50g

aa0p3 wrote:
> Would appreciate advice on how to get programs to work on my new 50g.
> 
> There are insufficient examples in the 50g manual provided on a CD.
> 
> The examples in the 49advancedmanual.pdf (which I downloaded) don't
> seem to work on the 50g.  After keying in a program, pressing 'enter'
> key, then the store key; it tells me:  "STO Error: Bad Argument Type"
> 
> What is being done incorrectly??
> 
> Thanks, Steve
> 
> 

OK.  We will do this in RPN mode with the soft menus set.  Go into MODE 
and make sure the operating mode is RPN.  Then, while still in the MODE 
screen, find the soft key on the bottom labeled FLAGS, and press the key 
below it (F1).  Either press the down arrow for a while, or the up arrow 
for a shorter while, to highlight flag 117 (Soft MENU) and make sure it 
has a check mark beside it (this will affect the way your calculator 
presents options to you.  Instead of "choose from a list" dialogs, you 
will get "press a softkey" menus instead -- lots of good features, which 
were designed before the choose menus were added to the OS, work better 
this way; you'll thank me later, especially after you use UNITS).  Press 
the soft key labeled OK twice to exit the MODE screen.

Key in a program, a simple one we will call 'ADD2'.

<< 2 + >>

You press, in sequence:

the Right-shift key
+ (this gets you the "program" brackets)
2
+
ENTER

The program is on the stack.

Now press the single-quote key in the middle of the keyboard above SIN. 
  This gets you a pair of single-quotes with the cursor between them.

Press and hold the yellow ALPHA key, and, while holding it down, press 
the keys with the yellow letters A D D and the number 2, and then 
release the ALPHA key.  Press ENTER.

A variable name is on the stack.

Your stack has:
<< 2 + >>
'ADD2'

Press the STO key.

The program is now stored in the variable.  Both disappear from the stack.

Press the VAR key to see your variables in the soft-menu area.  One of 
them, the first on the list probably, will be ADD2.

Press the 5 key, then press the ADD2 key.  The 5 should be replaced by 7.

That's a program.  Now try this:  Press the right-shift, then press the 
ADD2 soft-key.  You have used the short-hand method of recalling the 
program from the variable, so there's your program again on the stack. 
Press the down-arrow key to edit it.  Use the arrow keys to move to the 
right of the 2, then press the backspace key.  Now press the 3 key, then 
ENTER.

You now have a program that adds three.

Press the left-shift key, then press the ADD2 key.  You have just 
replaced the old program in ADD2 with this new program using the 
short-hand method.  Verify this in any ways you like.

Now press the single-quote key again, and press the ADD2 key.  Instead 
of adding two, it sticks the name ADD2 in the single quotes.  Press 
ENTER and it's on the stack.  Fool around with this kind thing.  Write 
longer, less trivial programs.  Check Wikipedia for RPL.  Try the 
control structures you see.  Lots of ways to loop and compare.  Remember 
that the comparison operator for EQUALS is '==' instead of '='.  Ask 
more questions later!  Read the AUR, the Advanced User Reference!  Have fun!


-- 
Dave Boyd
"If we hit that bullseye, the rest of the dominoes will fall
  like a house of cards. Checkmate."  -Capt. Zapp Brannigan, D.O.O.P.