Equations 1.0
Introduction
Equations is an advanced equations editor which combines a range of features with an intuitive user interface. Supporting over 700 unique symbols with more than a thousand possible combinations, a vast equation library, real time Latex editing, and using its own scientific fonts, Equations is the ultimate equation editor designed by scientists.
Equations supports 692 Latex tags, producing over 700 unique symbols, with new symbols being added regularly. This makes Equations possibly the most complete equation editor currently available.
Latex has been for almost 30 years the preferred way for scientists to create their documents. Simple and powerful, allowing people to create beautiful scientific documents, it is not difficult to understand why Latex has endured for so long. Its only drawback is that users need to virtually remember hundreds of tags to write their equations, and no software allows them to view in real time what they write. Until now… Equations has full latex syntax support, with 692 (and growing) tags allowed. Latex is processed in real time, which means whatever you write in latex can automatically be seen in visual editing area. And the opposite is also true: if you edit your equation visually you will see your Latex code be automatically updated. In Equations Latex and visual editing are closely interlinked and by combining both users have an unprecedented power and ease in writing scientific equations. No longer Latex users have to remember hundreds of tags as they can easily access them from the combo boxes. At the same time the visual editor users can quickly change their equations using the simplicity and speed of Latex without needing to know any Latex at all.
See documents created with Equations anywhere
Equations uses OLE technology to work with programs like MS Word, PowerPoint, Open Office. This means that unlike some products you do not need to have Equations installed in your computer in order to see any documents created with it. You can send documents created with Equations to your friends and colleagues, you can take them to meetings, without worrying about if you will be able to see them or not.
Library
In Equations users can save their most common used expressions in the Library for later reuse. The Equation library comes with two formularies, one for Physics and another for Mathematics, with hundreds of equations available that can be consulted and used in documents. The Library contents format is simple XML which means that users can easily change, expand, or even create whole new libraries. They can also publish contents or exchange them online with other users.
Fonts Quality and fonts program
One of the biggest problems nowadays of writing equations in electronic documents is that no font currently available supports the whole range of scientific symbols. This means that users are often forced to use 2, 3 or even more fonts with different styles and scales in their documents. We tried to address this problem in Equations by developing our own fonts assuring this way the uniformity of all symbols. It is worth of notice that our fonts are free for non commercial use.
Colour
In Equations expressions can be of any color the users like. While standard Latex does not support color, through the use of the DVIPs package users can write equation elements with any color of their choice.
Simplicity and Personalisation
A great deal of work and thought was put in by the IO Software development team in order to ensure the Equations interface was simple, practical, and intuitive. It is our philosophy that our products while powerful and innovative must remain simple, intuitive, and beautiful. Usability is as much a concern for us as it is innovation. This way we created combo boxes with both graphic representation of symbols and their latex code to faster and better identification. We created also a Speed Bar to quickly access the most commonly used symbols and put all features in plain sight, well organised, so that no confusion can be made. And in case all this is not enough we also give users the choice of changing the symbols organisation and labeling both in combos and speed bar to better suit their needs.