Chemistry application and programs on the personal computer (Macintosh)

This is a report of a Year 11, High School intern, who spend some time working under my guidance, back in 1993. Introduction: This report is a part of my participation in,the 1993 CSIRO Student Research Scheme, the project title being Molecular Chemistry on the Supercomputer. As an introduction to the project, it was decided that I start off researching smaller programs for the personal computer, rather than large supercomputational programs, which I will study later on in the project. The aim of this report is to give a summary of the various computer programs and applications available in the study of chemistry today, which can be accessed from computer network archives around the world. It is aimed at anyone with a personal computer, in this case a Macintosh, but primarily at secondary school teachers who wish to provide a broader range of learning tools for their students. It is also intended to serve as a guide for obtaining these programs from world networks. To obtain these applications, it is necessary to obtain access to a computer which can access world networks. This can be done at any AARNet site. AARNet is short for Australian Academic Research Network, and can be used by making the appropriate enquiries at your local university, asking for the AARNet administrator. Schools can also set up links to the world "Internet" by subscribing to a commercial service (eg. CompuServe), by setting up a FIDOnet node, or dialling to a public access site. For information on the Internet system, see section 3.1 below. There are basically two types of chemistry programs available for the Macintosh: - HyperCard stack applications; - Molecular modelling programs. The main focus of this report is those programs which can be obtained free-of-charge, or as shareware, from world networks, and which I have found myself. For information on other software, one can consult the Directory of Chemistry Software (see reference 6, section 4.) HyperCard stack applications are available on the Macintosh, and can take the form of tutorials, quiz programs, or databases. They are designed to teach fundamental principles of chemistry, and can be very useful for students. Molecular modelling applications are programs which enable the user to visualise different molecules or lattices from a library of molecules, and to rotate or manipulate them on the screen. Programs such as this include .....