About three weeks ago I asked on this list if anyone had a general solution to the 
problem of web-based graphing. I thank George Wiger and Gary Bertrand for their fine 
suggestions and the basic conclusion, "No, but document layers are the way to go."

My desire was for graphing package that includes:

 * "plug-and-play" quickness of implementation
 * platform-independence (PC/Mac)
 * browser-blindness (Netscape/Microsoft)
 * proper printing in both Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer
 * the ability to handle both x,y data and functions of x
 * automatic or manual x- and y-axis tic production and numbering 
 * the ability to use multiple data sources on the same graph
 * built-in trend line and spline curve capability
 * built-in capability to plot transformed data, such as ln(y) vs. 1/x and 1/y vs. x
 * the ability to track and respond to mouse movements, clicks, and drags
 * animation capability
 * annotation capability
 * the ability to use background images, frames, and new windows as backdrops
 * an "open" system that doesn't require compiling and that can be adapted as needed

Well, over the past three weeks, I've done a little programming. It is called  "divgraph.js" 
and it is a JavaScript package (meaning you can take it, look at it, see how it works, and 
adapt it as necessary). 

divgraph.js can be plugged into any web page to provide real-time graphing capability, or 
it can be called with a function or x,y data and information for a quick graph in a new 
window. For example, simple functions can be called easily:

http://www.stolaf.edu/people/hansonr/divgraph/divgraph.htm?x^3/50;xmin=-10;xmax=10

See http://www.stolaf.edu/people/hansonr/divgraph/examples.htm for many examples of 
divgraph.js capabilities, many of which can be simply clipped out and used directly.

While this is still in development, I'd like to offer an open invitation to ANYONE 
interested in developing applications that do one or more of the following and relate to 
chemistry:

 * require on-the-fly graphing of experimental or theoretical data
 * teach how to interpret data
 * involve a student in the graphing/analysis process
 * require students to analyze data in order to answer questions in a quiz-type format
 * anything else that comes to mind after seeing this package work

I'm looking for people who would like to collaborate on this for publication at J. Chem Ed. 
OnLine in their WebWare division.

One of the first applications I've created is an exploration of the difference between Q and 
K, which relates to a recent discussion on this list. Please take a look and comment if you 
are interested in that discussion:

http://www.stolaf.edu/people/hansonr/divgraph/equil.htm

The making of this application from start to finish is one of the examples I've put together, 
and serves as a model for the kind of thing I'm interested in exploring:

http://www.stolaf.edu/people/hansonr/divgraph/example3.htm

Collaborators welcome!

  -Bob Hanson


