Tracker

Tracker is a free, open‑source application built on the Open Source Physics Java framework for analysing video footage and creating corresponding physics models. It supports a range of video formats—including MP4, AVI, WMV, FLV, MOV, animated GIFs, and image sequences—allowing users to import and examine motion data directly from recordings or image sets. The software bundles its own Java virtual machine and video engine, enabling it to run on macOS, Windows, and Linux without additional dependencies, and it can be launched from a USB drive for portable use.

The tool is aimed at educators, students, and researchers who need to extract quantitative information from real‑world motion and compare it with theoretical models. Built‑in help resources, multilingual documentation, and video tutorials guide newcomers through basic operations such as tracking objects, plotting trajectories, and fitting data to physics equations. By integrating video analysis with computational modeling, Tracker facilitates interactive exploration of concepts such as kinematics, dynamics, and energy conservation.

Tracker’s distinctive features include a native video engine, support for over two million users in 31 languages, and the ability to run without installation on a portable drive. Its open‑source nature encourages community contributions and extensions, while the bundled Java VM ensures consistent performance across platforms.