=== WARNING ===
<p class="note">As of Moodle 2.x DragMath is now in Moodle core (you need not install the code if you are running Moodle 2.x.) To use DragMath, you are required to activate the TeX filter on the server side because the core devs decided that this would give them an opportunity to annoy you. However, there is a hack to decouple DragMath from TeX. You will also need top have a recent version of a Java Runtime Environment installed on the end-user' machine which is properly configured.</p>

You may want to look in the Math Forum for the latest discussion of SEE (Super Equation Editor, an initial nickname for this effort though the product has far outgrown just an equation editor). SEE is a comprehensive set of Math Plugins Mauno Korpelainen has been developing and are discussed here [[Advanced Maths Tools]] - an "alpha" version of docs for installation and use. If these tools are to your liking they will largely eliminate your need to wrestle with TeX (unless you wish so to do.) And, if you want a full distro of TeX, consider doing a local install of TexLive and cobbling your code to eliminate the need for convert.

===Introduction===
To quote the W3C [http://www.w3.org/Math/Software/mathml_software_cat_editors.html]:
This is an open-source drag and drop equation editor written in Java.
Once an expression is created the user can convert it into a variety
of different linear syntax for mathematics, including MathML, LaTeX,
Maple, Maxima or any user defined style.
Created by Christoper Sangwin and Alexander Billingsley at the University of Birmingham as part of the [http://www.stack.bham.ac.uk STACK project], DragMath allows students to build mathematical expressions using a graphical drag-and-drop interface similar in appearance to that available in a number of office productivity suites.

Initially integrated with Moodle to be used with Moodle's Tex filter, the export feature available with DragMath has now allowed an integration that supports the creation of LaTex text expressions with and without the doubledollar signs used to signal parsing by the filter as well as AsciiMathML text expressions.

To use DragMath, users must have the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) version 1.5 or higher installed on their desktop computers. Most systems come with the JRE as standard equipment, so you may not have to do anything. If you need to install the JRE manually, you can download it from [http://java.com/en/download/index.jsp here]. Note that the JRE is variously known as Java software for your computer, Java Runtime Environment, the Java Runtime, Runtime Environment, Runtime, Java Virtual Machine, Virtual Machine, Java VM, JVM, VM, or Java download.

You can see a demo of the DragMath editor [http://www.dragmath.bham.ac.uk/ here]. The DragMath interface is highly intuitive and anyone can be using it productively after a few minutes of trial-and-error. If you have questions about the editor, there is a short manual [http://www.dragmath.bham.ac.uk/doc/index.html here].

===Using DragMath===
DragMath is based on the simple idea that the User who does not know a lot of TeX (pronounced Tech) can still create mathematical formula for publishing. In this case, Moodle is the dispaly agent so the TeX formulae are then rendered to a Moodle screen. This essentially means that with little experience, any Junior High Maths teacher can generate all the formulae they need for most aspects of Maths in Moodle.

===Creating simple expressions===

To begin, click on the DragMath insertion button. This opens The DragMath interface.

[[Image:dragmath02.png|thumb|200px|center|Opening Dragmath]]

The toolbar is different than you may expect, we are used to nice neat rows of buttons, but Dragmath has to use tabs. Each tab is tab is a collection of "templates", that is each symbol is a "template" and can be dragged and dropped onto the work space.

[[Image:dragmath01.png|thumb|200px|center|The DragMath Interface]]

To end editing and insert the script into the Moodle page, click the Insert button. This simple, but not simplistic, interface is a strength of DragMath. It make it easy for even novices to create complex formulae.

{| class="nicetable" align="center"
|-
| colspan="4"|'''A sequence for DragMath - click an image to enlarge'''
|-
|[[Image:dragmath04f.png|thumb|150px|Select the Tab with the symbols required]]
|[[Image:dragmath03.png|thumb|150px|Click, hold then drag'n'drop a symbol]]
|[[Image:dragmath04.png|thumb|150px|Enter the values, select an operation symbol]]
|[[Image:dragmath04a.png|thumb|150px|Select another symbol and drag'n'drop]]
|-
|[[Image:dragmath04b.png|thumb|150px|Add an equal (or other) sign]]
|[[Image:dragmath04c.png|thumb|150px|Add in a variable, (chi in this case) ]]
|[[Image:dragmath04d.png|thumb|150px|Click Insert]]
|[[Image:dragmath04e.png|thumb|150px|See the encoded result in the editing dialog.]]
|}

This same sequence of operations apply equally for all formulae, all insertions, no matter how complex they become.

You can insert a template from the toolbar by drag and drop or by a click on the template in the tab, then clicking in the workspace.

===Creating more complex expressions===

More complex expressions are pretty much more of the same as above. Creating a simple multiplication table matrix, for example, seems complex,but in DragNath, it is actually simple:

{| class="nicetable" align="center"
|-
| colspan="4"|'''A sequence for a simple Multiplication Matrice in DragMath - click an image to enlarge'''
|-
|[[Image:dragmath05.png|thumb|150px|Select the Tab and add in the multiplier]]
|[[Image:dragmath05a.png|thumb|150px|Click, hold then drag'n'drop the Matrix symbol]]
|[[Image:dragmath05b.png|thumb|150px|Enter the values, select a equal symbol]]
|[[Image:dragmath05c.png|thumb|150px|Add in the rows required]]
|-
|[[Image:dragmath05d.png|thumb|150px|Add in the columns required]]
|[[Image:dragmath05e.png|thumb|150px|Edit the Matrice ]]
|[[Image:dragmath05f.png|thumb|150px|Add the equal symbol]]
|[[Image:dragmath05g.png|thumb|150px|Add and edit in the second Matrice.]]
|}

===Locally saving and restoring a DragMath expression===
When you press the Insert button, DragMath inserts the export string into your text and the DragMath window closes. ''The exported string can no longer be manipulated using DragMath.'' If you decide to change the string, you have two options:
*delete the string (including the dollar signs or other token) and completely recreate it using DragMath
*edit the expression by hand
You can not tell DragMath to re-read the expression and show it again in two dimensions. This is a theoretical limitation, not a limitation of DragMath.

But suppose the expression is very complicated. It would be impractical to start over just to make a simple change. Before you Insert the expression, you can save a copy of the expression (a .drgm file) to your local disk using the Save button (see screenshot). Later, if you need to make a change, you open the saved .drgm file.

[[Image:Dragmath_save_and_restore.png|DragMath instructions]]

A .drgm file contains three-dimensional representation of your mathematical expression. It is a binary file that can only be opened by DragMath.
===Additional Editing===

There are times when '''DragMath''' is not going to have a symbol or something you might want. Or perhaps you left something out of the DragMath constuctor, so you want to include it manually. Most likely, for something like the matrix created earlier, I want to go to 15, which means I have to change the structure of the matrix, and edit in some numbers. This is easily done with a little forethought. Copy and paste and delete or edit what you want and do not want.

{| class="nicetable" align="center"
|-
| colspan="4"|'''Manually editing a DragMath construction - click an image to enlarge'''
|-
|[[Image:dragmath06a.png|thumb|150px|Select, copy and paste the original matrix]]
|[[Image:dragmath06b.png|thumb|150px|Edit to what is actually required]]
|[[Image:dragmath06c.png|thumb|150px|Delete the original matrix]]
|}

Sometimes however, you just want to include something you forgot, or rather, add something that was not there in the first place.

{| class="nicetable" align="center"
|-
| colspan="4"|'''Accurately editing a DragMath construction manually - click an image to enlarge'''
|-
|[[Image:dragmath06d.png|thumb|150px|Construct the original equation]]
|[[Image:dragmath06e.png|thumb|150px|Copy, then edit to what is actually required]]
|[[Image:dragmath06f.png|thumb|150px|Return to the edited page]]
|}

===See Also===
* [[Advanced Maths Tools]] For an explanation of the SEE tools
* [[Using TeX Notation]] Some ideas and syntax
* [[TeX notation filter]] Turning TeX on
* [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfc7umQ2xLA| A simple YouTube video] Constructing a simple equation.

Discussion of the transition of DragMath to Moodle core: http://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=125977&parent=551794

[[ca:DragMath_editor_d%27equacions]]

2011-01-11T17:10:14Z

Net-buoy:

Moodle has an "algebra filter" which can display mathematical expressions as if they were typeset. The filter is included in the standard Moodle packages but the administrator must activate it before you can use it.

NOTE that use of the algebra filter REQUIRES that the Moodle Tex filter also be working as the algebra filter simply parses math expressions in one syntax and then converts the expressions to LaTex expressions for the Tex filter to render and display. The filter uses a perl script borrowed from

The filter (see http://cvs.moodle.org/moodle/filter/algebra/ ) uses algebra2tex.pl, a perl script (and its associated perl module, AlgParser.pm) to parse text expressions delimited by double@ signs as tokens (though the tokens employed can be tweaked manually.)

While many have argued that the algebra filter is easy to use, there is apparently no Moodle reference on its "grammar" or "syntax". Research in to Webworks produced these two links for using webworks text expressions (the first one is arguably replaced by the second):

* http://webwork.math.rochester.edu/docs/docs/pglanguage/availableFunctions.html
* http://webwork.maa.org/wiki/Mathematical_notation_recognized_by_WeBWorK

See http://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=126522&parent=554632.

There is a discussion of Algebra filter syntax at http://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=5402 offered by [http://moodle.org/user/view.php?id=2466&course=5 Zbigniew Fiedorowicz].

It appears that as of Moodle.org moving to Moodle 2 (late 2010) the Algebra filter in the forums is no longer working. It also appears that the Algebra filter does not work in Moodle Docs (which is not Moodle code, but MediaWiki, which I don't believe has a ready filter based on algebra2tex.pl.

[[Category:Filter]]
[[Category:Mathematics]]

[[fr:Filtre Algebra]]

Algebra filter

2011-01-11T17:01:58Z

Net-buoy:

Moodle has an "algebra filter" which can display mathematical expressions as if they were typeset. The filter is included in the standard Moodle packages but the administrator must activate it before you can use it.

NOTE that use of the algebra filter REQUIRES that the Moodle Tex filter also be working as the algebra filter simply parses math expressions in one syntax and then converts the expressions to LaTex expressions for the Tex filter to render and display. The filter uses a perl script borrowed from

The filter (see http://cvs.moodle.org/moodle/filter/algebra/ ) uses algebra2tex.pl, a perl script (and its associated perl module, AlgParser.pm) to parse text expressions delimited by double@ signs as tokens (though the tokens employed can be tweaked manually.)

While many have argued that the algebra filter is easy to use, there is apparently no Moodle reference on its "grammar" or "syntax". Research in to Webworks produced these two links for using webworks text expressions (the first one is arguably replaced by the second):

* http://webwork.math.rochester.edu/docs/docs/pglanguage/availableFunctions.html
* http://webwork.maa.org/wiki/Mathematical_notation_recognized_by_WeBWorK

See http://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=126522&parent=554632.

[[Category:Filter]]
[[Category:Mathematics]]

[[fr:Filtre Algebra]]

Algebra filter

2011-01-11T16:53:26Z

Net-buoy:

2010-07-16T21:47:01Z

Net-buoy:

While there are quite a few notational systems employed for the purpose of representing Math notation, as noted in the discussion of the [[TeX filter]] Moodle core provides a Tex filter that can be configured to display a gif representation of a Tex expression delimited by double dollar signs. Failing that, the Moodle Tex filter falls back to the use of MimeTex. However, the core TeX filter is not the only way to display Tex expressions in Moodle and the discussion of [[Mathematics]] tools address a variety of other solutions. Additionally, the results obtained from the Moodle filter are dependent on the Tex binaries you have installed.

If you choose to display Math in Moodle via Tex expressions, you have to understand that that there are quite a few "flavors" in the Tex world, and what may work in one Tex implementation, may not work in another. Probably one of the most useful tools for using Tex in Moodle (or elsewhere for that matter), is [[Dragmath]] which will allow you to use a GUI constructor to build your expression, and then insert it in the format you choose.

These docs now use [http://www.tug.org/texlive/doc/texlive-en/texlive-en.html Tex Live], though your Moodle installation may not. Some of the frustration for Moodle users is that the Moodle filter does not implement a full LaTex environment (see the discussion of mode below.)

==TeX Notation in Moodle==

For the most part, the TeX Notation has been built using a sub-set of characters from the TeX "default" character set. The trouble is there does not seem to be a "default" character set for TeX. This is one of the most confusing aspects of using TeX Notation in Moodle. When we realise that the documentation we are using is related to the creation of printed documents, and we want to use TeX on line, in Moodle, then further problems occur. There are no environment statements to be made. There are no \begins and \ends. If you go to Administration > Modules > Filters > Filter Manager you will see what filters have been enabled. If you then go to the TeX Notation page, the default preamble is written there and is editable via the text box. You can add in or subtract font packages. You can change the default font package. The issue here also seems to be that to use other fonts you need to install a full TeX notation system other than the TeX Notation system for the fonts to change.

''A precise, i.e. simple, description of how to do that would be nice here..:)''

Which would, if clearer, provide a nice little tool for developing local strategies for responding to your student needs.

==Language Conventions==

To invoke the TeX filter is to use the $$ symbols to open and close statements. To invoke a particular command or control sequence, use the backslash, \. A typical control sequence looks like:

$$ x \ = \ \frac{\sqrt{144}}{2} \ \times \ (y \ + \ 12) $$
{| class="nicetable"
|-
| [[Image: cfmimetex10.gif|frame|center]]
|-
|Fraction and square root.
|}

Additional spaces are placed into the equation by using the \ without a leading or trailing character. Escape characters, of which there are a few in Moodle's TeX Notation, have the \ in front of them. These are usually set aside for reserved characters.

==Available Characters==
There seems to be a number of differences between what characters are available in Moodle and what are not. There also seems to be great discrepancies between what the manuals tell you is available and what actually is available. [[Using TeX Notation 2]] shows a lot of what is available, but not all.

==Windows and TeX==

Using TeX in Windows is simpler than it used to be. Download and install a TeX for Windows program, like [http://www.miktex.org/ MikTeX]. (MikTeX is probably the most useful at this point in time for Windows Users.) Also, a graphics package is required for rendering the scripted TeX statements into images, and probably the most readily available and easily installable program useful for this purpose would be [http://www.imagemagick.org/script/index.php ImageMagick]. While there may be better programs available for these purposes, these are the most immediately useful. They are easily installed and configured.

==Reserved Characters and Keywords==

Most characters and numbers on the keyboard can be used at their default value. As with any computing language, though, there are a set of reserved characters and keywords that are used by the program for its own purposes. TeX Notation is no different, but it does have a very small set of Reserved Characters. This will not be a complete list of reserved characters, but some of these are:

@ # $ % ^ & * ( ) .

To use these characters in an equation just place the \ in front of them \$ or \%. If you want to use the backslash, just use \backslash. The only exception here seems to be the &, ampersand. See the characters listed in [[Using TeX Notation 2]] for more details.

The Keywords, they are different. There is only one that is of concern here and that it the word "line". If the \line control sequence, or command, is not properly implemented, then the consequences can be indeterminate. Controlling lines is an adventure of its own, so getting it right when written is important, you can always reposition the line, but you might get it really wrong if you do not use it with some caution. To use the \line control sequence, go to your text editor, open the filter\lib.php file, and at about line 48, you will see the word "\line". Delete it from the list. If you do not have direct access to the server, then the whole thing becomes problematic. You may want to download and install your own Moodle and develop things there rather than on your production site. You can write things out in your own Moodle, render the statement, save the image and then upload it to your production site. If something goes seriously wrong, it is easier to restart your own Moodle than it is your production site.

'''WARNING:''' If you get a dimension wrong on a line, it can actually prevent you from creating any new TeX. You will see the offending control sequence in its natural state. Everything that you have written to that point will work, but nothing you have written after that will.

==Maths Mode==
A full TeX version has two modes, a "text mode" and a "maths mode" and Moodle stays in maths mode. Perhaps a better description of what happens is that Moodle allows a writer to enter maths mode when the $$ symbols are written and leave it when the $$ symbol appears a second time.

==Superscripts, Subscripts and Roots==

Superscripts are recorded using the caret, ^, symbol. An example for a Maths class might be:

$$ 4^2 \ \times \ 4^3 \ = 4^5 $$
This is a shorthand way of saying:
(4 x 4) x (4 x 4 x 4) = (4 x 4 x 4 x 4 x 4)
or
16 x 64 = 1024.

<math>4^2 \ \times \ 4^3 \ = 4^5</math>

Subscripts are similar, but use the underscore character.

$$ 3x_2 \ \times \ 2x_3 $$

<math>3x_2 \ \times \ 2x_3</math>

This is OK if you want superscripts or subscripts, but square roots are a little different. This uses a control sequence.

$$ \sqrt{64} \ = \ 8 $$

<math>\sqrt{64} \ = \ 8</math>

You can also take this a little further, but adding in a control character. You may ask a question like:

$$ If \ \sqrt[n]{1024} \ = \ 4, \ what \ is \ the \ value \ of \ n? $$

<math>If \ \sqrt[n]{1024} \ = \ 4, \ what \ is \ the \ value \ of \ n?</math>

Using these different commands allows you to develop equations like:

$$ The \sqrt{64} \ \times \ 2 \ \times \ 4^3 \ = \ 1024 $$

<math>The \sqrt{64} \ \times \ 2 \ \times \ 4^3 \ = \ 1024</math>

==Fractions==

Fractions in TeX are actually simple, as long as you remember the rules.

$$ \frac{numerator}{denominator} $$ which produces <math>\frac{numerator}{denominator}</math> .

This can be given as:

<math>\frac{5}{10} \ is \ equal \ to \ \frac{1}{2}</math>.

This is entered as:

$$ \frac{5}{10} \ is \ equal \ to \ \frac{1}{2}.$$

==See Also==
* [[Using TeX Notation 2]]

* [[TeX notation filter]]

[[Category:Mathematics]]