return to MathML version of Equation Summary

MathML Help

If equation 1 on the MathML Equation Summary page looks like this:

w = C 1 σ z 3 cos φ + C 2 σ 2 z 2 cos 2 φ + C 3 ------ (1)
or like this:
w = C 1 s z 3 cos f + C 2 s 2 z 2 cos 2 f + C 3 ------ (1)
your browser is not rendering MathML properly. (It may take a few moments for your browser to complete formatting of the MathML. While this is happening, the equation may appear as above. If it doesn't change, your browser isn't doing the MathML rendering.)

MathML is a markup language, similar to HTML, used for displaying mathematical expressions in web documents. Not all browser programs support MathML. Recent versions of Netscape, Mozilla, Mozilla Firefox, and Amaya do support MathML. In order for the Netscape, Mozilla and Mozilla Firefox browsers to properly display MathML, you may need to install special fonts. Microsoft Internet Explorer can display MathML with the help of the free plugin program MathPlayer.

I have found that, as of May 2004, very recently updated copies of Internet Explorer 6 working with MathPlayer 2a on Windows 98 and 2000 will properly render the mathml equation summary. MathPlayer 1 with IE6 running on Windows 2000 encounters an error and does not render the page at all.

The big advantage of MathML for this web site is that, unlike the equation images, transmitted as .gif files, MathML representations can be scaled by your browser. If the equation is a bit too small for you to read, use your browser's View Text Size feature to make it bigger. Since MathML is not supported by default in several popular browsers, I have not used it in the body of "The Yolo Reflector". There, the equations are presented as, unsizeable, .gif image files.

MathML comes in two "flavors", presentation and content. The Yolo Reflector web site uses only presentation MathML. You can test your browser for presentation MathML support by loading this web page.

Formulator is a freeware editor that can produce presentation MathML. It is by Hermitech, Laboratory of Mathematical and Modeling Software, Computer Software Department, Zhitomir State Technological University, Zhitomir, 10005, UKRAINE

A useful introduction to MathML syntax is at http://www.dessci.com/en/support/tutorials/mathml/default.htm

Comment:
I really like the Mozilla Firefox browser. It is fast, and, despite being in beta release stage, it seems more stable than Microsoft Internet Explorer or Netscape. I routinely get hangs and crashes with MSIE and Netscape under Windows 98 and 2000, but rarely with Firefox. Firefox also blocks popup windows quite effectively. Firefox has the security tools (https, ssl, etc.) needed for online financial transactions. Firefox does not support Activex, but this is not a great problem, except at certain Microsoft web sites, as almost no one but Microsoft uses Activex in web pages. Now I only use MSIE for downloading Windows or other Microsoft software updates.

Firefox does not include an email program or web page editor. This is in contrast to the Mozilla browser. For email I use Mozilla Thunderbird. Like Firefox, it is still in beta stage, but I find that it is also quite stable. It has some useful security features: Scripts are disabled by default. This shuts down one insidious route of virus infection. You can select to turn off image display in messages. This thwarts a scheme that spammers use to verify that your email address is "live".

Thunderbird also includes a newsgroup reader function.

Firefox and Thunderbird are available for Windows, Mac OS X, Linux and possibly other operating systems. I find that both run well under Windows 98 and 2000. My son is running them under Windows XP and seems to have little trouble.

return to MathML version of Equation Summary