Mathematics tools FAQ

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Does Moodle have any Math tools in it as native?

It certainly does, and if you look at the Using TeX Notation pages, they will give you a good start on how you can, quickly and fairly easily, build a small body of knowledge that will allow you to move on to bigger and better things.

What kind of Maths tools can Moodle use or adapt?

Essentially Moodle can use or adapt many of the TeX tools to suit the Moodle environment. There are many plugins or external programs that can be used to generate content that is easily imported to Moodle. Some programs, like Microsoft Word's Equation Editor do not, as of writing, import successfully.

Will these tools be accessible in Moodle 2.0?

Yes, there has already been a number of successful tests using DragMath, MathJax and Geogebra tools in Moodle 2.0. As well, the TeX Notation filter works the same in v1.9.x and v2.0. It appears that anything written in Moodle v1.9.x will adapt easily for Moodle 2.0.

Does Moodle have an interactive whiteboard feature?

Not as such, but it seems both the interactive and content is controlled by the whiteboard. You can use an interactive whiteboard to display Moodle, but unless you incorporate screen grabs from the Moodle into the whiteboard software, Moodle probably will not work as a genuine PHP App. Having said that, it is possible that at some stage in the future, a plugin for either, or even both, may be developed.

I am using Windows Server 2003 and am trying to get the TeX filter to work.

There are often three issues here, the first is the way in which Windows assigns permissions. You need to give write permissions to I_USER (or IIS_USER - all those people who use moodledata through internet) on moodledata folders and subfolders like D:\moodledata/filter/tex/ - and executable files need executable permissions.

It is also possible that what ever permissions you give to your files, Windows may permit running executable files on folders that are placed to system folders like c:\program files - I have seen this happen in Windows Vista and Windows 7 so it's probably true also in Windows Server 2003. If you install MikTex or TexLive for example to C:\Miktex (Texlive) or D:\Miktex (Texlive) and GhostScript and Imagemagick the same drive, such problems should not exist.

Sometimes you may need to delete old (Miktex) install folders from system (environment) variable PATH or add the correct folder to PATH if the install script has not done it automatically. Windows will not find the right files from the correct folder without the PATH being correct. (The TexLive installer scripts usually makes this automatic, but MikTeX needs be done manually.)

Finally, PHP settings may also prevent running of executable files - in the php.ini file look for the field "disable_functions", it should be empty and check the other programs security measures (in programs and scripts themselves) they should control running "non secure" commands like exec() or system(), not prevent them.

Thanks Mauno

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