Texas Instruments TI-83 Plus Silver Edition Manual

1/31/02 © 2002 Texas Instruments
TI-83 Plus
Solve It!
Getting Started
What is the Solve It! Application?
What You Need
Where to Find Installation Instructions
How To…
Start and Quit the Application
Use the Application
Delete the Application
More Information
Error Recovery
ti

TI-83 Plus Solve It! Application Page 2
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, Macintosh, Mac, and Mac OS are trademarks
of their respective owners.

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What Is the Solve It! Application?
Solve It! is a Handheld Software Application (App) for the
TI-83 Plus that provides challenging practice with algebra
problems at a variety of different skill levels. Solve It! is designed
to improve students’ mental math abilities by having them
identify missing elements in algebraic equations based on given
information.
Solve It! provides three levels of difficulty: Bronze (least difficult),
Silver (medium difficulty), and Gold (most difficult).
Solve It! gives encouraging, positive feedback on each problem
and at the end of each ten-problem session. After you complete
ten problems, Solve It! scores the percentage answered
correctly.
The Solve It! App 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 Solve It! App. Please send your
comments and questions to [email protected]om.

TI-83 Plus Solve It! Application Page 4
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
Notes
TI-83 Plus or TI-83 Plus Silver Edition
with version 1.14 or higher of the
operating system software
You can download a free copy of the
latest 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®
Mac® OS 7.1 or higher installed
TI-GRAPH LINK™ computer-to-
calculator cable
If you do not have this cable, call your
distributor, or order the cable from
TI’s online store.
TI-GRAPH LINK software that is
compatible with the TI-83 Plus
—or—
TI™ Connect software, which works with
all supported models of Flash-based TI
graphing calculators.
You can download free copies of
TI-GRAPH LINK and TI Connect
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 Apps are
available at education.ti.com/guides. Follow the link to Flash
installation instructions.
Note
The instructions in this guidebook are only for this App. If you need help
using the TI-83 Plus, refer to its comprehensive guidebook at
education.ti.com/guides.

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Starting and Quitting the Application
Starting the Application
1. Press
nto display the list of Apps on your calculator.
2. Select
SolveIt. The 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 LEVEL menu is
displayed.

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Quitting the Application
To quit the App, you must display the SELECT A LEVEL menu.
1. If you are on a problem screen, select BACK by pressing the
Rkey, or press \.
2. From the
SELECT A LEVEL menu, select QUIT by pressing the
Rkey, or press \.

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Navigating
•To move the cursor to a blank space in the table, use the
arrow keys (`, h, _, and a).
•To enter an element (either a number or an operation), input
the element and press ¯.
•To select an option defined at the bottom of the screen (such
as BACK associated with the Rkey), press the graphing key
directly below the option.
RSTUV
Press a graphing key
to select one of these
options. For example,
press Uto select
HELP.

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Getting Help
From the SELECT A LEVEL menu, select HELP by pressing the
Ukey.
Help screen
To return to the SELECT A LEVEL menu, press any key.
TI invites your feedback concerning the functionality and
educational value of the Solve It! App. Please send your
comments and questions to [email protected]om.

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Using the Application
From the SELECT A LEVEL menu, select the Bronze, Silver, or Gold
level.
At the Bronze level, you must calculate two different values and
enter these missing values into the table. At the Silver level, you
must calculate one value and enter this missing value into the
table. At the Gold level, you must determine a number and an
operation to enter in order to make the sentence true.
When a problem appears, it takes a few seconds to “materialize”
on the screen. If you don’t want to wait, press any key.
Notes
•To backspace over the last digit you entered, press the ^
key. To clear the entire entry, press the skey.
•Only integer values may be entered; the decimal point is not
accepted.

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•The standard order of operations applies to all algebraic
equations.
•Each value from the table is substituted for the appropriate
variable in the equation. For example, if the equation is
B = A2+7 and if A = −5, then the substitution is made as
B = (−5)2+ 7. Therefore, B = 32.
•When you finish a set of 10 problems, the results are shown.
Bronze Level
A typical problem at the Bronze level looks like this:
Bronze level screen

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Solve It! generates equations with two variables. The table below
the equations provides some of the possible values for the
variables, which are clues to help find the missing values. Each
column in the table provides values that satisfy the equation.
You must fill in the missing values. An empty cell in the table is
highlighted.
1. Press the number keys to input a number. To enter a
negative number, press ®and then the number keys.
2. Press
¯to enter the number.
Solve It! displays a message to tell you whether your solution is
correct or incorrect. If the answer is incorrect, the correct answer
is shown in parentheses.
3. Press any key to proceed. The cursor moves to the next
empty cell in the table.
Each correct answer earns 10 points. The box at the top right of
the screen shows your cumulative score.

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Silver Level
The Silver level is like the Bronze level, except that there are
only two columns of elements in the table. You must calculate
one number to complete the table.
Silver level screen
The format of the problems is a bit more difficult than the Bronze
level, and there is only one hint. Exponents may be missing from
the equations.
Gold Level
At the Gold level, you must determine a number and an
operation to enter in order to make the sentence true. One of the
missing elements may be an exponent. More than one answer
may be correct.

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The missing +, –, or …operation is represented by a question
mark within braces {?}. Solve It! does not generate equations
where a root or division operation is missing.
Gold level screen
No hints are provided in additional columns as in the Bronze and
Silver levels. At the Gold level, Solve It! does not give feedback
until both missing elements are entered.
The empty cell in the table is highlighted. You can enter the
elements in any order.
1. Depending on the missing element, input an integer or an
operation.
2. Press
`or hto move the cursor to the next empty cell in
the table.
3. Press
¯to submit your answers for the missing
elements.

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Solve It! displays a message to tell you whether your solution is
correct or incorrect. If the answer is incorrect, the correct
answers are shown in parentheses.

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Deleting the Application from Your Calculator
1. Press
\/to display the MEMORY menu.
2. Select
Mem Mgmt/Del.
3. Select
Apps.
4. Move the cursor to SolveIt.
5. Press
^. A confirmation message is displayed.
6. Select
Yes to delete the application.

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Installation Error Messages
Low Battery
Do not attempt to download a Flash application if the low-battery
message appears on the home screen. Low battery indication is
shown on the initial screen. If you receive this error during an
installation, change the batteries before trying again.
Invalid Signature or Certificate
Either this calculator does not have a certificate to run the
application, or electrical interference caused a link to fail. Try to
install the application again.
Error in Xmit
This problem is usually associated with the unit-to-unit cable and
its connection between the calculators. Make sure the cable is
firmly inserted in the link port of each calculator.

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Link Transmission Error
This error indicates that the TI™ Connect or TI-GRAPH LINK™
software is unable to communicate with the calculator. The
problem is usually associated with the TI-GRAPH LINK cable
and its connection to the calculator or to the computer.
•Make sure the cable is firmly inserted in the calculator’s link
port and the computer’s serial or USB port.
•Verify that the correct cable type is selected in the software
link settings.
•Verify that the correct communications port (Com Port) is
selected in the software link settings. (This step does not
apply if you are using the USB port and TI Connect
software.)

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Archive Full
This error occurs when the TI-83 Plus does not have sufficient
memory for the application. In order to make room for another
application, you must delete an application or archived variables
from the TI-83 Plus. Before you delete an application from the
TI-83 Plus, you can save it on your computer using TI™ Connect
or TI-GRAPH LINK™ software for the TI-83 Plus. You can reload
it to the TI-83 Plus later using the TI-GRAPH LINK or TI Connect
software.
Other Errors
See pages B-6 through B-10 in the TI-83 Plus Graphing
Calculator Guidebook for information about the specific error.

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Checking Version Numbers and Free Space
Verify Operating System Version and ID Number
The Solve It! App is compatible with the TI-83 Plus operating
system 1.14 and higher.
To verify your operating system version number:
1. From the home screen, press \/.
2. Select
ABOUT.
The operating system version number is displayed below the
product name and has the format x.yy. The ID number appears
on the line below the product number.