Test set for initial value problem solvers

The CWI test set for IVP solvers presents a collection of Initial Value Problems to test solvers for implicit differential equations. This test set can both decrease the effort for the code developer to test his software in a reliable way, and cross the bridge between the application field and numerical mathematics. This document contains the descriptive part of the test set. It describes the test problems and their origin, and reports on the behavior of a few state-of-the-art solvers on these problems. The latest version of this document and the software part of the test set is available via the world wide web at url{http://www.cwi.nl/cwi/projects/IVPtestset/. The software part serves as a platform on which one can test the performance of a solver on a particular test problem oneself. Instructions how to use this software are in this paper as well. The idea to develop this test set was discussed at the workshop ODE to NODE, held in Geiranger, Norway, 19--22 June~1995.