MAED 3103 - 002 SPRING 1996

Introduction to Programming Using the TI-82 Calculator

We will now take up the concept of programming a machine. We will be using the TI-82. This calculator has more memory available to it than the early computers here on campus. The programming language on the TI-82 is much like BASIC, and we feel that you will teach much more programming on the graphing calculator than you will on the computer using BASIC. The process of programming is intended to teach several different skills. In addition, the knowledge of when you should program a computer - handheld or desktop - is just as important as how to program the computer. So, we should also be on the lookout for the appropriate places in the curriculum when we want to introduce some programming.

Our first exercise will be a program that resets the calculator to a known state. As you use your calculator in a variety of exercises or programs, you will find that you have made changes to certain functions that you forget. For example, you might have been working with one class where you are dealing with angles in degree measure. You then go into a precalculus class and try to graph y = cos(x) on the interval $[-\pi,\pi]$ . You get the following picture:

What went wrong? You forgot to put the calculator back into radian mode. Going the opposite direction can be just as disconcerting!

The DEFAULTS program defines the environment by returning , , and settings to the default values and by turning off - but not erasing - the functions and definitions.

You can use the defaults program in three ways:

Execute it before a new exercise or program.
Call it as a subroutine at the beginning of a program.
Recall () it into another program as a template for defining the environment.

We will go through the step-by-step instructions to create the program defaults. It is shown below for your convenience.

PROGRAM:DEFAULTS
:Normal	:CoordOn
:Float	:GridOff
:Radian	:AxesOn
:Func	:LabelOff
:Connected	:PlotsOff
:Sequential	:FnOff
:FullScreen	:ZStandard
:RectGC	:ClrHome

On the TI-82 programs are accessed by name, not by number. Therefore, when you create a new program, you will use the menu instead of the menu.

Press to display the menu.
Press 1 (to select ). The keyboard is set to ALPHA-LOCK. (You may use numbers in a program name, except as the first character.)
TI-82 Screen Shots
Type to name the program. Notice that after you type the S, the cursor changes to a checkerboard pattern. The tells you that the name contains the maximum of eight characters.
Press . You CANNOT change the name of a TI-82 program after you press .

The program edit screen appears. On the TI-82 you enter the program commands on the program edit screen. TI-82 Screen Shots
A program is a set of commands, steps, statements, or instructions, that are performed sequentially, as if they are entered directly from the keyboard. In a TI-82 program a : (colon) indicates the beginning of each command. The colon at the beginning of each new command line on the program edit screen is created automatically by the calculator when you press . You can enter more than one command on a command line by using the colon from the keyboard, just as on the screen.
Press . The screen that appears looks like the interactive screen with the exception that none of the items are highlighted. The flashing cursor should be on . TI-82 Screen Shots
Press . is copied to the cursor position on the program edit screen.
Press to start a new command line. The colon at the beginning of the command line is created automatically.

Press to display the screen again. Press to move the cursor to . Press to copy to the program edit screen. Press to begin a new command line. Continue this process to enter the commands for all of the default mode settings - choosing the leftmost setting from each line. TI-82 Screen Shots
Now we are ready to enter some of the graphing window defaults. Those you will find in the menu.
Press to copy to the program edit screen and start a new command line. Continue as before, selecting all of the default settings.
When we are trying to plot a function, it is extremely annoying to have a statistics plot active and have it plot a large number of points over the graph. It is also annoying to carefully set up a statistics plot and discover a graphing function sitting on top of it. and are available to be used in a program or on the screen.
Press .
Choose 4 to select , which will be copied to the program edit screen. By default the command will turn off all plots. Press to start a new line.
TI-82 Screen Shots
Now press 5 to display the on/off menu.
Choose 2 to select . works just like .
Press to start a new line.

The best way to get back to a default viewing window for most functions is to use in the menu. Press to get to the menu and choose 6 to select . TI Screen Shot
If we quit the program at this time, the last thing that you will see when the program is executed will be the graph of the standard viewing window. To clear this and leave the calculator on the .
This is hidden in the programming menu. Press . This allows you to access a special set of menus that is available only from the program editing screen because they contain commands that apply mainly to programming. TI -82 Screen Shot
Press to display the menu and then press until the cursor is on , or choose 8 to select it.
Press .
TI-82 Screen Shot

Now it is time to execute the program. You cannot execute the program from the program edit screen, so that is why we quit that screen and go to the screen.

Press . The menu is displayed, with as the name of one of the programs. Select from the menu. The instruction is copied to the screen. Press to execute the program.

MAED 3103 - Technology and Mathematics Education Spring 1996

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Last updated 1/3/96 by

David Royster david.royster@uky.edu

Press to display the menu. Press 1 (to select ). The keyboard is set to ALPHA-LOCK. (You may use numbers in a program name, except as the first character.)
Type to name the program. Notice that after you type the S, the cursor changes to a checkerboard pattern. The tells you that the name contains the maximum of eight characters. Press . You CANNOT change the name of a TI-82 program after you press .
The program edit screen appears. On the TI-82 you enter the program commands on the program edit screen.
A program is a set of commands, steps, statements, or instructions, that are performed sequentially, as if they are entered directly from the keyboard. In a TI-82 program a : (colon) indicates the beginning of each command. The colon at the beginning of each new command line on the program edit screen is created automatically by the calculator when you press . You can enter more than one command on a command line by using the colon from the keyboard, just as on the screen.
Press . The screen that appears looks like the interactive screen with the exception that none of the items are highlighted. The flashing cursor should be on .
Press . is copied to the cursor position on the program edit screen. Press to start a new command line. The colon at the beginning of the command line is created automatically.
Press to display the screen again. Press to move the cursor to . Press to copy to the program edit screen. Press to begin a new command line. Continue this process to enter the commands for all of the default mode settings - choosing the leftmost setting from each line.
Now we are ready to enter some of the graphing window defaults. Those you will find in the menu.
Press to copy to the program edit screen and start a new command line. Continue as before, selecting all of the default settings.
When we are trying to plot a function, it is extremely annoying to have a statistics plot active and have it plot a large number of points over the graph. It is also annoying to carefully set up a statistics plot and discover a graphing function sitting on top of it. and are available to be used in a program or on the screen.
Press . Choose 4 to select , which will be copied to the program edit screen. By default the command will turn off all plots. Press to start a new line.
Now press 5 to display the on/off menu. Choose 2 to select . works just like . Press to start a new line.
The best way to get back to a default viewing window for most functions is to use in the menu. Press to get to the menu and choose 6 to select .
If we quit the program at this time, the last thing that you will see when the program is executed will be the graph of the standard viewing window. To clear this and leave the calculator on the .
This is hidden in the programming menu. Press . This allows you to access a special set of menus that is available only from the program editing screen because they contain commands that apply mainly to programming.
Press to display the menu and then press until the cursor is on , or choose 8 to select it. Press .