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Abstract

This paper and talk will introduce two of Wolfram Research’s largest mathematical web sites, Wolfram Research’s Mathematical Functions and the Wolfram Research Documentation Center. Drawing from over 37,000 unique equations displayed on the sites, we will compare and contrast the various formats in which they provide mathematics (GIF, MathML, Mathematica InputForm, Mathematica StandardForm). Taking a detailed look at the MathML of these “real world” examples, we will also analyze the MathML tag usage and entity frequency. Lastly will be a detailed analysis of several years of web site logs showcasing web browser model and version, as well as the client’s operating system. All this in hopes of learning more about the speed of the upcoming transition toward MathML and where it will occur.

Which Web Sites?

The Wolfram Research Documentation Center is a collection of online reference material about Mathematica, CalculationCenter, and other Wolfram products. Containing over 64,000 html pages of documentation containing mathematics, this site provides a convenient way to access documentation without ever leaving the web. Alongside English, the Documentation Center also provides translated documentation in Japanese, French, and German.

functions.wolfram.com

Wolfram Research’s Mathematical Functions site was created as a resource for the educational, mathematical, and scientific communities. Containing over 37,000 equations, this site is also the world’s most encyclopedic collection of information about mathematical functions. The site also details the interrelationships between the special functions of mathematical physics and the elementary functions of mathematical analysis as well as the interrelationships between the functions in each group.

MathML Usage Statistics

MathML and GIF file size comparison

The following are a few statistics based on a small sample of 2,178 MathML files and their corresponding GIFs.

The final paper and talk will include a full comparison of the over 37,000 equations currently presented within documents.wolfram.com and functions.wolfram.com as well as comparison to their corresponding Mathematica InputForm and StandardForm.

MathML File Sizes

Mean	3590.52
HarmonicMean	1398.84
Median	2321

GIF File Sizes

Mean	1543.46
HarmonicMean	969.205
Median	1196

MathML Tag Overview

Based on the above MathML sample of 2,178 equations, the following is a simple overview of the number of occurrences of several popular MathML tags.

The final paper and talk will also include entity usage as well as other important tags. As in the file size comparison, the final data will be taken from the over 37,000 equations currently presented within documents.wolfram.com and functions.wolfram.com.

Website Usage Statistics

This portion of the paper and talk will provide a detailed analysis of several years of web site logs showcasing web browser model and version, as well as the client’s operating system. This is essential for learning about the speed of the upcoming transition toward MathML and where it will occur.