# Tools, editors and IDEs¶

Fedora Scientific includes the popular numerical computing tools - GNU Octave and Scilab. Besides these, Maxima - a computer algebra system is also included. To write programs, you need a powerful text editor. Vim and Emacs are both included. If you are a programmer who prefers to use an Integrated Development Environment (IDE), Eclipse IDE is included as well.

## GNU Octave¶

GNU Octave is a high level programming language and numerical computing environment. It is mostly compatible with MATLAB. Hence, if you are looking for a MATLAB alternative on Fedora Scientific, GNU Octave may be the place to start.

The GNU Octave manual is here with a PDF version also available. Other ways to get help are mentioned here.

## Scilab¶

Note

scilab is not included in Fedora 28, you can however install it using: dnf -y install scilab.

Scilab combines a high level programming language and a numerical computing environment. If you have prior experience with MATLAB and are looking for something similar, Scilab is worth looking into.

Links to the official documentation and tutorials are available here. Ways to engage with the Scilab community are mentioned here.

## Maxima¶

Maxima is a computer algebra system. The official documentation for Maxima is here and the mailing lists are listed here.

## Emacs and Vim¶

Emacs and Vim are both powerful editors supporting most programming languages known today. Besides, they also have support for LaTex editing which you can use instead of dedicated LaTex editors such as Kile. If you are already familiar with one of these editors, the official documentation are good places to refer to learn more and are linked from the official project page.

## Eclipse¶

Perhaps, most popular with Java programmers, the Eclipse IDE also supports C/C++ and Python programming (among others). On Fedora Scientific, you can use Eclipse for C, C++, Java and Python projects.

The official documentaion for Eclipse 4.3 is here.