The study of elementary plane geometry mainly concerns straight lines and circles (and figures formed from them). As early as in the ancient Greek civilization (5th century to 3rd century BC), compasses and straight edges have been used as standard construction tools. Geometric constructions by compasses and straight edge provide an effective way to learn elementary plane geometry, as we can build up a concept of the geometric figures in the process of construction. Unfortunately, such constructions have been ignored by most people nowadays. ‘Geom Lab’ aims to let you experience the fantasy of such constructions and challenge your mind! (Please refer to Introduction to Construction by Compasses and Straight Edge.)

Here we present a dynamic geometry software prepared by ‘Mathematical Database’, called Geomtetric Drawing Pad (GDP). It can be used as a supplement to learn geomtric constructions. One important feature of this software is that one can drag the points in the diagram without damaging the geometric structure of the entire diagram. This is helpful for the learning, verification and even discovery of geometry theorems. Since this software is still in the development stage, there probably are some insufficiencies. We would be grateful to hear your opinion and suggestions.

The program is written in Java. If your browser does not support Java, please download Java Plug-in.