Posted 07.21.2011 at 1:00 pm
12 Comments
The CDF in Action
via Wolfram
The PDF has long reigned as the universal document, one that can be read by almost any machine anywhere and be formatted to hold various kinds of information: text, charts, graphics, images, etc. But the problem with PDFs (or spreadsheets for that matter) is that they’re pretty static--with the exception of a few (admittedly handy) features, they are fixed in what they can do and convey. Wolfram Research is trying to change that with the Computable Document Format (CDF), a new kind of interactive document that brings computation to the document itself.
An easy way to think of the CDF is like a PDF with embedded apps. It’s a document that essentially computes within itself, adding a layer of interactivity to things like graphics and charts that let the user not only see data but explore it as well.
Related Articles
 | The Grouse Weighs in on Wolfram |
 | Wolfram Co-Founder On Why Wolfram|Alpha Doesn't Need to Kill Google |
 | This Message Will Self Destruct: Scientists Develop Programmable, Self-Erasing Documents |
Tags
Gadgets, Clay Dillow, cdf, computers, COMPUTING, documents, pdf, wolfram researchA CDF could accommodate an embedded app that allows the user to enter number values into an app in the document, adjust expected rates of return over time, or plug a range of other data and then view the quarterly data through his or her own customized lens. Similarly, things like digital textbooks in CDF format allow for interactive graphics that live inside the document, augmenting the learning experience and allowing students to participate in and manipulate the data presented to them.
It’s a pretty neat idea, but also one facing some challenges. For one, someone has to create these “knowledge apps,” and not every author is also a programmer (or well-funded enough to develop custom-tailored apps). To that end, Wolfram is trying to simplify the authoring process with a language of programming that simplifies the process. In other words, Wolfram wants to simplify the authoring of interactive apps such that they are no more difficult than building a macro in Microsoft Excel.
Another challenge is getting the CDF Player software itself to run. It took this PopSci writer and one PopSci editor--say what you will about the combined intellectual capacity at play here--working on two separate machines more than a couple of tries to get the CDF Player working properly in our browsers (one obvious hint: make sure to restart your browser after you download). But hey, the CDF is new and bound to be a bit buggy getting off the ground. You can download the CDF Player for free here, after which you can check out several neat examples of CDF’s interactivity here.
12 Comments
To comment, please Login.
Popular Tags
Gadgets
Regular Features
|
|
|
|
|
|
June 2013: American Energy Independence
Five amazing, clean technologies that will set us free, in this month's energy-focused issue. Also: how to build a better bomb detector, the robotic toys that are raising your children, a human catapult, the world's smallest arcade, and much more.
Popular on Popsci
Most Commented
Gadgets
- Drone-Vision Rifle Goes On Sale For $22K
- Google Glass Isn't A Surveillance Device
- Would You Give This Company $250 For A Survivalist's E-Ink Android Tablet?
- What We Know (And Think We Know) About The New Xbox
- Xbox One: Here's What We Know About Microsoft's New Console
- BeerSci: A Pint That Fits In Your Pocket
- The First Round Of Apps For Google Glass Is Here
- Google Should Include A Self-Destruct Button On Every Android Phone
- Internet-Enabled Laser Pointer Lets You Play With Your Pet From Anywhere In The World
- Xbox One Is The First Games Console For People Who Don't Like Games
Most Emailed
Gadgets
- Xbox One Is The First Games Console For People Who Don't Like Games
- Xbox One: Here's What We Know About Microsoft's New Console
- What We Know (And Think We Know) About The New Xbox
- Drone-Vision Rifle Goes On Sale For $22K
- Internet-Enabled Laser Pointer Lets You Play With Your Pet From Anywhere In The World
- The First Round Of Apps For Google Glass Is Here
- Google Should Include A Self-Destruct Button On Every Android Phone
- BeerSci: A Pint That Fits In Your Pocket
- Would You Give This Company $250 For A Survivalist's E-Ink Android Tablet?
- Oculus Rift Game Simulates What It's Like To Get Your Head Chopped Off. For Fun.
Most Viewed
Gadgets
- Xbox One Is The First Games Console For People Who Don't Like Games
- Xbox One: Here's What We Know About Microsoft's New Console
- What We Know (And Think We Know) About The New Xbox
- Drone-Vision Rifle Goes On Sale For $22K
- Internet-Enabled Laser Pointer Lets You Play With Your Pet From Anywhere In The World
- The First Round Of Apps For Google Glass Is Here
- Google Should Include A Self-Destruct Button On Every Android Phone
- BeerSci: A Pint That Fits In Your Pocket
- Would You Give This Company $250 For A Survivalist's E-Ink Android Tablet?
- Oculus Rift Game Simulates What It's Like To Get Your Head Chopped Off. For Fun.
Online Content Director: Suzanne LaBarre | Email
Senior Editor: Paul Adams | Email
Associate Editor: Dan Nosowitz | Email
Assistant Editor: Colin Lecher | Email
Assistant Editor: Rose Pastore | Email
Contributing Writers:
Rebecca Boyle | Email
Kelsey D. Atherton | Email
Francie Diep | Email
Shaunacy Ferro | Email
Today on PopSci.com
Copyright © 2012 Popular Science
A Bonnier Corporation Company. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
Oh my [non-existent] being, I can't believe that Bubba didn't have an irrelevant comment to make about this. Math students will probably get the joke wolfram is making, since a CDF also stands for cumulative distribution function.
Now as to the article, embedding a formula here or there (like any scripting language can already do) is hardly much programming and doesn't require a software developer any more than a spreadsheet does.
The first internet viruses were embedded executable code in Microsoft Word documents!
Sounds like another plugin. I'm not that impressed. The file size 108MB?? What is up with that. I'll pass on the download for now.
As fb36 has eluded to, scripting in documents has been around for just about 17 years now.
If you listen real carefully you can hear the virus and malware developers squealing with delight.
And be nice to Bubba, every once in a great while he says something useful.
100M+... download canceled
Pretty useless and of course possibly unsafe.
And the only real value here is if they can get enough people to use it.
I love the fact that PDF was brought into this discussion as a sort of way to prove its worth or something. PDF is what it is because of the fact it was given away free and it was "static", as in I could put out my document and you couldn't change it.
Just take the example of the financial report. The last thing in the world any company would want is for someone to change the numbers in that report to allow "also manipulate the data themselves".
And at 100M+, wow! There must be a lot of images or something in it or a very inefficient language. I can embedded all of Perl (and lots of library modules for it) in less then 5 Meg.
There are ways to do this already, but they are not widely used, as mentioned, because of performance issues. It's certainly forward-looking for the current state of things. But who knows, maybe the trend of tablet computing will bring demand for interactive document formats such as this.
awful idea.
I can already imagine all of the MBA's getting their clicking fingers ready to make more stupid crap that real programmers will have to go back and re-do :(
This sounds interesting if they can make it safe to use without having to worry about major threats.
For those complaining about the download size go look at the full version of Adobe and see how much space it takes up!!! And the download size of the free version is still 50MB.
Sounds like another plugin. I'm not that impressed. The file size 108MB?? What is up with that. I'll pass on the download for now.
For those complaining about the download size go look at the full version of Adobe and see how much space it takes up!!! And the download size of the free version is still 50MB.