What is Frink?
Frink is an open-source programming language and calculation tool optimized for unit conversions and calculations. Developed by Alan Eliasen, Frink aims to be an industrial-strength calculation engine with support for physical quantities and units.
Some key features of Frink include:
- Powerful math and statistics functions, including symbolic algebra and calculus capabilities
- Specialized unit knowledge base allowing dimensional analysis and conversions between thousands of units
- Flexible object-oriented programming language to build custom calculations and applications
- Interfaces to Java, Python, MATLAB, Excel, and other systems
- Built-in currency exchange rates, constants, and date/time functions
- Internationalization support through Unicode and translations
Frink runs on Java and is available for Windows, Mac, Linux, and Unix platforms. The GNU GPL open-source license allows it to be freely used, modified, and distributed. Frink is commonly used for science and engineering applications like heat transfer, physics modeling, energy calculations, and more.