eChem: An Applet for Structure Building and Analysis
The eChem applet was produced by Hi-Ce.org, (HIGHLY INTERACTIVE CLASSROOMS, CURRICULA, COMPUTING IN EDUCATION) at the University of Michigan. The Java application can be downloaded from their website, but it has been my experience that getting it to run on Windows machines, particularly XP, is a hit-or-miss proposition. I found eChem to be a highly useful application for teaching molecular structures and hybrid bonding, but it is no longer being developed or supported by Hi-CE. I have posted it here as an applet in order to circumvent the installation and execution difficulties we experienced when running it as an application.
As described on the eChem website:
eChem is a software tool designed to support the learning of chemistry principles by creating virtual, three-dimensional models of molecules. In addition, eChem allows users to simultaneously visualize multiple representations of molecules and compare properties of molecules. Users can compare computationally predicted properties of the molecules they create with properties observed in a laboratory. All views and modules of eChem are linked together, allowing the user to easily switch between various representations of the molecule.Play around with the applet -- you will be amazed at how much you can learn! (eChem Manual in PDF format)