Skip to main content
J
jiCavers1-Visitor
1-Visitor
July 23, 2013
Question

Is this the end of the line for Mathcad?

  • July 23, 2013
  • 6 replies
  • 24837 views

There seems to be a big problem for Mathcad users, now that Windows XP is disappearing into the past. Most of us have years of valuable Mathcad programs, and the only way to convert them to Prime is through a conversion utility in Mathcad 15 (instead of in Prime). But Mathcad 15 won't install easily on Windows 7 or 8 - from discussion on this site, it involves a lot of complicated and time-consuming work, with no guarantee of success.
* Inference 1: Do all your conversions now, while you still have a working version 15 on Windows XP or another older OS.

Unfortunately, I read that Prime 2.0 still lacks a large number of the features that made Mathcad 15 valuable, so your converted programs might not work in Prime.
* Inference 2: Your prior work will be useable only as long as you keep a working computer running older Windows. Clearly, that approach has a limited life.
* Inference 3: Even new work using Prime will be stunted, because it's not yet a platform for serious work.

Have I got this wrong? Is there a credible way forward, after all? Because an uncomfortable fourth inference might be that this is the end of the line for Mathcad.

    6 replies

    A
    AndyWesterman12-Amethyst
    12-Amethyst
    July 23, 2013

    So far our experience has been that Mathcad 15 runs happily on windows 7 - there are a few features that cause minor issues (notably the 3D plot needs a change to the screen colour depth), but nothing that has stopped me or my colleagues from using it for the past 2-ish years.

    Regards

    Andy

    J
    jiCavers1-VisitorAuthor
    1-Visitor
    July 23, 2013

    Thanks for that, Andy. Perhaps my impression has been colored by the fact that this forum is a place where only problems and issues are discussed.

    Could you tell me what type of computer you are using?

    Regards,

    Jim

    H
    HarveyHensley12-Amethyst
    12-Amethyst
    July 24, 2013

    Jim,

    I have MC 15 and Prime 1 running with Windows 7 on a Lenovo X201. I don't recall any installation problems. I haven't started converting my programs yet. I'm going to wait for Prime 3 to see how it compares with MC 15. The 3D plot problem was fixed by changing my desktop theme to an older version. Currently I'm using Windows Classic theme.

    J
    jkucan5-Regular Member
    5-Regular Member
    July 23, 2013

    PTC Mathcad 15.0 is fully supported on Windows 7. We will continue to support PTC Mathcad 15.0 for at least until PTC Mathcad Prime 4.0 ships (likely longer).

    As for PTC Mathcad Prime 2.0 and conversion of worksheets. It is true, that for some users, it lacks some critical features -- this is why PTC Mathcad 15.0 is a fully supported product.

    On the other hand, PTC Mathcad Prime 2.0 brings a number of improvements some users find desirable. Significant improvements to the calculation capability (64bit support, new solvers, improved performance of many functions, better unit checking, etc.), better documenting features (page view, WYSIWYG header/footer editing), improved usability (equation editing, matrix editing, etc.).

    I recommend you try Prime 2.0 for yourself and evaluate on your worksheets.

    Having said that, Prime 3.0 is just around the coroner and will significantly improve conversion fidelity.

    1) You don't have to do all your conversions right now, but you should start soon...

    2) Your work will be usable down the road, as we will support conversion to new format beyond the support for PTC Mathcad 15.0.

    3) PTC Mathcad Prime 2.0 is a platform for serious work and we continue to improve it.

    --Jakov

      J
      jiCavers1-VisitorAuthor
      1-Visitor
      July 23, 2013

      Thank you, Jakov. That is reassuring.

      I will try to migrate Mathcad 15 to Windows 7 in the next couple of weeks and hope that it goes smoothly.

      Regards,

      Jim Cavers

        J
        jiCavers1-VisitorAuthor
        1-Visitor
        July 25, 2013

        Thank you all for the reassurance on migration of Mathcad 15 to Windows 7. Since I am just about to take that step, I checked this forum to see if there were any pitfalls. Unfortunately, I misinterpreted the problems experienced by some (and solved here) as representative. Rather than the apocalyptic heading about "end of the line," I really should have asked contributors whether installation on W7 generally goes smoothly. Apparently it does.

        For 25 years, Mathcad has been my primary computational tool. I feared that my hundreds (thousands?)of research calculations, tech reports and a book, all written in Mathcad, were headed for the dust heap. Well, ultimately, I suppose they will be, but not just yet it seems.

        Thanks again.

          P
          ptc-22836411-Visitor
          1-Visitor
          January 24, 2014

          End of the line for Mathcad!!!!!!!

          My Acer Aspire One model ZG8 with Win 7 ran Mathcad 14 fine. Now that it has been stolen, I find myself seeking a replacement to run on a Dell Inspiron 11 3000 Series netbook with Win 8.0; 1.7 GHz & 4 Gb RAM.

          Since people are having trouble installing and running Mathcad on Win 7/8 systems, do I chance purchasing future versions of Mathcad? Mathcad writes likes arithmetic equations. Matlab is strange, but workable. So, please fix the customer concerns. Make sure it can run on Win 8.0/8.1 platforms.

          What is the significance of Prime 1-4? Are they enhancements to Mathcad 15? Then why not label them 15.1 thru 15.4?

          I'm also still waiting on a salesman to contact me about purchasing Mathcad.

          W
          Werner_E25-Diamond I
          25-Diamond I
          January 24, 2014

          Make sure it can run on Win 8.0/8.1 platforms.

          Most people have success running the current Mathcad 15 M030 on current Win version, but MC15 is not "certified" for Win8 by PTC.

          What is the significance of Prime 1-4?

          Good question.

          Prime 1-4? Are they enhancements to Mathcad 15?

          Sure not. They lack a lot of features compared to Mathcad and performance and usability are inferiour. I don't expect much change with Prime4.

          Then why not label them 15.1 thru 15.4?

          Please no! Prime is ahuge step backward and still under construction (nevertheless its sold). So I'd rather label them Prime 0.1 to Prime 0.3.

          At the time being the best thing about Prime is that you get a copy of Mathcad 15 for free.

          I think it was Fred who worded "Buy the tail and get the dog for free".

            P
            ptc-22836411-Visitor
            1-Visitor
            January 24, 2014

            If MC means Mathcad, and MC15 means Mathcad version 15. What does M030 mean?

            Are Prime 1-4 backward versions of Mathcad 15 with reduced capabilities?

            When will PTC know that Mathcad 15 and its Primes are "certified" to run on Win 8.0/8.1 systems?

            V
            24-Ruby IV
            ValeryOchkov24-Ruby IV
            24-Ruby IV
            April 4, 2014

            May be this is the end of the line for Mathcad and start of the line for SMath?

            Elsevier/Knovel don't want to work with Prime - see

            http://communities.ptc.com/message/238467#238467

            and

            http://communities.ptc.com/polls/1472

            V
            24-Ruby IV
            ValeryOchkov24-Ruby IV
            24-Ruby IV
            April 14, 2014

            I like Prime, but I do not like this:

            Prime12345.png

              M
              MichaelH1-Visitor
              1-Visitor
              April 15, 2014

              Isn't there a current thread asking whether or not an infinite series converges?? It's like that.

              Terms & ConditionsAccessibility statement