MathCAD Prime 1.0 is a step back

[WalterSchrabmai]

Hi friends,

well I just must realize, that Prime is a step backward. One the one hand important functions are missing and on the other hand all the experts out in the communities who has Mathcad 14/15 can not work with the MathCad Prime worksheets as it is not backward compatibility.

I think PTC must improve PRIME quite a lot, as now the userbility is other but not better. Where is the useful collabsable region feature in Prime?

comments are welcome.

Walter

[RichardJ]

Has that gone? OK

If you mean the "project management" stuff, then I do not know what you are referring to. I cannot recall any version of Mathcad that had anything that I would term "project management" stuff, and I have been using Mathcad since version 3. I can think of a few things that have come and gone over the years, but nothing that I would consider to have anything to do with project managment.

[MikeArmstrong]

It stopped advancing materially about version 7. From there on the process has been largely adding bloat.

That isn't true.

For instance; what about the compatibility with Excel? Is that bloat????

"project management" stuff is, as far as I am concerned, dead weight.

Care to elaborate?

Mike

[DonP]

Compatability with Excel has always been there in essence through CSV. To make it intrinsic by direct access to the spreadsheet data is a trivial step and should have been there long ago.

I'd be more impressed to see a set of proper communications commands that could take real time data off a serial port, USB, LAN, GPIB, sound card etc (and obviously write it back). At the moment I do that with a terminal emulator and copy and paste into a text document which I then read with Mathcad. The process feels decidedly archaic.

[MikeArmstrong]

Compatability with Excel has always been there in essence through CSV. To make it intrinsic by direct access to the spreadsheet data is a trivial step and should have been there long ago.

I believe the way M15 handles compatibility with Excel is much more advanced than Mathcad 7. It has been there for a couple of versions now and Prime has again improved the feature IMO.

I'd be more impressed to see a set of proper communications commands that could take real time data off a serial port, USB, LAN, GPIB, sound card etc (and obviously write it back). At the moment I do that with a terminal emulator and copy and paste into a text document which I then read with Mathcad. The process feels decidedly archaic.

The problem is, how many other people need the process you are describing above? I'm afraid PTC cannot cater for everyone and have to prioritize which features are implemented.

Mike

[ptc-4026208]

I'd be more impressed to see a set of proper communications commands that could take real time data off a serial port, USB, LAN, GPIB, sound card etc (and obviously write it back). At the moment I do that with a terminal emulator and copy and paste into a text document which I then read with Mathcad. The process feels decidedly archaic.

I believe you are looking for something like Matlab or LabView.

[MikeArmstrong]

Mark,

Maybe you are right but I'm sure there are other work around's using Mathcad.

Mike

[ptc-4026208]

Indeed, there may be workarounds for Mathcad. And, indeed, you can use a butter knife as a screwdriver.

I only mentioned these products because you were complaining that Mathcad didn't have "proper communications commands" and that the whole process seemed archaic. There's a reason for it. It's simply the wrong tool for the job.

Anyhow, good luck with your project!

[RichardJ]

It's simply the wrong tool for the job.

I absolutely agree. Mathcad is inrtinsically not well suited to such tasks.

[DonP]

While it is probably correct to say that Mathcad is intrinsically not well suited to such tasks, that is kind of begging the question. If there were a decent set of IO commands, it would be intrinsically extremely well suited to such tasks. Input variables being read and changed in real time could be processed with a finesse and thoroughness unavailable in applications like Excel. I understand that LabView could handle this, but it is another package that has its own, rather different, uses. Expensive too.

No, Mathcad could be made intrinsically very well suited to IO functionality. As I have said, at the moment it is just plain clunky.

[RichardJ]

It's not as simple as just adding some IO commands. To be well suited to IO the calculations need to be interrupt driven, but that's not how Mathcad works. Mathcad calculation is designed to behave like a whiteboard: start at top left, end at bottom right. It is not designed to watch, for example, an RS232 port, and then do something when the status of the port changes, and then go back to watching it again. If you want to use Mathcad to process IO data then the right way to do that is to use a tool designed for that purpose, such as LabView, to do the IO, and call Mathcad via the automation interface from that tool to do the calculations.

[MikeArmstrong]

I only mentioned these products because you were complaining that Mathcad didn't have "proper communications commands" and that the whole process seemed archaic.

I think your mistaken, I wasn't moaning, I was simple giving my two pence worth.

Mike

[DonP]

I use version 14, despite being a beta tester. I never received the download instructions for either 15 or Prime and my emails went unanswered, so you may well be right about the function packs (I use signal processing a lot).

[Fred_Kohlhepp]

Donald Pearce wrote:

I use version 14, despite being a beta tester. I never received the download instructions for either 15 or Prime and my emails went unanswered, so you may well be right about the function packs (I use signal processing a lot).

Testing of Prime 2.0 Alpha is nearly over; I've seen notice that prime 2.0 should be out shortly. This should come bundled with version 15 (required to translate older versions to Prime. If you don't see the link in the email I can help.

[DonP]

Fred,

I see no link - what were you referring to?

[Fred_Kohlhepp]

Go read your "private message" ("your stuff" tab!)

[MikeArmstrong]

Testing of Prime 2.0 Alpha is nearly over; I've seen notice that prime 2.0 should be out shortly. This should come bundled with version 15 (required to translate older versions to Prime.

Interesting Fred, it's such a shame they didn't keep upgrading M15 at the same time as developing Prime.

Mike

[MikeArmstrong]

Mathcad has been stepping backwards longer than this. The ability to open old worksheets has been, in my view, cavalierly neglected. It wouldn't take much doing and even if it is not going to happen as a patch, there should be at least a stand-alone translator that could be downloaded. I'm pretty sure that isn't beyond the wit of man.

I'm sorry but I can't see how Mathcad has been going backwards for a long time.

Mike

[ValeryOchkov]

Sorry!

But Mathcad Prime is Mathcad Prime and no more.

[ValeryOchkov]

There was an old soviet (Iron curtain) times joke.
A soviet car is very good car if... you have not seen a german (west) car, BMW for example

There is a new joke.
Mathcad Prime is very good program if... you have not worked with regular Mathcad, Mathcad 11-15 for example

[MikeArmstrong]

There was an old soviet (Iron curtain) times joke.
A soviet car is very good car if... you have not seen a german (west) car, BMW for example

There is a new joke.
Mathcad Prime is very good program if... you have not worked with regular Mathcad, Mathcad 11-15 for example

Now, now Valery.......

I do believe this was PTC's aim in the first place. To attract new users to the new software who have not used Mathcad before. Let's hope the experienced users continue to use it.

Mike

[ScottMilligan]

Hah, Hah...I hope for everyone living in Russia that times are better now?

In USA there is an old joke told when tired of waiting for something you have been promised, one exclaims at the sky; "what, am I Russian that I should wait so long to buy a nice car?"

Scott

[RichardJ]

I guess Prime is a new car that's been made to look nice by tying it up in a ribbon (unless you hate ribbons of course ), but it only has a 500cc engine. Version 15 is an old car that might look a little dated, but it's got a 5000cc engine. If you need to do a lot of serious driving, the old car is a better choice!

[ValeryOchkov]

Richard Jackson wrote:

I guess Prime is a new car that's been made to look nice by tying it up in a ribbon (unless you hate ribbons of course ), but it only has a 500cc engine. Version 15 is an old car that might look a little dated, but it's got a 5000cc engine. If you need to do a lot of serious driving, the old car is a better choice!

One question!

What is the price one car with 500cc engine?

What is the price one car with 5000cc engine?

Do you understand me

PS

About old car's prices

http://twt.mpei.ac.ru/ochkov/car/c_e.html

[DonP]

But what is the price of Mathcad Prime or Mathcad 15.

From my perspective, Mathcad Prime is a triumph of style over function.

d

[MikeArmstrong]

From my perspective, Mathcad Prime is a triumph of style over function.

d

Unfortunately true, but Prime will eventually get up in terms of function.

Mike

[ValeryOchkov]

Richard Jackson wrote:

I guess Prime is a new car that's been made to look nice by tying it up in a ribbon (unless you hate ribbons of course ), but it only has a 500cc engine. Version 15 is an old car that might look a little dated, but it's got a 5000cc engine. If you need to do a lot of serious driving, the old car is a better choice!

Mathcad 15

Mathcad Prime

What do you prefer?

For me both!

[Loris]

maybe

[ValeryOchkov]

And it is SMath (see www.smath.info)

The Bottom from the modern Western pickup, the top from the popular Soviet truck GAZ-51:

[ValeryOchkov]

loriano galeotti wrote:

maybe

I think the regular Mathcad is so (Ford F 1986):

[ValeryOchkov]

We have no more words to describe Mathcad Prime (19 pages on this forum!) - we have to use pictures (designed by Creo help?):

Mathcad Prime 1.0:

Mathcad Prime 2.0:

Mathcad Prime 5.0 (I hope and I I'm afraid😞

Message was edited by: Valery Ochkov