  In this article we test the accuracy of three platforms used in computational
modelling: MatLab, Octave and Scilab, running on i386 architecture and three
operating systems (Windows, Ubuntu and Mac OS). We submitted them to numerical
tests using standard data sets and using the functions provided by each
platform. A Monte Carlo study was conducted in some of the datasets in order to
verify the stability of the results with respect to small departures from the
original input. We propose a set of operations which include the computation of
matrix determinants and eigenvalues, whose results are known. We also used data
provided by NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology), a protocol
which includes the computation of basic univariate statistics (mean, standard
deviation and first-lag correlation), linear regression and extremes of
probability distributions. The assessment was made comparing the results
computed by the platforms with certified values, that is, known results,
computing the number of correct significant digits.
