SciDAVis
Encyclopedia
SciDAVis is a platform-independent
open-source
cross-platform
computer program for interactive scientific graphing
and data analysis
. Development started in 2007 as fork
of QtiPlot
, which in turn is a clone of the proprietary program Origin
.
. The plots can be exported to several bitmap formats, PDF
, EPS
or SVG
. Note windows support in-place evaluation of mathematical expressions or an optional scripting interface to Python
. The GUI
of the application uses the Qt toolkit
.
of QtiPlot
, after disagreements arose with Ion Vasilief, the founder and main developer of the project. Franke has stated that the topics of disagreement included "design goals, management of community resources and the right way to make money from a free software project".
In 2008, developers of SciDAVis and LabPlot
"found their project goals to be very similar" and "decided to start a close cooperation" with the aim of merging their code into a common backend, while maintaining "two frontends, one with full KDE4 integration (called LabPlot 2.x) and one with no KDE dependencies (pure Qt so to say) for easier cross-platform use (called SciDAVis)". Since then, LabPlot development has stalled.
Cross-platform
In computing, cross-platform, or multi-platform, is an attribute conferred to computer software or computing methods and concepts that are implemented and inter-operate on multiple computer platforms...
open-source
Open-source software
Open-source software is computer software that is available in source code form: the source code and certain other rights normally reserved for copyright holders are provided under a software license that permits users to study, change, improve and at times also to distribute the software.Open...
cross-platform
Cross-platform
In computing, cross-platform, or multi-platform, is an attribute conferred to computer software or computing methods and concepts that are implemented and inter-operate on multiple computer platforms...
computer program for interactive scientific graphing
Plot (graphics)
A plot is a graphical technique for representing a data set, usually as a graph showing the relationship between two or more variables. The plot can be drawn by hand or by a mechanical or electronic plotter. Graphs are a visual representation of the relationship between variables, very useful for...
and data analysis
Data analysis
Analysis of data is a process of inspecting, cleaning, transforming, and modeling data with the goal of highlighting useful information, suggesting conclusions, and supporting decision making...
. Development started in 2007 as fork
Fork (software development)
In software engineering, a project fork happens when developers take a legal copy of source code from one software package and start independent development on it, creating a distinct piece of software...
of QtiPlot
QtiPlot
QtiPlot is a platform-independent open-source cross-platform computer program for interactive scientific graphing and data analysis. It is similar to the proprietary programs Origin or SigmaPlot, and is being used to substitute these in universities ....
, which in turn is a clone of the proprietary program Origin
Origin (software)
Origin is a proprietary computer program for interactive scientific graphing and data analysis. It is produced by OriginLab Corporation, and runs on Microsoft Windows...
.
Mission statement
Features
SciDAVis can generate different types of 2D and 3D plots (such as line, scatter, bar, pie, and surface plots) from data that is either imported from ASCII files, entered by hand, or calculated using formulas. The data is held in spreadsheets which are referred to as tables with column-based data (typically X and Y values for 2D plots) or matrices (for 3D plots). The spreadsheets as well as graphs and note windows are gathered in a project and can be organized using folders. The built-in analysis operations include column/row statistics, (de)convolution, FFT and FFT-based filters. Curve fitting can be performed with user-defined or built-in linear and nonlinear functions, including multi-peak fitting, based on the GNU Scientific LibraryGNU Scientific Library
In computing, the GNU Scientific Library is a software library written in the C programming language for numerical calculations in applied mathematics and science...
. The plots can be exported to several bitmap formats, PDF
Portable Document Format
Portable Document Format is an open standard for document exchange. This file format, created by Adobe Systems in 1993, is used for representing documents in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems....
, EPS
Encapsulated PostScript
Encapsulated PostScript, or EPS, is a DSC-conforming PostScript document with additional restrictions which is intended to be usable as a graphics file format...
or SVG
Scalable Vector Graphics
Scalable Vector Graphics is a family of specifications of an XML-based file format for describing two-dimensional vector graphics, both static and dynamic . The SVG specification is an open standard that has been under development by the World Wide Web Consortium since 1999.SVG images and their...
. Note windows support in-place evaluation of mathematical expressions or an optional scripting interface to Python
Python (programming language)
Python is a general-purpose, high-level programming language whose design philosophy emphasizes code readability. Python claims to "[combine] remarkable power with very clear syntax", and its standard library is large and comprehensive...
. The GUI
Graphical user interface
In computing, a graphical user interface is a type of user interface that allows users to interact with electronic devices with images rather than text commands. GUIs can be used in computers, hand-held devices such as MP3 players, portable media players or gaming devices, household appliances and...
of the application uses the Qt toolkit
Qt (toolkit)
Qt is a cross-platform application framework that is widely used for developing application software with a graphical user interface , and also used for developing non-GUI programs such as command-line tools and consoles for servers...
.
History
SciDAVis was founded by Tilman Benkert and Knut Franke in 2007 as a forkFork (software development)
In software engineering, a project fork happens when developers take a legal copy of source code from one software package and start independent development on it, creating a distinct piece of software...
of QtiPlot
QtiPlot
QtiPlot is a platform-independent open-source cross-platform computer program for interactive scientific graphing and data analysis. It is similar to the proprietary programs Origin or SigmaPlot, and is being used to substitute these in universities ....
, after disagreements arose with Ion Vasilief, the founder and main developer of the project. Franke has stated that the topics of disagreement included "design goals, management of community resources and the right way to make money from a free software project".
In 2008, developers of SciDAVis and LabPlot
LabPlot
LabPlot is a platform-independent open-source cross-platform computer program for interactive scientific graphing and data analysis, written for the KDE desktop. It is similar to Origin and is able to import Origin's data files.-History and Perspective:...
"found their project goals to be very similar" and "decided to start a close cooperation" with the aim of merging their code into a common backend, while maintaining "two frontends, one with full KDE4 integration (called LabPlot 2.x) and one with no KDE dependencies (pure Qt so to say) for easier cross-platform use (called SciDAVis)". Since then, LabPlot development has stalled.
Release history
- 2007-08-05: Release 0.1.0
- 2007-12-21: Release 0.1.1
- 2008-02-03: Release 0.1.2
- 2008-04-19: Release 0.1.3
- 2009-02-10: Release 0.1.4
- 2009-02-14: Release 0.2.0
- 2009-03-09: Release 0.2.1
- 2009-04-20: Release 0.2.2
- 2009-07-12: Release 0.2.3
- 2010-03-12: Release 0.2.4