I'm starting a book project (Structures for Architects) and I would like to do my examples in SMath for a long list of reasons. Primarily the accuracy and updateability, but also for the graphical, visual nature and ability to insert images.

I would like to be able to show an equation in letter form, then populate the letters with the actual numbers, then get the result.

I can't seem to figure out how to get this intermediate step, where SMath shows the numbers used in the calculation. I understand I define these before the equation, or before I ask for the result. However, I would really like to see the actual numbers in equation form.

Like this:
D=50 psf
L=80 psf
w=1.2D+1.6L
w=1.2(50)+1.6(80)>>>>>>> I like the students to be able to see exactly where the numbers go.
w=188

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Also, if anyone has developed examples for structural engineering problems, I would love to see how you set things up.

Regards-
Paul

Not exactly, what you requested (you need to place parens in the symbolic formula if you want to have them in the numeric one). but perhaps fairly close.

However, if I see students blowing up reports by such numeric formulae, they score no point by that. For me, it is sufficient to see that the formula is correct and the correct data is used (just documented by correct assignments of values to symbols). In a system like SMath Studio I would expect the result to be correct under these conditions. That makes the review much easier, because normally, it is much easier to judge if the input and the formulae are correct, than to verify the numeric calculation.

But this is a matter of taste and SMath is able to serve more than one of them.

It's not exactly what you are looking for, but maybe helps. I have the purpose to upload in the future more examples with Smath in an educational way.

http://ingenieria-estructuras.blogspot.com.es

The cm unit seems to be placed as separate region (text or math) right to the result. In order to get this right, you might place another region showing 4 to fake the exponent. Or just use a math region.

I would not vote in favour of writing the same input twice. If you want to change an input value, you would need to scan the complete worksheet for occurences of the values. What if a stupid user assumes that he is done with assigning the values to the corresponding variables? That sounds dangerous to me.

In the given example, the parens around the values help a lot with readibility. Thus, perhaps it would be a good idea to generally put non-optimized substitutions within added parentheses as default SMath behaviour. Then the spurious parens could be removed.

I appreciate the responses!

Martin- Turning off Optimization gets me closer. For some reason SMath is displaying with fractions, not decimals. It gets a little odd looking.

b=(('m/500)^2+12*({381*'m}/5000)^2)^{1/2}

w={2*(3*50+4*80)}/5

How do I turn off the fraction thing?

Also, is there a way to change the default unit set. The primary units for the book will be English. I can do a 'unit command at the end of each expression, but would prefer not to.

Experimentator-
Thanks for the examples. These will be enlightening.

Terrific! That gives me exactly what I was hoping for.

Thanks!