with Doug - it's not clear what you want. Give us an example or description of the format of your input math equation (what program is it coming from?)

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[tsgrue]

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Sorry for the poor explanation. I would like to find a software application that would allow me to enter equations 'math style' (see Format 1 on uploaded file) - as can be done with Mathcad - and have the software application convert the equation to 'inline' (see Format 2 on uploaded file).

http://files.engineering.com/getfile.aspx?folder=3e22c82b-9494-463d-929f-dd

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Thanks!



tsgrue: site engineering, stormwater
management, landscape design, ecosystem
rehabilitation, mathematical simulation

http://hhwq.blogspot.com

 

[IRstuff]

But where or how are you creating the symbolic equations?

TTFN

FAQ731-376

 

[MortenA]

Checked with a friend - matchcad cant do it - it would only be a very limited number of formula where it would work.

Best regards

Morten

 

[MikeHalloran]

It's disappointing that anyone would _need_ to get equations into 'spreadsheet style', i.e. the ASCII character set, given that spreadsheets themselves have been 'graphical' for, what, 20 years?

Yeah, you can make artwork that looks like an equation in Excel, but you have to stand on your head and spit nickels to do it, and Excel can't make sense of it anyway.

Or you can use MathCad, which I have tried on several occasions, and gave up on, because:
- a la carte 'solution paks' were/are expensive, and I'd had to kiss some ugly anatomy just to get the vanilla Mcad.
- it crashed, hard, on some hardware, notably non-Intel math chips, which was all I could find on a weekend.
- it ran out of steam very rapidly as problems got larger.
- I could never remember how to run it if I didn't use it every day.
- Jack Crenshaw didn't like it. Then he did. Then he didn't. I lost track.



Mike Halloran
Pembroke Pines, FL, USA

 

[zelgar]

One option you might want to check. Do an online search to see if there's a PC emulator of your calculator.

 

[cowski]

There are several emulators; I recommend Emu48, it is quite good.

http://hp.giesselink.com/emu48.htm

I tend to use it as a replacement for windows calculator or when I need a small calculation program for which Excel VBA would be overkill.

I don't know that it would be any less tedious than using your actual calculator, but it should run faster and it has a copy and paste functionality (of sorts) to other programs.

 

[tsgrue]

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I have EMU48 and some of the ROMs may work, but there is at least one bug with parentheses in the EMU48 ROM I employed, pretty much preventing its usefulness. I was hoping someone knew of an easily available solution. I've used Mathcad since version 6 and regularly use several various other mathematics software applications. None I've found has this capability. The closest I've found (outside hp calcluators/emulators) are the 'equation writers' in various word processors, but these are less efficient than the hp calc route...

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tsgrue: site engineering, stormwater
management, landscape design, ecosystem
rehabilitation, mathematical simulation

http://hhwq.blogspot.com

 

[IDS]

I still don't understand what the aim of the exercise is.

I thought it was to take an equation in "math style" (presumably from some equation editor) and convert it into a string that could be pasted directly into a spreadsheet.

But if that is the case I don't understand how the calculator emulators (or actual calculators) help.

If it is the translation of the equation that is what is wanted, I can't help, but if evaluation of the equation once entered in "spreadsheet style" is what is wanted, the link below should help:

http://newtonexcelbach.wordpress.com/2008/07/05/evaluate-function-update/

Doug Jenkins
Interactive Design Services

http://newtonexcelbach.wordpress.com/

 

[tsgrue]

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IDS - You are correct. The aim of the 'excercise' is "...to take an equation in "math style" (presumably from some equation editor) and convert it into a string that could be pasted directly into a spreadsheet."

hp48 calculators (the best calculators ever made, especially the 's' series!) allow you to do this. An equation editor is built in and is automatically translated to 'inline format' (spreadsheet style) once dumped to the stack. I can save the inline equation as a variable and transfer it from the calculator to my computer as a text file using Kermit or (I think) Xmodem protocol. That is, however, a somewhat lengthy and cumbersome process and I was hoping to find a software application that would do this easily and directly.

.



tsgrue: site engineering, stormwater
management, landscape design, ecosystem
rehabilitation, mathematical simulation

http://hhwq.blogspot.com

 

[electricpete]

Maple produces results which when copied / paste-special into word produce a result suitable for excel.

For example if I enter solve(a3*x^3+a2*x^2+a1*x+a4=0,x) into Maple, then it returns three solutions in pretty eye-readable math form. If I select Maple's first solution and and paste/special/UnformattedText into Word, then I get:

1/6*1/a3*(36*a1*a2*a3-108*a4*a3^2-8*a2^3+12*3^(1/2)*(4*a1^3*a3-a1^2*a2^2-18*a1*a2*a3*a4+27*a4^2*a3^2+4*a4*a2^3)^(1/2)*a3)^(1/3)-2/3*(3*a1*a3-a2^2)/a3/(36*a1*a2*a3-108*a4*a3^2-8*a2^3+12*3^(1/2)*(4*a1^3*a3-a1^2*a2^2-18*a1*a2*a3*a4+27*a4^2*a3^2+4*a4*a2^3)^(1/2)*a3)^(1/3)

I can use it in excel three ways:
1 - Put the inputs in cells A1, A2, A3, A4 and paste the equation into another cell with an equals sign in front of it.
2 - In case my variable names don't correspond to cell addresses, then I can use word to replace variables with cell adddresses and then proceed as in 1.
3 - Create a vba module and feed the equation the variables with the names it wants.

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[IDS]

I think what I'm not understanding is how it is easier to enter the equation in "maths style" and translate it, rather than just enter it in "spreadsheet style" straight away.

Doug Jenkins
Interactive Design Services

http://newtonexcelbach.wordpress.com/

 

[GregLocock]

Typically I'll derive long equations in Mathcad and then want to use them in Excel. I more or less do as ElectricPete proposes.

Cheers

Greg Locock


New here? Try reading these, they might help FAQ731-376

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[cowski]

I can use it in excel three ways:

I'd like to propose a 4th way (see my post on March 5th). If you did not use variables such as A1, A2, A3, etc you can use named ranges to get it to work. For example, if you use 'alpha' and 'beta' in your equation and want cell A1 to be 'alpha' and B1 to be 'beta', you can rename cell A1 to 'alpha' and B1 to 'beta' and your formula will work with no modifications (no need to search and replace variable names to cell names).

 

[IRstuff]

tsgrue,

You still haven't said how you are creating the original equations in the first place. Is it in a program that actually does something with the equations, or are you simply looking for something that will have both Excel formulas and prettified equations?

Please clarify what you are doing with these equations.

TTFN

FAQ731-376