Texas Instruments TI-73 Explorer Quick start guide

10/8/2002 © 2002 Texas Instruments
TI-73 / TI 83 Plus
Guess My Coefficients
Getting Started
Starting and Quitting the Application
How To…
Use On-Screen Options and Menus
Change Game Options
Select a Game
Enter Coefficients and Constants
Use Hints
More Information
Getting Help
Error Recovery
TI

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Important Information
Texas Instruments makes no warranty, either expressed or
implied, including but not limited to any implied warranties of
merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, regarding
any programs or book materials and makes such materials
available solely on an "as-is" basis.
In no event shall Texas Instruments be liable to anyone for
special, collateral, incidental, or consequential damages in
connection with or arising out of the purchase or use of these
materials, and the sole and exclusive liability of Texas
Instruments, regardless of the form of action, shall not exceed
any applicable purchase price of this item or material. Moreover,
Texas Instruments shall not be liable for any claim of any kind
whatsoever against the use of these materials by any other
party.
Graphing product applications (Apps) are licensed. See the
terms of the license agreement for this product.
Microsoft, Windows, Windows NT, Apple, and Macintosh are trademarks of their
respective owners.

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What Is the Guess My Coefficients
Application?
The Guess My Coefficients application familiarizes you with
various forms of linear, quadratic, and absolute value functions.
You determine the coefficients and constants (value such as
roots and intercepts) for a function by viewing the graph of the
function. If you need help, a HINT option shows points on the
graph and lets you trace the graph.
The Guess My Coefficients application is a concept application
that TI wants to share with our customers, educators, and
students before the product definition and testing are complete. It
is an alpha software version, and as such, it may contain
imperfections, or the coding may be incomplete.
TI invites your feedback concerning the functionality and
educational value of the Guess My Coefficients application.
Please send your comments and questions to
[e-mail].

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What You Need
Note In this guidebook, any information that pertains to the TI-83 Plus also
pertains to the TI-83 Plus Silver Edition, unless otherwise noted.
Hardware and Software Note
TI-73 with version 1.60 or latest version
of the Graph Explorer software
—or—
TI-83 Plus or TI-83 Plus Silver Edition
with version 1.15 or latest version of
the operating system (OS) software
You can download a free copy of
the latest Graph Explorer or
operating system software from
education.ti.com/softwareupdates.
Follow the link to Operating
Systems.
Computer with Microsoft ® Windows®
95/98/2000, Windows NT®, or Apple®
MacIntosh® OS 7.1 or higher installed
TI-GRAPH LINK™ computer-to-device
cable If you do not have this cable, call your distributor or order the cable
from the TI on-line store.
TI Connect™ software, which works
with most supported models of Flash-
based TI graphing devices.
—or—
TI-GRAPH LINK software that is
compatible with the TI-73 or the
TI-83 Plus
You can download free copies of
TI Connect and TI-GRAPH LINK
software from
education.ti.com/softwareupdates.
Follow the link to Connectivity
Software.

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Where to Find Installation Instructions
Detailed instructions on installing this and other applications are
available at education.ti.com/guides. Follow the link to Flash
Installation Instructions.
Getting Help
The instructions in this guidebook are only for this application. If
you need help using the TI-73 or TI-83 Plus, refer to its
comprehensive guidebook at education.ti.com/guides.
For this application, help is available for each game from the
SELECT A GAME and OPTIONS screens, and from each SELECT A
FUNCTION screen.
1. Select HELP to display the HELP screen.
2. Press }and †to scroll through the help text.
3. Select BACK to leave the HELP screen and return to the
previous screen.

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Starting and uitting the Application
Starting the Application
1. Press Œto display the list of applications on your TI-73 or
TI-83 Plus.
2. Select GuesCoef. The application’s information screen is
displayed.
3. Press any key to continue. The programmer’s screen is
displayed.
4. Press any key to continue. The SELECT A GAME menu is
displayed.
Quitting the Application
From the SELECT A GAME screen, select QUIT (press o) or press
y 5.

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Navigating within the Application
Selecting Menu Items
You can select menu items in the following ways:
•Press }or †to highlight the menu item, and then press
Íto select it.
•Press the number key that corresponds to the menu item.
Using On-Screen Options
Each screen displays one or more options along the bottom of
the screen. To select an option, press the graphing key directly
below the option.
o
p
q
r
s
For example,
press sto
select HELP.

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Setting Game Options
You can set three different options for the games. The options
that you select apply to every function type (game) on the
SELECT A GAME screen.
Option Description
Fixed Number
of Problems The game consists of the defined number of problems displayed on the right side of the screen, no matter how many
incorrect answers you give. When this option is not selected,
you play the game until you have given three incorrect
answers.
Give One
Retry You have two chances per problem to input the correct answer.
Show Grid Displays the grid with the graph of the function.
1. From the SELECT A GAME screen, select OPTIONS to display
the GAME OPTIONS screen.
2. Press }or †to highlight an option.
Number of problems box

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3. Select Ÿor press Íto toggle the checkboxes.
4. Select BACK to confirm your changes and return to the
SELECT A GAME screen.
Changing the Number of Problems
1. On the GAME OPTIONS scree, press }or †to highlight the
number of problems box and then press Í.
2. Enter the number of problems (1-99) and then press Í.
Tip If you make a mistake when you enter the number of problems,
you can correct this in one of the following ways:
•Press ‘to delete the entire number.
•Press |to delete the last digit of the number.
Press Íto confirm your changes or y5to discard.
3. Select BACK to confirm your changes and return to the
SELECT A GAME screen.

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Selecting a Game
1. Select the function type to play from the SELECT A GAME
screen.
2. Select a function form from the SELECT A FUNCTION screen to
start the game.
The following function forms are available:
Function Type Form
Linear y = mx + b
ax + by = c
Quadratic y = a·x² + k
y = a·(x – h)² + k
y = a·(x – r)(x – s)
Absolute Value y = a·|x| + k
y = a·|x – h| + k
Tip You can also play the game with multiple function types instead of
just one type. From the SELECT A GAME screen, select ALL or
LINEAR & QUADRATIC or from the function-specific screens, select
BOTH / ALL FORMS.