Texas Instruments TI-83 Plus Silver Edition Manual

6/20/03 © 2003 Texas Instruments
TI-83 Plus
TImeSpan™ Viewer
Getting Started
What Is the TImeSpan™ Viewer Application?
What You Need
Where to Find Installation Instructions
How To…
Start and Quit the Application
Select Topics and Timelines
View and Navigate Timelines
Zoom In and Out
Change the Way Dates Are Shown
Delete the Application
More Information
Error Recovery
Customer Support
ti

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 2
Important Information
Texas Instruments makes no warranty, either express 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.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 3
What Is the TImeSpan™ Viewer Application?
TImeSpan™ Viewer is a handheld software application (App) for
the TI-83 Plus and TI-83 Plus Silver Edition that you use to view
electronic timelines created with the TImeSpan Creator software on
acomputer.
TImeSpan Viewer is an excellent aid in teaching or studying:
•History, economics, and other social studies
•Discoveries and inventions in science and technology
•Events in literature, music, and art
0000000000000
0000000000000
0000000000000
00
00000000
0000000
0000000
0000000
0
0
00000000
Teacher creates topics
using TImeSpan Creator
on the computer.
Topics are transferred
using TI Connect™
software and a TI
Connectivity Cable.
Students use TImeSpan
Viewer to select a topic
and view its timelines on
the handheld device.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 4
TImeSpan™ Creator is a Windows® computer software application
that teachers or students can use to create topic files containing
multiple timelines, which can then be viewed on the TI-83 Plus.
You can use the TImeSpan Creator or TI Connect™ software to
transfer topics from the computer to the TI-83 Plus. For detailed
information on how to use the TImeSpan Creator, see the
TImeSpan Creator Help.
Up to three timelines may be viewed at a time on the handheld.
Students can compare one series of events with other events as
they happen concurrently.
TImeSpan information is structured as follows.
• Topics are files or application variables (AppVars) that contain
a collection of timelines. Each topic can have up to 20
timelines. A topic must have at least one timeline.
• Timelines are stored within a topic. The TImeSpan Viewer can
display up to three timelines at a time. Each timeline can
contain up to 250 events.
• Events are included in each timeline. Each event must have a
unique name and a date. The event description is optional.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 5
Topic
Timeline1
Timeline2
Timeline3
Event
Event
Event
Event
Event
Event
Event
Event
Event
General information structure
20th Century
Sport
Heroes
Jazz
Giants
Battles Desert
Storm
Pearl
Harbor
1941
Jessie
Owens
1938
Ben
Hogan
Hank
Aaron
1955 1975
1948 1963 1966
La Drang
Valley
1965 1990
Bird Miles Trane
Example: A topic named 20th Century includes three timelines, each of which
has its own events.
The TImeSpan™ Viewer can display timeline names up to 20
characters long, including spaces.
Each Topic can have up to
20 Timelines.
Each Timeline can have up
to 250 Events.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 6
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 1.16 or later of the
operating system software.
Download a free copy of the latest
operating system software from
education.ti.com/softwareupdates. Look
for the TI-83 Plus Operating System.
TI Connectivity computer-to-device
cable. If you do not have this cable, call your distributor, or order the cable from TI’s
online store.
Computer with Microsoft® Windows®
95/98/ME/2000/XP, Windows NT®, or
Apple® Mac® OS 7.1 or later.
You can use a Macintosh to install the
App or transfer topic AppVars, but not to
create TImeSpan topics.
TI Connect™ software 1.2.1 or later
for Windows or 1.0 for Macintosh. Download free copies of TI Connect software from
education.ti.com/softwareupdates.
Follow the links to Computer Software
and Connectivity Software.
Optional: TImeSpan™ Creator
computer software application
(Windows only) to create TImeSpan
topics.
Download a free copy of TImeSpan™
Creator software from
education.ti.com/softwareupdates.
Follow the link to Computer Software.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 7
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.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 8
Starting and Quitting the Application
Starting the Application
1. Press Œto display the list of Apps on your TI-83 Plus.
2. Select TImeSpan. The information screen displays.
3. Press any key to continue. If at least one topic is found on your
TI-83 Plus, the MAIN MENU displays.
First-time Main Menu Normal Main Menu
If a topic file is not found on your TI-83 Plus, the following message displays.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 9
You must transfer at least one file created in TImeSpan™ Creator
to use the TImeSpan Viewer.
Quitting the Application
To quit the App, you must return to the MAIN MENU.
1. If you are on a timeline screen, press y5to return to the
MAIN MENU.
2. From the MAIN MENU, press y5to quit the application.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 10
sing Menus and Options
To select a menu option on the TI-83 Plus, either move the cursor
to highlight the option and press Í, or press the number that
corresponds to the menu option.
To select an option defined at the bottom of the screen (such as
EXIT associated with the qkey), press the graphing key
directly below the option.
Press a graphing key to
select one of these options.
For example, press q
to
select EXIT.
o
p
q
r
s

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 11
Selecting Topics and Timelines
1. From the MAIN MENU, select NEW TOPIC. The SELECT A TOPIC
screen displays.
2. Select a topic name. The information screen for the topic
displays.
3. Press any key to display the TIMELINES screen.
4. Press ~or |to highlight the number of timelines you want to
display at a time: (1, 2, or 3), and then select NEXT.
Alternatively, you can press À, Á, or Â.
The ORDER THE TIMELINES screen displays.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 12
5. Use the †and }keys to highlight the timeline you want to
display at the top of the screen, and then press Í.
Note If you change your mind, press {to undo your last selection.
6. Use the †and }keys to highlight other timelines you want to
display and press Í.
7. Select NEXT.
The timelines are displayed in the order you selected them.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 13
Viewing and Navigating Timelines
You can view one, two, or three timelines at a time, depending on
the choices you make when you select your timelines and put them
in order. All of these timelines are collected within a single topic.
Viewing one timeline Viewing two timelines Viewing three timelines
The beginning and ending dates for the current window view
display in the bottom corners of the screen. Each mark on a
timeline represents an event in time.
Viewing multiple timelines lets you compare and contrast events
within a topic. The cursor blinks to indicate the current event and
timeline.
• To move the cursor from one timeline to another, use the up or
down arrow keys (}or †).
• To move the cursor forward or backward on a timeline, use the
right or left arrow keys (~or |). As you move, the line above
the cursor displays the event name.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 14
• To move to the first event in the timeline, press y|. To
move to the last event, press y~.
• To view the full description and date of a single event on a
timeline, press Í. If the description continues beyond the
limits of the display, press †. To return to the timeline view,
select BACK.
• To return to the MAIN MENU, select MENU.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 15
Setting the Window View
Initially, the window view includes the first 25% of the topic’s entire
time span (unless there are 10 or fewer events), beginning with the
year of the earliest event on the left.
If you prefer, you can change the window view to “zoom in” to a
shorter time period or “zoom out” to a longer time period.
1. From the MAIN MENU, select WINDOW VIEW. The first statement
on this screen displays the beginning and ending dates for the
current timelines.
The second statement displays the beginning and ending dates
for the current window view.
1841 marks the first
quarter of the range
of the displayed
timelines.
1820 is the
publication date for
Sleepy Hollow, the
first event in the
Authors timeline.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 16
The cursor is at the beginning date for the window view.
2. Enter the necessary digits to set a new beginning date for the
window view. If you want to change between AD and BC, press
}or †.
3. Press ~to advance to the next date.
4. Enter the digits to set a new ending date for the window view. If
you want to change between AD and BC, press }or †.
Tip If you want to reset the window view dates to the original window
view, select RESET.
5. Select ENTER or press Íto complete your changes and
view the timelines within the newly defined window view.
Any time you want to change or reset the dates for the window
view, select WINDOW VIEW from the MAIN MENU.
Changed dates for window view.
When you change the dates, you
are not changing the original time
and date.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 17
Setting the Date Shown Options
The DATE SHOWN screen lets you set preferences for how dates
are viewed.
1. Select OPTIONS from the MAIN MENU.
2. Press the arrow keys to move the cursor to the option you want
to change.
3. Press Íto either select (show) or clear (hide) the date
options that are available in the topic. A preview of how the
date will be displayed is at the lower left of the screen.
The options on this screen will vary according to the information
included in the topic when it was created. For example, the Date
Shown screen displays options for month, day, hour, or minute only
if that information was included in the currently selected topic.
Variations in the types of data included in a topic Preview of
date format

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 18
YEAR is usually selected so that the year for each event displays
on your timelines. However, you might decide to clear it if viewing a
timeline whose events occur all in the same year. You must select
at least one date unit, such as year, month, or day.
If the timelines include events that occur before the birth of Christ
(BC), you will probably want to include the era suffix. If ERA is
selected, the suffix (traditionally BC or AD) displays after the year.
(YEAR is automatically selected when ERA is selected.)
• Select BC/AD to display BC (Before Christ) and AD (Anno
Domini) as suffixes for the era.
• Select BCE/CE to display BCE (Before Current Era) and CE
(Current Era) as suffixes for the era.
If your topic includes month and day information, you can choose
either the MMDDYYYY format or the DDMMYYYY format. If your
topic includes hour and minute information, you can choose either
AM/PM format or the 24 HOUR format.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 19
Sharing TImeSpan™ Topics
You can send a topic from one TI-83 Plus to another.
1. Connect the unit-to-unit cable between two TI-83 Plus devices.
2. On the receiving unit, press y8.
3. Press ~to select RECEIVE, and then press Í.
4. On the sending unit, press y8.
5. Press †or }to select AppVars, and then press Í.
6. Press †or }to move the pointer to the AppVar name (for
example, CIVILWAR), and then press Íto select it.
7. Press ~to highlight TRANSMIT,and then press Í.
The file is sent to the receiving unit.

TI-83 Plus TImeSpan™ Viewer Application Page 20
Deleting Topics (TImeSpan™ AppVars)
Deleting a Topic from the TI-83 Plus
1. Quit the TImeSpan Viewer App (y5).
2. Press yLto display the MEMORY menu.
3. Select Mem Mgmt/Del.
4. Use †or }to move the pointer to AppVars, and then press
Í.
5. Use †or }to move the pointer to the name of the topic, and
then press {. The topic is deleted.
Note If the AppVar is archived, the message Are You Sure? displays.
Select Yes to delete the AppVar.