7.9.2 Greatest hits from previous weeks

7.9.2.1 Mathematica vs. Python - how does Mathematica compare to Python's scientific computing suite?

https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=question&id=86058

Python's family of packages for scientific computing has matured rapidly. I can pretty much replicate all of Mathematica's functionalities, but with production level and open-source code using the ... 
[python] [system-performance]
 

asked by M.R. https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=403 49 votes

answered by Jens https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=245 36 votes

7.9.2.2 Exporting graphics to PDF - huge file

https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=question&id=1542

I want to draw some basic surfaces, export them to PDF and include them in a LaTeX file.  I create a simple 3D graphics object, for instance with 
 
... 
[graphics] [export] [pdf-format]
 

asked by Matthew Leingang https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=395 109 votes

answered by Heike https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=46 88 votes

7.9.2.3 How do I plot a plane EM wave?

https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=question&id=1987

I would like to display an electromagnetic (EM) wave.  I have written code that works, but it does not "shade" the area between the graph and the axes.  Both the ... 
[graphics] [physics] [visualization]
 

asked by Rainforest Frog https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=202 22 votes

answered by J. M.'s ennui https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=50 16 votes

7.9.2.4 How to create animated snowfall?

https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=question&id=16881

Well, the title is self-explanatory. What sorts of snowfall can we generate using Mathematica? There are two options I suggest to consider: 
 
1) Continuous GIF animations with smallest possible number ... 
[dynamic] [random] [animation] [generative-art]
 

asked by faleichik https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=219 40 votes

answered by Simon Woods https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=862 54 votes

7.9.2.5 Image processing: Floor plan - detecting rooms' borders (area) and room names' texts

https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=question&id=19546

Here is a simple building floor plan. I would like to derive the rooms as (rectangular) components and the names of the rooms. This is very common representation of building floor plans. 
 
The problem 
 
... 
[image-processing]
 

asked by s.s.o https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=840 64 votes

answered by Niki Estner https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=242 59 votes

7.9.2.6 Calculate the 2D Fourier transform of an Image

https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=question&id=29203

I am new to Mathematica, and using version 8.0. 
 
I would like to calculate the 2D Fourier Transform of an  Image  with Mathematica and plot the magnitude and phase ... 
[image-processing] [image] [fourier-analysis]
 

asked by user8727 https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=8727 17 votes

answered by Nasser https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=70 33 votes

7.9.2.7 What are the most common pitfalls awaiting new users?

https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=question&id=18393

As you may already know, Mathematica is a wonderful piece of software. 
However, it has a few characteristics that tend to confuse new (and sometimes not-so-new) users. That can be clearly seen from ... 
[programming] [core-language] [faq] [guidelines]
 

asked by Dr. belisarius https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=193 482 votes

answered by Michael E2 https://mathematica.stackexchange.com/landing/r/digest?cta=user&id=4999 288 votes