The MaGiX Project

The Magix project aims the development of a new system for symbolic and analytic computations, on the basis of the Mathemagix software. Nowadays, two kinds of mathematical computation system have met a great success. Historically, we find the numerical computation systems, such as Matlab, Octave or Scilab. These systems allow for the approximate resolution of analytic problems, such as the integration of differential equations. On the other hand, we find the symbolic computation systems, such as Mathematica, Maple, Axiom, Singular or more recently Sage.

In the Magix project, we bring together symbolic computation and scientific computation on different points. First, we develop a high-level compiled language, which is suited both to symbolic computation and the conception of efficient numerical algorithms. Second, we develop a series of basic libraries unified for the symbolic-analytic computation. The language include a flexible mechanism to incorporate external C++ libraries. A fair amount of these libraries are developed in collaboration with external partners. Finally, we give a great attention to user interface, which relies mostly on the GNU TeXmacs software by Joris van der Hoeven. In the medium term, this will grant the software a wide diffusion, particularly in the research and education areas.