This document provides an overview of Octave, an open-source alternative to MATLAB. It begins with an introduction describing Octave as a high-level programming language used for matrix computations. It then discusses Octave's history and development. The document outlines some key issues for MATLAB users in switching to Octave, including its free and open-source licensing. It also provides technical details on how Octave is written and implemented. The remainder of the document covers important Octave commands, introduces matrices and vectors, and describes plotting, functions, scripts, and the main differences between Octave and MATLAB.