Hp 39gs User manual

HP 39gs Graphing Calculator Quick Start Guide i

HP 39gs Graphing Calculator Quick Start Guide

Edition 1

HP Part Number: F2223-90201

ii HP 39gs Graphing Calculator Quick Start Guide

HP 39gs Graphing Calculator Quick Start Guideii

HP 39gs Graphing Calculator

HP 39gs Graphing Calculator Quick Start Guide iii

Keyboard Map Legend

The table above and the photo on the previous page illustrate a few of the many features available on the HP 39gs Graphing Calculator.

These topics, as well as other features of the calculator, are discussed in the following quick start guide. For a complete list of features of

the HP 39gs Graphing Calculator, refer to the HP 39gs Graphing Calculator User’s Guide on the product CD, and Mastering the hp

39gs & hp 40gs. These manuals are also found on the HP website, www.hp.com.

Number Feature Number Feature

1 Screen display 131 x 64 pixels 9 Enter key

2 Context-sensitive menu 10 Last Answer (ANS)

3 Context-sensitive menu keys 11 Syntax (HELPWITH)

4 HP Aplet keys 12 Alphabetic entry

5 Modes 13 List, matrix, and program editors

6 Common math and science functions 14 Delete (Clear)

7 Shift keys 15 Cursor keys

8 On (cancel) 16 Wireless connectivity

iv HP 39gs Graphing Calculator Quick Start Guide

HP 39gs Graphing Calculator Quick Start Guideiv

Legal Notices

This manual and any examples contained herein are provided "as is" and are subject to change without notice. Hewlett-Packard Company makes no war-

ranty of any kind with regard to this manual, including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability, non-infringement and fitness for a par-

ticular purpose.

Hewlett-Packard Company shall not be liable for any errors or for incidental or consequential damages in connection with the furnishing, performance, or

use of this manual or the examples contained herein.

Reproduction, adaptation, or translation of this manual is prohibited without prior written permission of Hewlett-Packard Company, except as allowed

under the copyright laws.

Hewlett-Packard Company

16399 West Bernardo Drive

MS 66M-785

San Diego, CA 92127-1899

USA

Printing History

Edition 1, August 2009

Table of Contents

HP 39gs Graphing Calculator ............................................................................................................................. ii

Keyboard Map Legend ...................................................................................................................................... iii

Legal Notices.................................................................................................................................................... iv

Introduction .......................................................................................................................................................1

The Home View .................................................................................................................................................1

Modes ..............................................................................................................................................................2

Entering and Editing Expressions..........................................................................................................................2

Menu Keys ........................................................................................................................................................2

Deleting and Clearing.........................................................................................................................................3

Last Answer .......................................................................................................................................................4

Storing Values in Variables..................................................................................................................................4

HELPWITH.........................................................................................................................................................4

Menu Keys, Choose Boxes, Input Fields and Check Boxes.......................................................................................5

The Function Aplet..............................................................................................................................................6

Aplets .............................................................................................................................................................14

The Function Aplet............................................................................................................................................15

The Solve Aplet................................................................................................................................................18

The Sequence Aplet..........................................................................................................................................21

The Statistics Aplet............................................................................................................................................24

The Inference Aplet...........................................................................................................................................28

The Parametric Aplet.........................................................................................................................................30

The Polar Aplet ................................................................................................................................................33

The StreamSmart Aplet......................................................................................................................................35

Solvers............................................................................................................................................................39

The Finance Aplet ............................................................................................................................................39

The Linear Solver Aplet .....................................................................................................................................43

The Triangle Solver Aplet ..................................................................................................................................45

Explorer Aplets ................................................................................................................................................ 46

The Quadratic Explorer Aplet ............................................................................................................................ 46

The Trig Explorer Aplet ..................................................................................................................................... 49

Building Your Aplet Library ............................................................................................................................... 52

Saving and Sharing Aplets................................................................................................................................ 52

Downloading Aplets......................................................................................................................................... 54

Backing Up Your Aplet Library........................................................................................................................... 54

Deleting Custom Aplets..................................................................................................................................... 54

Tips and Tricks Summary .................................................................................................................................. 54

More about Input Boxes, Choose Boxes, and Check Boxes ................................................................................... 54

Delete and Clear ............................................................................................................................................. 56

Advanced Features .......................................................................................................................................... 58

Lists, Matrices, and Programs ............................................................................................................................ 59

Replacing the Batteries ..................................................................................................................................... 62

Resetting the calculator ..................................................................................................................................... 63

Warranty and Contact Information..................................................................................................................... 63

Customer Care ................................................................................................................................................ 64

Product Regulatory & Environment Information..................................................................................................... 67

Getting Started 1

1GettingStarted

Introduction

The HP 39gs Graphing Calculator is an easy to use, yet powerful graphing calculator designed for secondary mathematics education and beyond. This

quick start guide covers basic tasks, such as entering and editing expressions, plotting graphs, and making tables of values. This guide also serves as an

introduction to more advanced tasks, like working with lists or matrices. It is highly recommended you refer to the HP 39gs Graphing Calculator User’s

Guide on the product CD for more information about any topic presented in this guide, and Mastering the hp 39gs & hp 40gs located at www.hp.com/

calculators to thoroughly familiarize yourself with the many features of your new calculator. This manual makes use of certain conventions with text to dif-

ferentiate between key presses and on screen display options:

• Keyboard keys are represented by CAPITAL letters.

• SHIFT, when followed by CAPITAL letters and (CAPITALS), indicates the shifted functions of the keyboard keys printed in gray above the keys

• Menu items for menu keys are also spelled out in CAPITAL letters, followed by the term, menu key

• Field names, choose box options, and other on screen text appear in BOLD

• Numbered keys are represented simply by printed numbers: 1, 5, 123.35, etc.

The Home View

Press the ON key on the keyboard to access the Home view. The HP 39gs Home view is divided into four parts, from top to bottom. There is a Header at

the top, with the name of the Aplet you're currently using and whether you are in degree (DEG) or radian (RAD) mode. Next comes the History of calcula-

tions. Below that is the Entry Line. Finally, at the bottom is the Menu for the menu keys. The top row of keys on the HP 39gs keyboard has no labels. These

are the context-sensitive menu keys. These keys take their functionality from the list of functions printed at the bottom of the display, which changes as you

use the various features of the calculator. There are six menu keys in all. See Figure 1 for an illustration of these parts of the Home view.

Figure 1 The Home View

2 Getting Started

Getting Started2

Take a moment to verify the screen is at a contrast that is comfortable to your eye. To adjust the display screen, press ON and hold it, and press either

the + (PLUS) or the - (MINUS) key repeatedly. Each press of the + or - key increases or decreases the contrast, respectively. To turn the calculator off, press

SHIFT followed by ON.

Modes

To change the angle measure, the number format, or the decimal mark character from a dot to a comma, press SHIFT followed by HOME (MODES). Use

the cursor keys to scroll through the fields. With a field highlighted, press the CHOOS menu key to see the available options, and use the cursor keys to

scroll. With your selection highlighted, press either the OK menu key to save your settings, or the CANCL menu key to cancel. Once you have set your

preferences on the Home Modes page, press the HOME key to return to the Home view.

Entering and Editing Expressions

To calculate the square root of , enter the expression then press ENTER. The HP 39gs displays the

results with 12 digits of accuracy (Figure 2).

Figure 2

Menu Keys

Now press the UP cursor key twice to highlight the expression you entered (see Figure 3). Note that two

additional menu labels are now displayed: COPY and SHOW. The SHOW command typesets the

expression using standard mathematical notation. This command is useful if you want to check that the

expression you entered - with one or more sets of parentheses - is exactly what you want. Try it out by

pressing the SHOW menu key with selected. Figure 3

---

Getting Started 3

Your display should look like Figure 4. Press the OK menu key when you are ready to continue.

Figure 4

Deleting and Clearing

Press the COPY menu key to see the expression pasted into the entry line as shown in Figure 5. If you had

meant to enter , you can fix it by moving the insert cursor over the 3 by pressing the LEFT cursor key

twice, followed by DEL, then 5. Press ON (CANCEL) to cancel any entry, or ENTER to execute the new

calculation.

Figure 5

While entering data in the entry line, you can use the delete key (DEL) to delete any character. If the insert cursor is at the end of an entry, pressing DEL

deletes the last character. In other words, the DEL key functions like a backspace key when it is at the end of an entry. In Figure 5, pressing the DEL key

deletes the right parenthesis.

Note that the shift of the DEL key is CLEAR. Use CLEAR to clear the entire entry line, or press the ON key to cancel any entry. Use the History to show all

your work as you solve problems. If you make a mistake, delete the lines from the History by using the DEL key. Again, note that the shift of the DEL key

is CLEAR. Use the CLEAR command to delete the entire history. But be careful - there is no undo for this action!

---

4 Getting Started

Getting Started4

Last Answer

If you’d like to retrieve your last answer, you can using a feature called, Answer (ANS).Press SHIFT fol-

lowed by ENTER (ANS). See Figure 6.

Figure 6

Press ENTER once again to return your last answer to the calculation history, as shown in Figure 7.

Figure 7

Storing Values in Variables

Now let’s store our numeric approximation of and label it in the variable A. With the screen displayed

in Figure 7, press the STO menu key. Press the ALPHA key, followed by VARS (the key for the letter A) and

then press ENTER. To verify you stored the value in A, press ALPHA, then VARS (A), followed by ENTER.

Your stored value appears as shown in Figure 8. Note how letters of the alphabet are printed in blue on

the keyboard below and to the lower right of many of the keys. Figure 8

HELPWITH

As you work, you can find help with a command using the HELPWITH feature. This feature is accessed by pressing SHIFT followed by 2 (SYNTAX). At the

prompt, enter the function for which you require syntax help. The HELPWITH command is only available in the Home view.

---

Getting Started 5

Menu Keys, Choose Boxes, Input Fields and Check Boxes

Menu Keys

The bottom of the display contains a menu of up to six items. Use the blank menu keys located below the

display to access these commands and functions.

Figure 9

Choose Box

To change the value in a Choose Box, press the CHOOS menu key, and a list of options appears. Scroll to

a new selection and press the OK menu key. You can press the CANCL menu key to return to the previous

value.

Figure 10

Input Field

To enter data in an input field, scroll to the field and either press the EDIT menu key to begin editing the

current value or begin typing a new value or expression. The value or expression you are entering will

appear at the bottom of the display, above the menu.

Figure 11

Check Box

Toggle the option in a Check Box off or on by using the CHK menu key.

Figure 12

6 Getting Started

Getting Started6

The Function Aplet

The HP 39gs comes from the factory with the Function Aplet as the default Aplet. Notice the current Aplet name is shown in the display header. The Func-

tion Aplet contains all the features commonly used to explore functions, including plotting graphs of one or more functions, exploring tables of function val-

ues, and finding points of interest (roots, extrema, intersections, etc.). These features are presented in one or more views of the Function Aplet.

To enter the Function Aplet, press APLET, press the UP or DOWN cursor keys to scroll to the Function option in the Aplet Library, and press the START menu

key. The Function Aplet opens in its Symbolic view.

Function Symbolic View

The Symbolic view is used to store and manage symbolic representations of functions. You can press SYMB to return to this view at any time.

You can define up to ten functions, F1(X) through F9(X) and F0(X). Figure 13 shows the Function Symbolic

View with no functions defined and F1(X) highlighted.

Note the new menu labels. The EDIT menu key opens an input box to edit the chosen definition, in this

case, F1(X).

Figure 13

You do not have to press the EDIT menu key to start a definition. Simply start typing and the input box will

open. Enter the expression in F1(X), as shown in Figure 14, and press ENTER or the OK menu key.

Hint: use the Xmenu key as a typing aid.

Figure 14

3x2

-----–

Getting Started 7

Function Plot View

The Function Plot view displays the graphs of functions and provides you with the tools you need to explore these graphs. Here you can trace along a

graph, find roots and intersections, and estimate the area between curves. In this section, we continue the example from the last section using

and .

Next, enter in F2(X) and press ENTER. Your completed Function Symbolic View should be the same

as that shown in Figure 15. Note the CHK menu key. This menu key toggles each function definition on and

off for graphing and table-building. The check mark indicates an item is selected. The EVAL menu key

resolves references. If F2(X)=3-F1(X), pressing the EVAL menu key returns . The

SHOW menu key performs the same function it does in the Home view.

Figure 15

Press PLOT to see the graphs of the functions in the current window. See Figure 16.

Figure 16

---–

F2X() 33

-----–

⎝⎠

⎛⎞

–=

F1X() 3x2

-----–=

F2X() 1x

---–=

8 Getting Started

Getting Started8

Before we continue, let's look at the default window settings. Press SHIFT followed by PLOT to open the

Function Plot Setup, as shown in Figure 17. The HP 39gs has 131 pixel columns, allowing the cursor to

make 130 steps from one vertical edge of the display to the other. The default setting for the horizontal

range (XRNG) is [-6.5, 6.5], a distance of 13 units. Thus, each pixel has a width of 0.1 units, very

convenient for tracing. Likewise, the display has 64 pixel rows, allowing the cursor 63 vertical steps. The

default YRNG of [-3.1, 3.2] makes the height of each pixel 0.1. The result is that the pixels are square,

graphs are accurately plotted, and tracing increments x-values by 0.1. Figure 17

Return to the graphs by pressing the PLOT key. Press the MENU key to restore the menu (Figure 18). The

menu consists of 6 items:

•ZOOM opens the Zoom menu, with options to zoom in or out, etc.

•TRACE toggles the tracing cursor on and off. When active, it appears as in Figure 18, with a small

square replacing the letter Ein TRACE

•GOTO lets you find any point on the curve being traced by entering a value for x.

•FCN opens the Function menu, with the following commands:

•Root

•Intersection

• Extremum (Maximum or Minimum)

•Slope

• Signed Area (the area under a curve or between two curves)

•DEFN displays the definition of the function being traced

•MENU toggles the menu on and off

Figure 18

Press the MENU key once to hide the menu. Then press the same key again to bring up the tracer

coordinates. This illustrates that tracing can occur with or without the tracer coordinates displayed.

We continue our introduction to the Plot view by finding the root of F1(X) at . Use the LEFT and

RIGHT cursor keys to trace along F1(X). Use the UP and DOWN cursor keys to move between F1(X) and

F2(X). In Figure 19, the tracer has been moved along F1(X) to the pixel closest to the root at .

Figure 19

x23=

Getting Started 9

The HP 39gs uses the current cursor location for tasks such as finding roots, intersections, and slope at a

point. To find the best numerical approximation to the root, press the MENU key to restore the menu, press

the FCN menu key to see the list of options, and select the ROOT command (Figure 20). Press the OK menu

key. The result, accurate to 12 digits, is shown in Figure 21.

Figure 20

Figure 21

Let's find the intersection of the two graphs at (4, -1). With the cursor at its current location at the root, return

to the menu, press the FCN menu key, select the Intersection option, and press the OK menu key. The HP

39gs uses the current function being traced as one of the curves involved in the intersection; you must

choose the other curve from a list, as shown in Figure 22. All active graphs, as well as the x-axis, are

included in this list. With F2(X) highlighted as in Figure 22, press the OK menu key. The results are shown

in Figure 23, in which the intersection found at (4, -1) is displayed.

Figure 22

10 Getting Started

Getting Started10

Function Numeric View

The Function Numeric view provides a table of values for all active functions, as well as the tools needed to explore the table of values. You can define

the starting x-value for the table, zoom in or out on a row in the table, etc. In this section, we continue the example in the Function Plot view section with

and .

Press the Menu key to restore the menu and explore some of the other options in the Function Plot view.

Refer to the HP 39gs Graphing Calculator User’s Guide on the product CD for more details.

Figure 23

Press NUM to see the table with the default settings. Figure 24 shows the table starting at x=0, with x-

values that increase by 0.1. Use the UP and DOWN cursor keys to scroll in a column, or the LEFT and

RIGHT cursor keys to move from column to column.

Figure 24

F1X() 3x2

-----–=

F2X() 1x

---–=

Getting Started 11

Remember that F1(X) has a root near x=3.5. You can use the DOWN cursor key to scroll to x=3.5, but

there is an easier way to get to any x-value you wish. Simply move the highlight bar to any cell in the x-

column and type in the value you wish to see. The table will automatically reconfigure itself accordingly. In

Figure 25, the highlight bar has been moved to the value x=0.3 and the value 3.5 is entered in the entry

line.

Figure 25

Press ENTER to see the result shown in Figure 26.

Figure 26

With the x-value 3.5 highlighted, press the ZOOM menu key followed by the OK menu key to select the

ZOOM In option. Figure 27 shows the result. The x-value, 3.5, remains where it was in the table, but the

step between x-values has changed from 0.1 to 0.025; in other words, we have zoomed in from 1/10 to

1/40, a factor of 4 (the default zoom factor).

Figure 27

12 Getting Started

Getting Started12

Now we can see that x=3.475 is a closer estimate to the root. Highlight this value and zoom in again to

get a third, more accurate approximation. This process can be continued, just like zooming in on a point

on a graph! Figure 28 shows the second zoom as described above, with x=3.4625 as the latest estimate

of the root.

Figure 28

Press SHIFT followed by NUM to see the Function Numeric Setup view, as shown in Figure 29. The

NUMSTART value is the x-value at the top of the table, as seen in Figure 28. The name is somewhat of a

misnomer, since one can scroll above this value. The NUMSTEP value shown in Figure 29 also corresponds

to the two zooms performed on the default step value of 0.1.

Figure 29

There are two options under the NUMTYPE field. The default option is Automatic, which means that the HP

39gs will supply x-values and function values in a table defined by the Function Numeric Setup view. The

other option is Build Your Own. With this option, the HP 39gs presents a blank table. The user enters x-

values of his/her choosing, and the calculator records those x-values and supplies the corresponding

function values.

Figure 30

Getting Started 13

Delete restores the default value for any field, whether the value is numeric or an option from a list.

Highlight the NUMSTART field and press DEL to see the default NUMSTART value of zero restored, as

shown in Figure 31. Pressing SHIFT followed by DEL (CLEAR) restores all default values in a menu.

Figure 31

Press SHIFT followed by DEL (CLEAR) to see all fields returned to their default values, as shown in

Figure 32.

Figure 32

Finally, note the menu key. If you press this key, the table of x-values will correspond exactly to the

tracer values in the PLOT view. This way, you can see the same values in both the Plot and Numeric views!

Press . The message box shows you the default minimum x-value from Figure 17 as the NumStart

value and the default pixel width of 0.1 as the NumStep value (see Figure 33). To escape, press the

CANCL menu key. At this point, press the OK menu key to accept these values.

Figure 33

14 Getting Started

Getting Started14

Aplets

Introduction

Much of the functionality of the HP 39gs is partitioned into packages called Aplets. The HP 39gs comes with 13 HP Aplets, and more can be found

online. Each Aplet is designed to address a specific mathematical topic or set of tasks.

The key to working with HP Aplets is to understand that they were designed to have a similar structure. That structure is illustrated by a set of six keys,

located in two rows of three keys each near the top left of the HP 39gs keyboard. The keys in the first row are SYMB, PLOT, and NUM; the keys in the sec-

ond row are HOME, APLET, and VIEWS. As you saw in the previous section on the Function Aplet, SYMB, PLOT, and NUM control the Symbolic, Graphic,

and Numeric views of the Aplet, which are the main views of all of the Aplets. Two other views, Plot Setup and Numeric Setup, are found by pressing the

SHIFT of PLOT and NUM. Finally, a few Aplets use a Symbolic Setup view, found by pressing SHIFT followed by SYMB. All the data in these views are

saved with the Aplet. Pressing HOME always takes you to the calculation history, which is not part of any Aplet, and thus not saved with any Aplet.

Finally, pressing VIEWS will show you any additional special views that a particular Aplet might have.

Aplets are launched from the Aplet Library. Press APLET and use the UP and DOWN cursor keys to select an Aplet from the library. To launch the Aplet,

press the START menu key, or ENTER.

As you work in an Aplet, you enter data such as definitions of functions, window settings, and preferences of one sort or another. The Aplet records all of

this data and automatically saves it for you. If you leave the Aplet and come back later, all that data is still there. In fact, you can save the Aplet with a