On Mon, 8 Nov 2010, azzxxx at gmail.com wrote:
> I need to learn a computer algebra system. I have come to a choice
> between Reduce and Maxima, but their capabilities look quite similar
> to me.
> So, can anyone provide a comparison of these systems and tell what are
> significant differences between them and which tasks are they best
> suited for?
They are rather similar. Both are free software, both are lisp-based, and
their designs influenced each other a lot.
I use REDUCE for more than 30 years, and find it quite convenient. Its
pattern-matching and substitutions are easier to use, the syntax is more
intuitive:
for all x,y such that y>0 let f(x,y)=x*log(y);
Several years ago, R.Fateman made an extensive comparison of efficiency of
polynomial arithmetics in different CASs (namely, multiplication of sparse
multivariate polynomials). REDUCE was the fastest among general-purpose
systems (outperformed by one special-purpose polynomials-only system),
closely followed by maxima on a fast lisp (cmucl). Again, they are quite
similar. Syntax of REDUCE is very Pascal-like and seems easier to me.
So, I think, whichever you choose, you will find approximately the same
features and similar efficiency. Both are free software, so, you can try
both without spending money.
Andrey