What is a Vector

A vector has two things: a size and a direction. Change either one and you have a different vector. Here you start with one vector A and turn on nine things one at a time — its length, its angle, a copy of it somewhere else, its opposite, and vectors that point the same way, the opposite way, or out of the flat plane entirely.

Controls

Nine reveals, each a separate button: Magnitude, Direction, Equal vector, Negative, Null vector, Parallel, Anti-parallel, Coplanar, Non-coplanar. Turn on as many as you like. RESET switches them all off.

Variables and outputs

A is drawn from the origin and stays fixed. Magnitude shows its length as |A| = 3.61. Direction draws the angle from the x-axis, 33.69°. Equal vector puts an identical copy elsewhere on the plane, and you can drag it around — same size, same direction, different place, still the same vector. Turning on Coplanar or Non-coplanar tilts the view into 3D so you can see which vectors lie flat together and which one lifts out.

Model assumptions

A cannot be changed. Its values are fixed so the vocabulary stays the focus.

Learning objective

You should be able to look at two arrows and say whether they are equal, parallel, anti-parallel, or none of those.