Pocket Grapher

Pocket Grapher General Use


Index


Entering Equations

Arithmetic

The basics of entering equations is pretty simple and intuitive. The basic operators include + - * / and ^. Parenthesis can be used to specify order of operation.
10*(3+4)

Constants

Constants can be formatted in two different ways. Standard notation and scientific notation. A zero before the decimal point is optional.
.3-3.0e8

The value pi and i(sqrt(-1)) can also be added to the end of a constant value and will automatically be multiplied. This is the only form of implicit multiplication supported.
2p+3i

Variables

Variables can be entered into the line as well. An undefined variable will take on the value 0. A variable can be declared simply by storing a value into the desired name for the varible under the Calc tab. For more information on declaring variables see the Calc tab help.
x*slope+2->y

Functions

Functions are defined in the Func tab. There are also functions built into the calculator such as sin or ln. A funciton call be called by entering its name then parenthesis with parameters. Parameters are seperated with a comma. Extra parameters will be ignored. If there aren't enough parameters the current value of the variable used by the function will be assumed for the missing parameters. An undefined function will always return zero. A varible and a function can have the same name and the calculator will still funciton properly.
sin(10)+userfunction(12,3)

Lists

Lists are defined using brackets. Each element in a list is seperated with a comma. Lists can only be used to store numbers. Puting a list inside another list will result in a matrix. Elements can be retrieved by using square brackets. The first element in the list is indexed at a one.
{1,2,3}
list[2]

Matricies

Matricies can be defined by putting a group of lists into a list. A matrix can only store number values. Each list forming the matrix represents one row. The number of columns in a matrix is determined by the longest list used to create the matrix. Any other list smaller is size will be padded with zeros. Matricies can be accesed with square brackets. One parameter in the bracket will return a row as a list. Two parameters will return a single element.
{{1,2},{3,4}}
matrix[1]
matrix[1,2]

Unit conversion

This calculator can automatically convert units for you. To specify what units something has put a #(unit): right after the statment. Unit is the unit that value represents. The unit will be converted to a default unit. This unit is predefined and future versions will allow you to select the unit. The table below displays unit measurements as well as default conversions and supported units. * / and ^ are also usable when between the # and the :.
Default Unit Supported Units
Length m m, ft, in, mi, ly
Time s s, min, hr, day, yr
Mass g g
Volume m^3 m^3, l
Charge C C
Any metric unit can have a prefix. Below is a list of supported prefixes.
Prefix Conversion ratio
Y 10^24
Z 10^21
E 10^18
P 10^15
T 10^12
G 10^9
M 10^6
k 10^3
h 10^2
da 10^1
d 10^-1
c 10^-2
m 10^-3
u 10^-6
n 10^-9
p 10^-12
f 10^-15
a 10^-18
z 10^-21
y 10^-24
As of now the only way to choose what unit to convert to is by doing so in the Calc tab when entering in an equation. A degree symbol can aslo but put after a number without the # and : to convert from degrees to radians.
Here are some examples of unit conversion.
10#cm:+100#mm:
10#m/s:+100#mi/hr:->#mi/hr:
9.8#m/s^2:->velocity#cm/s^2:
180°

Base conversion

Numbers can be converted bewteen binary, octal, decimal, and hexidecimal. To convert from one of these bases add a prefix to the number. Negitive and decimal numbers are allowed.
  • 0b - the following number is binary
  • 0o - the following number is octal
  • 0x - the following number is hexidecimal
0b1001.1 = 9.5
-0o537 = -351
0xface = 64206
A base can also be specified by adding a prefix after the store operator. This only applies in the calc tab.
0b1100+0o14->0x = 0x18
10-4->0bnumber = 0b110 - will also store the value 6 into number

Running scripts

Scripts can be ran exactly the same way functions are called. A script and a function cannot have the same name. There is a certian way to define scripts. Scripting is still not full featured yet and may be diffucult to work with as of now. The current features for scripting are detailed anyway in the scripting help file.
10*script(2, 3)

Dirivatives

Pocket Grapher can also take the dirivitave of an equation typed in by a user. It is done by typing in (d/d(variablename))(equation). So for an example (d/dx)(x^2) would find the dirivative for x^2 with respect to x. If this is done on the calculator screen the dirivative will automatically be calculated with the current values for variables. This can also be put into a function under the Func tab.

Button Panel

The button panel was put in to make entering equations quick and easy. Numbers and operators are on the left side. The 'Enter' key is also grouped with the numbers. The functions availible are grouped into pop up menus. When a menu item is selected a list of functions will pop up. Selecting a function will cause it to be written to the curretly selected text box. Will show usage for the function in the grey help bar directly above the buttons panel. And will push the function to the top of the quick select button list. The quick select button list is the group of six green buttons in the bottom middle of the button panel. The clear button will clear the curretly selected text box. The bkspc button will backspace inside the currently selected text box.