JT42B  REALBasic eh. Well there's yer problem.

I won't bother repeating much of the REALBasic bashing, see the reviews for REALBasic itself

http://www.macupdate.com/reviews.php?id=8438

Suffice it to say that it doesn't generate the most elegant and compact application. But as the developer says, if you don't care about that, download it anyway. Maybe it will still do what you want.  
(Version 1.2)

JT42B  I think hendo's comment is valid and helpful. Just because it's freeware doesn't mean it shouldn't be criticized. I thought the same thing when I saw this. Why is it so huge?

The developer's reply on the other hand isn't helpful at all. He could at least try to explain why. As is, I'm left to assume that it's 10 times larger than needed because he doesn't know what he's doing, or that it contains something other than it's stated purpose.  
(Version 1.2)

JT42B  If you are unhappy with Matlab or just looking for something simpler you may want to check out MathPad

It's not really on the same scale as Matlab but it's free. It provides a language with array constructs and includes simple visualization. I find it surprisingly powerful and have used it for tasks that others have used Matlab for.  
(Version 7.3)

JT42B  Nothing against CAPS Warn, it sounds like a good idea, but 675K just for that? Does anybody remember when the entire system and apps ran in 512K? (and we liked it!).

Ah well, no use living in the past.  
(Version 2.1)

JT42B  Fair enough I suppose, but even freeware could benifit from a little "market research". There are competing apps available. You should check them out and see what has already been done. If you can do it better then great.

In the graphing calculator area there are already some very capable apps. Grapher.app is great for pure math visualizations. MathPad is good for practical work in science and engineering. Both are free so you won't beat them on price.  
(Version 1.0b)

JT42B  Why would I want this over Apple's Grapher.app that came with my computer?  
(Version 1.0b)

JT42B  Soulver may attempt to dynamically update but in many cases IT DOESN'T GET IT RIGHT. Try this:

a+b

a=2

b=1/a

Soulver shows 0 as the answer for a+b. There are many other examples where inconsistient results are shown, especially when editing multi-line calculations.

I prefer the MathPad model where I can freely do multiple edits anywhere in the worksheet and when I'm finished I hit enter to re-evaluate. After I hit enter, I can trust ALL the results and it can report errors such as undefined variables.

The original reviewer was looking at Soulver for use by middle school students and it may in fact be a good choice for that. However he apparently didn't look at the freeware MathPad which would be able to do the same things he was looking for (and possibly better for free).  
(Version 1.3.1)

JT42B  I think you may be talking about a commercial program called MathPad that is for students with disabilities.

The other reviews here are comparing Soulver to the freeware MathPad here on macupdate.

macupdate.com/info.php/id/8614

The freeware MathPad is similar to Soulver and doesn't do any long division.

One advantage MathPad has is that it always re-evaluates the entire worksheet so so the order of definitions doesn't matter. For your example it's worksheet could look like:

--Q2. Solve 4a -2b where a=4 and b = 3

4*a - 2*b:10.000

a = 4

b = 3  
(Version 1.3.1)

JT42B  But squabbling is fun. I personally appreciate reviews that give some comparisons between similar programs.

Ok, I read the manual and figured out how to use data drawer constants but a good test of how intuitive the interface is how much you can do without reading the manual. (Assume for sake of argument that I'm not stupid).

And yes, I can think of a much more intuitive way to do it. Have it insert the constant name into your calculation when you click it or double click it. As it is, when you click nothing happens other than it turning blue in the drawer. Blue isn't a standardized signal for "now a defined constant". Also, since you can't copy and paste, you still have to know to type option-m to get a u0 into the calculation. A minor squabble, but argues against describing it as very intuitive or easy to use.

A more important flaw is that you can't really save your work. You have to re-select which constants you want every time. Saving and re-loading files was very flakey. Sometimes nothing happens, a few times the application hung and I had to force quit.

I can't agree that EureKalc has any advantage for ease of use and certainly not flexibility. MathPad allows multiple open documents and will fully save your calculation, it fully re-evaluates so that you can edit anywhere and it properly updates all results, it has more flexibility for plotting, it has plug-ins for a large number of special purpose functions ...

The only thing I saw that EureKalc has that MathPad doesn't is the option for the comma as a decimal separator. (MathPad syntax uses comma for other separators so it would be ambiguous).

I like the concept of EureKalc and if MathPad didn't exist I'd be all for it. EureKalc would like to BE MathPad when it grows up.

  
(Version 2.0)

JT42B  Have you ever used MathPad?

How can you say EureKalc is much more intuitive?

The basic operation is nearly identical. They both allow you to type in an expression and have it evaluated.

What is the "unique ability to access instantly to frequently used data and functions" ? Both allow you to define new functions and data. MathPad has a functions menu that lists its built-in functions and will insert them into the text. EureKalc doesn't even have that.

EureaKalc has a data-drawer that is simply a list of physical constants. (Most of which could not be described as "frequently used"). I was unable to find a way to transfer this information into my calculation without typing it in myself. Copy and paste didn't work. The data-drawer was less useful than a separate text file.

MathPad allows include files that will define whatever constants you want and have them directly available. There is an example include file that contains a similar list of physical constants.  
(Version 2.0)

JT42B  Looks similar to MathPad but it is much less capable.

macupdate.com/info.php/id/8614   
(Version 2.0)

JT42B  Maybe I just don't understand this but it seems to be less convienient than just using the Finder to burn a CD.  
(Version 1.5)

JT42B  This is pretty lame.

MathPad can do anything this does plus MUCH more and MathPad is free.

After only a few minutes it locked up and just beeps when I type.   
(Version 1.1)