Reading Data into Maple

You can use Maple, the symbolic computing package available on RCS, to process data created by programs other than Maple. For example, you might want to plot data using Maple, rather than a general-purpose plotting package, when comparing results produced through experimentation, or numerical computations with results produced analytically by Maple.

Use the readdata(`filename`,type,columns) procedure to read a data file with columns of values separated by white space. You must define readdata before you can use the procedure. Suppose the file sample.dat contains:

  1 1.5  2.5
  1 2.0  3.0
  1 2.5  3.5
  1 3.0  4.0
  2 1.0  5.0
  2 1.5  5.5
  2 2.0  6.0
  2 2.5  6.5
  2 3.0  7.0
  3 1.0 10.0
  3 1.5 10.5
  3 2.0 11.0
  3 2.5 11.5
  3 3.0 12.0

To read sample.dat into Maple, enter

  readlib(readdata);
  datalist := readdata(`sample.dat`,float,3);

where float is the data type and 3 is the number of columns. Note the BACK quotes around the file name. The Maple variable datalist is a Maple list of triples. You can use Maple to process the data you have just read (plot, extract columns, tranpose, etc).

You can convert the list of triples to a matrix by entering

  A := convert(datalist,matrix);

You can create a scatter plot of the 3-D points in datalist by entering

  with(plots):
  pointplot(datalist);

Other Maple Topics

Click on an item listed below to access additional information on a variety of Maple-related topics.

• Getting Started with Maple
• Hands On Introduction to Maple
• Obtaining Online Help in Maple
• Finding Additional Maple Documentation
• Printing Your Maple Session
• Printing Maple Plots
• Some Helpful Tips for Using Maple
• Working with a Text Interface
• Using Maple Remotely
• Reading Data into Maple
• Information on the Student Edition of Maple

Return to the Software page.

Return to ACS home page.

Please send comments and suggestions to