TI Graphing Calculator FAQ

by Ray Kremer

Comments and suggestions: raykremer@gmail.com
Please do not send e-mail asking questions
that have been answered in the FAQ.

I frequently share my knowledge about TI graphing calculators in the TI discussion groups and various other TI related forums, and some questions come up quite often. So, whenever someone asks one of those, I send them here. My FAQ responds to the common questions that I see in the discussion groups all the time. It also contains little known but useful things you can do with your calculator. If you don't find your answer here, head over to the discussion groups or the TechniCalc forum and post your question there. The other regulars and I will see it and try to provide assistance.

Some other FAQs, which all contain a variety of good information that I haven't covered here:
TI's KnowledgeBase - Searchable help provided by TI
Patrick Davidson's Ultimate FAQ - Focus on games and assembly shells
ti-89.org's TI-89 FAQ - General info for the TI-89 only
ticalc.org's FAQ - Focus on assembly shells
Mattias Lindqvist's Calc-TI FAQ - Very outdated but has a handful of useful tidbits

Last revision: 5/8/2005 - Massive update because instead of adding things as I think of them I've just been sticking them in a list. Added some bits to 1.2 and the games page about assembly game compatibility in the 83 Flash family and the 89 Flash family. There's a new sentence in 2.2.4 about what the HW patch does. Added section 2.7 for MirageOS questions since Detached Solutions doesn't provide a troubleshooting FAQ for it. Added a note that TI Connect sometimes doesn't work if the calculator has an older OS and a note about problems between Windows XP and the Graph Link software in 4.4.2. Added link to the TI-83 Plus Engineering Applications Handbook in 7. Added link to Mathbit.com's tutorials in 7.1. Added some more reset button combinations for the 89 family to 9.1. Expanded 9.4 to warn about graphing a trig function in degree mode. Added 10.1.9: Regressions involving calendar years. Updated 10.2.2 because the previously stated substitution caused a circular definition error in current AMS versions. Added 10.3.8: Graphing the second derivative on the 83 family. Added 11.2.6: Renaming programs on the TI-8x family. Added 11.2.7 to explain the SetUpEditor command on the 83 family. Link to TiEmu and TilEm added to 13.1. Added lines to the three statistics pages about where to find the statistics variables once regression or analysis results have been stored to them.

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I. Programs and Files
1. Calculator programs (BASIC): 1.1 Learning TI BASIC; 1.2 Running programs on different calculators; 1.3 How to type \->\, etc.; 1.4 TI BASIC tips and tricks
2. Assembly programs: 2.1 Learning assembly; 2.2 Built in assembly; 2.3 Hacked assembly; 2.4 Programs with sound; 2.5 Source code files (*.asm, *.h, *.inc); 2.6 Flash Applications; 2.7 MirageOS issues
3. Game and program archives: 3.1 Useful programs
4. Calculator to computer connectivity: 4.1 The TI Connectivity cable; 4.2 TI Connect and the Graph Link™ software; 4.3 Homemade link cables; 4.4 Getting the Connectivity cable to work
II. General Information
5. The different calculators: 5.1 Model family comparison; 5.2 The TI-83 family; 5.3 The TI-89 family; 5.4 History of TI graphing calculators; 5.5 TI-89 family vs. HP48/49G series
6. Buying TI calculators
7. Getting another manual or calc to calc link: 7.1 On-line help and tutorials
8. ROM versions: 8.1 Learning your ROM version; 8.2 The self test
9. Troubleshooting: 9.1 Calculator locked up or won't turn on; 9.2 Missing OS errors; 9.3 Dimension error when graphing; 9.4 Trigonometry functions give wrong answer; 9.5 Can only select one Y= function on TI-83 Flash family
III. Functions and Procedures
10. Methods for special tasks: 10.1 Algebra and trigonometry tasks; 10.2 Calculus tasks; 10.3 Graphing tasks
11. Calculator idiosyncrasies: 11.1 All calculators; 11.2 TI-8x calculators; 11.3 TI-89 family
IV. Miscellaneous Things
12. Extra character set: 12.1 More characters on the TI-85/86; 12.2 Store arrow and quotes in a string on the TI-85/86; 12.3 Lowercase letters on the TI-82/83; 12.4 Lowercase letters and Greek on the TI-83 Flash family
13. Hacked stuff: 13.1 Emulators; 13.2 Memory expanders; 13.3 Hardware add-ons and modifications
14. Graphing calculators for other platforms: 14.1 Computers; 14.2 On-line; 14.3 Palm Pilot and Pocket Windows
Guide to Getting Games
Glossary
Site Map

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