--- Richard Fateman <fateman@cs.berkeley.edu> wrote:
> 1. Never use the maxima command ev.
> Let me add to it:
> 2. Never use the maxima command expand except for
> little demonstration programs which don't do anything
> serious.
Sigh. OK, if this is the best policy, we need to rewrite the manual to
support it. I appeal, however, to those who know best about these
things - PLEASE review what is currently there and see if I am making
any other major poor assumptions. To remove ev from all the examples
and discussion will be a major effort, and for the sake of continued
progress I'd like to make sure that such efforts are needed as little
as possible. Please note I'm not saying we shouldn't fix things like
this - the whole point of this exercise is to do it right, and I thank
Richard for pointing this out. But it does require some careful
thought.
I knew from the beginning this might happen, since I am not a skilled
Maxima user, but this particular problem contradicts the way Bill's old
reference manual discussed ev (that's what I was working off of when I
wrote most of the basics chapter) which makes me wonder what other
surprises are waiting in the wings. So I have a general proposal for
everyone who really knows how to use maxima, or specific packages
within it:
Please think about the types of tasks we have been attempting to
document and demonstrate in the manual, and how best to do them in the
Maxima environment. Consider what the best practices and habits would
be for Maxima users to adopt early on, and post those thoughts to the
list for discussion. Try to anticipate issues such as this one, and
let's hash them out before we undertake new sections. For a starter
look over the current manual and see if anyone can turn up any more
weak spots, conceptual flaws, etc. There should be enough of a draft
in the most current pdf to offer a basis for some of this type of
discussion, and when that isn't sufficient we can work with the old
reference manual.
CY
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