Vector analysis and bode plots



Why would the vector packages need to "override" the product function? 
Would it be all that hard to write functions for the dot and cross
products?  Sorry if I am asking a lot of questions that may seem silly,
but I am curious.

-Ron

----- Original Message -----
From: Barton Willis 
Date: Wednesday, October 19, 2005 1:30 pm
Subject: Re: [Maxima] Vector analysis and bode plots
> maxima-admin@math.utexas.edu wrote on 10/19/2005 02:13:43 PM:
> 
> > Wouldn't it possibly be better if:
> > -The vector operations were automatically loaded?
> 
> No, loading vect.mac makes a mess of 'product':
> 
> (%i1) product(x+k,k,1,3);
> (%o1) (x+1)*(x+2)*(x+3)
> (%i2) load("vect");
> (%o2) c:/maxima/share/maxima/5.9.2/share/vector/vect.mac
> (%i3) product(x+k,k,1,3);
> Too many arguments supplied to product(uu,pv): 
> [x+k,k,1,3]
> 
> > -There was an option to specify the coordinate system?
> 
> This feature exists; it's incompletely documented in 
> share/vect/vector.usg:
> 
> (%i1) load("vect_transform");
> (%o1) c:/maxima/share/maxima/5.9.2/share/vector/vect_transform.mac
> (%i2) load("vect");
> (%o2) c:/maxima/share/maxima/5.9.2/share/vector/vect.mac
> (%i3) scalefactors(polar);
> (%o3) done
> (%i4) grad(r * cos(theta));
> (%o4) grad(r*cos(theta))
> (%i5) express(%);
> (%o5) ['diff((r*cos(theta)),r,1),'diff((r*cos(theta)),theta,1)/abs(r)]
> (%i6) %,diff;
> (%o6) [cos(theta),-(r*sin(theta))/abs(r)]
> 
> 
> Barton
>