How to Use Maple Worksheets
How to get the worksheets using the Netscape browser.
To access the worksheets, go to the
Math 126 web page
for your section and click on
Maple
then on the appropriate worksheet.
The Math 126 web page address is ???
Netscape caches recently accessed data. If you have used a web page,
hold down shift-key
while clicking on the Reload button to be sure you are getting
the latest version. (This will usually but not always get the most
up to date document.)
Click on the worksheet you wish to download.
A dialog box will appear which will allow you to save the file.
Place it in an appropriate directory or folder, or if that proves difficult, save
it to your home directory
or the desktop and move it afterwards. Make sure however that you
organize your computer in appropriate directories or
folders for different purposes
so you can find important files like your Maple worksheets.
The worksheet file will have some abbreviated name
indicating its purpose, and it will have an extension of the form
`.mws'. ??? (Some systems may suppress the extension.)
To start a Maple worksheet.
First start the Maple program. How you do this will depend
on your system. For example, on a Sparc Station, give the command xmaple.
On a Mac or PC, Maple may be in
a folder which you will first have to open.
Maple will start with a blank worksheet which you should close (unless
you wish to write your own worksheet). Normally, you will be loading
existing worksheets. You may also want to adjust the size of the window
so that it fills the screen. Open the desired worksheet by choosing the
File menu option `Open'. A dialog box will appear allowing you to find
the worksheet and load it.
To run a Maple worksheet.
You are not expected to become a proficient Maple programmer.
You will find four types of worksheets. One type will be the
Maple assignment worksheets. These will contain the problems
you are expected to do with Maple and space for your
solutions. The second type will be general Maple help worksheets.
The third type will be worksheets which will
help you with assignments. There will usually be one for each
assignment, which will contain the necessary Maple commands (or direct
you to the appropriate general Maple help worksheet),
some Maple tips, and some examples similar to some of the homework
problems. The fourth type will be the ones
used in classroom demonstrations. These will be available no later
than the day after the class. You might find it useful to refer to
some of these. Because these will be available, you don't need
to sit in class frantically attempting to take notes on a computer
demonstration. To use the second and third types of worksheets,
read the text and execute each Maple input statement by pressing
the enter or return key. An input statement will usually be colored
red and preceded by an input prompt '>'. Note that the cursor must be
somewhere in the line containing the statement (or for a group of related
statements with a single prompt, anywhere in the group). Maple will produce
output, and move the cursor to the next input statement.
In some cases, however,
you may have placed the cursor elsewhere (to activate a graphics
window, for example), and in those cases you will have to go to the
desired Maple input statement and click to place the cursor there.
Maple keeps a record of the order in which the statements are
executed , so make sure you don't skip statements. For example,
in the sequence
> with(plots):
> polarplot(2*sin(theta),theta=0..2*Pi);
if you execute the second statement without having executed the first,
Maple will just print the statement again. The first statement
loads the plots package which contains the operation `polarplot'.
Without that operation loaded, Maple doesn't know what to do when
you invoke it, so it just repeats it to you.
Since output and text can overflow the screen, you may have to use
the scroll bar to move back in the worksheet to see relevant output.
Many Maple statements will be self explanatory,
but don't worry about the meaning of obscure syntax in commands.
The text in the demonstration and help worksheets will explain
what is being done. Your main task on Maple assignments
is to observe the output and think
about what it means, not to become an expert Maple programmer.
Saving and restarting Maple Worksheets.
You should save your Maple worksheet under a new name to distinguish
it from the original. That way you can always start fresh if
things get confusing. You can save the file by using the File
Menu and choosing `Save as'. Subsequently,
you should periodically save your progress by using the `Save' option.
An important warning.
Maple and similar programs have one confusing aspect.
If you save a partially completed worksheet and later reopen it, your
previous output will appear on the screen, but the statements
won't have been executed. So you should start again at the
beginning of the worksheet and re-execute all the statements.
This just amounts to pressing enter or return until you get to the point
you left off. You need not read all the text and output again unless you
want to review it. (In a subsequent release, Maple promises that
it will provide a way to avoid this annoyance.) Similarly,
as mentioned previously, Maple
remembers the order in which statements have been executed
rather than their order on the screen. If you move around in
the worksheet and execute statements, you may produce some
unexpected results.
Homework
The primary purpose of the Maple homework is
to increase your understanding of calculus.
This requires you to
show that you have thought about what you have observed rather than
just copying and editing statements from another worksheet,
pressing return several times and printing the result. Since
you will have access to Maple worksheets designed to help you
with the assignments, figuring out the syntax of the
Maple commands should not be specially taxing.
You may be asked to describe the Maple output or
explain it. You can either type this in as text in the appropriate
place on the worksheet or leave enough space to write the
explanation
by hand.
Often, if you need to wish to modify a statement in place, you can do
this
by placing the cursor there and editing. Or, if you want a neat record
of your work, you may use the Edit menu `Copy' and `Paste' commands
to copy the statement to the end of the worksheet, and then make your
changes there. You can experiment with the functions in the Menu bar
to see how to add a prompt when you need one.
When done, you should print the worksheet by selecting the `Print'
option from the File menu. If you have trouble printing,
consultants in the labs should be able to
help
you with printing, but they probably
won't know be able to help you with the substance in the worksheets.
Maple is available in all the labs on campus.
Getting Help.
If you don't understand
the mathematics involved in a worksheet, you should consult your
teaching
assistant or instructor.
It is important to understand that Maple is just one tool to help you
understand mathematics, and it is not the major part of your course.
Your instructor and teaching assistant
will rightfully be concentrating on how to help you
understand the mathematics and may not be particularly interested in
the intricacies of Maple programming, which requires specialized
knowledge. If you have a question about Maple which they cannot
answer, they will direct you to someone who can.
Using Maple to help you do your homework.
You should study the Maple worksheets that are returned to you
and identify any errors you have made. You will quickly
build up a small repertoire of Maple statements that you
will find helpful. For example, you ought to know that
> int(f(x), x=a..b);
may calculate the integral of an expression in x, here denoted
f(x) between the limits a and b. f(x)
could be an explicit
expression such as 2*x + x^2, or it could be a function value
for a function defined previously by a statement of the form
> f := x -> some expression in x;
Similarly,
> plot3d(f(x,y),x=a..b,y=c..d);
will allow you make a three dimensional plot of an expression.
Thus, you might find it helpful to use Maple in routine homework assignments
as you learn more Maple statements. Don't rely too strongly on this, however,
since, at least at present, you will have to do your tests the old
fashioned way, by hand. You may be tested on material which appears in
Maple worksheets, but such questions
will relate to mathematical substance and not
require you to use Maple commands.
Updates
It would be wise to check the Maple Worksheets web page for updates
to this document or additional advice. Remember `shift Reload'
to update your cache, and check the date of the document.
Learning More About Maple.
If you want to learn more about Maple, here are two methods.
You can go to
OIT's unix documents web page
(http://www.nd.edu/~doc/UNIX/)
then click on "U4800 Introduction to Maple V Release 3." This is a
fairly good introduction to Maple, although it is several years
old and some of the commands may have changed and Maple has added many
features in subsequent releases.
Or
you can click on Maple's Help
button,
then on New User's Tour. Follow the instructions given there.
Prepared by Nancy K. Stanton
Department of Mathematics
631-7436
7/27/99
Nancy.K.Stanton.1@nd.edu
based on material prepared by Leonard Evens at Northwestern University.