WeBWorK Problems

phase plotter

phase plotter

by Darwyn Cook -
Number of replies: 8
Is there a way to install the phase plotter referenced in some of the systems of differential equations problems, as in problem Library/272/systems/prob83.pg? The reference points to an html link:

\{htmlLink("http://webwork.math.rochester.edu/webwork2_course_files/fall04_mth163/phaseplaneplotters/launchXfunctions.html", q! phase plotter!)\}
In reply to Darwyn Cook

Re: phase plotter

by Michael Gage -
This course was archived when the U of R upgraded its server. I'm using a similar link to xFunctions in my ODE/Linear Algebra course which I have posted as an applet at

https://webwork.rochester.edu/webwork2/spring10mth165/

here is the embedding code:

<applet
codebase="http://hosted2.webwork.rochester.edu/webwork2_files/applets/xFunctions/"
archive="xFunctions.zip"
code="xFunctionsLauncher.class"
width=200 height=30
>
<param> name="file" value="example_file.txt" </applet>

You can also grab the source code for xFunctions from David Eck at Hobart and Williams Smith college.

xFunctions does many things besides plotting solution curves to ODE's -- if you want a specialized ODE solution curve plotter
consider linking to Polking's java apps at

http://math.rice.edu/~dfield/dfpp.html
In reply to Michael Gage

Re: phase plotter

by Murray Eisenberg -
First: I pointed my browser to the https://webwork.rochester.edu... link. Up popped an "Untrusted Connection" warning saying, among other things, that this had an invalid security certificate -- that the certificate is untrusted because the issuer certificate is unknown.

Second: Another possibility for ODE plotting is JODE, for which you will find at least two different source URLs around. One advantage of JODE -- is this the case of the others cited? -- is that one can download the applet and use it locally (provided you have Java runtime installed, of course), and this can speed up response while avoiding an entire new browser window. And with some browsers today, lots of screen real estate is occupied by toolbars, menu bars, status bars, bookmark bars, etc., so that the space savings can be welcome.

JODE has an additional feature that, so far as I can tell -- please correct me if I'm wrong -- dfield does not: it can create a table of values for the user-selected numerical method.
In reply to Murray Eisenberg

Re: phase plotter

by Michael Gage -
We use https at the U. of Rochester, but are still using a local certificate to authenticate the connection -- hence the "untrusted connection" message. We have shelled out to have an "official" certificate for our new server but it hasn't been installed yet.

Thanks much for the JODE reference

http://www.math.rutgers.edu/~sontag/JODE/

I'll add that to the references I make available for my ODE/linear algebra students.

-- Mike
In reply to Michael Gage

Re: phase plotter and java applets in general

by Michael Gage -
We are starting to use applets (java, flash and geogebra) more frequently in WeBWorK questions. What are people's thoughts on local hosting of the applets vs. having applets hosted in a central location -- say along side the NationalProblemLibrary
In reply to Michael Gage

Re: phase plotter and java applets in general

by Dana Ernst -
This may be a silly question, but I'm new and I'll ask anyway. Is there a way to search for problems that use applets and/or Geogebra?

Dana Ernst
In reply to Michael Gage

Re: phase plotter and java applets in general

by Darwyn Cook -
Servers have the bad habit of moving, as do web addresses, so I vote local.