Customer Reviews

Computing with Hp-Adaptive Finite Elements, Vol. 2: Frontiers: Three Dimensional Elliptic and Maxwell Problems with Applications

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Computing with Hp-Adaptive Finite Elements, Vol. 1: One and Two Dimensional Elliptic and Maxwell Problems The book is very theoretical as opposed to its title, according to which one would expect how to learn to compute with hp-FEM. Lots of mistakes throughout the book make the reading very difficult. For example, I tried to learn about the screen problem for the Maxwell's equations presented in paragraph 19.4.1. After many hours spent with debugging my code I discovered that the formula for the exact solution was completely wrong! This is just one example of many. The book looks like it was written in haste. Instead of learning how to compute with hp-FEM, one finds there a lot of highly mathematical theory completed with a few sections about how to compute with the author's own code. After going through most of the practical parts of the book, I feel that I did not find what I needed.

I bought the second volume hoping I would learn something about the 3D code discussed in the book. But then I discovered that neither the serial nor the parallel version of the 3D code discussed in the book are available to the public. The only code related to the second volume that I could find on the internet is an older version of the serial code which was last updated in 2001. I then sent an e-mail to one of the author's (M. Paszynski) who told me with a straight face that the codes discussed in Volume 2 are used by the authors for research purposes and are not available to the public. I find it quite disappointing that this information is not given in the editorial review section of this book.

What is the point of writing a book about the 3D code when the code is not available?