How to get the calculator to ignore the "Divide by Zero" rule

Forum Attachments

Summary:

I want the calculator to solve a problem, and if the divisor is zero, do one thing, and if it's greater than zero, do another.

How to get the calculator to ignore the "Divide by Zero" rule

Sitay Huber 18 Feb 2021 22:49

The summary pretty much says it all. I want it to give me two numbers and a fraction, and if/when the denominator is zero, just give me the two numbers and no fraction.

This is using the distance formula (line 7), then the slope formula (line 8).

Thank you!
Here's the code:

Lbl 1
ClrHome
Disp "Point A"
Prompt A,B
Disp "Point B"
Prompt C,D
(C-A)²+(D-B)²→X
√(X)→Y
(D-B)/(C-A)→Z
If Z>0
Disp "SQRT",X
Disp "DISTANCE REAL",Y
Disp "SLOPE",Z
Else
Disp "SQRT",X
Disp "DISTANCE REAL",Y
Pause
Goto 7

Re: How to get the calculator to ignore the "Divide by Zero" rule

CalcNerd 18 Feb 2021 22:54

Not sure if this will solve your problem, but you can try turning your calculator to a+bi mode. This will allow the calculator to give imaginary numbers. Hope this is helpful!

Re: How to get the calculator to ignore the "Divide by Zero" rule

J_Walker87 19 Feb 2021 00:28

It won't help him: the divide by zero error still occurs in a+bi mode.

Re: How to get the calculator to ignore the "Divide by Zero" rule

Sitay Huber 19 Feb 2021 16:30

Thanks! I actually used a conditional statement to get around it. e.g. if x=0, do this, if x ≠0, do this.

Re: How to get the calculator to ignore the "Divide by Zero" rule

J_Walker87 19 Feb 2021 00:23

You could use an if statement to check whether the denominator equals zero, and if its not, perform division and display the number. I used something like this when I made a simultaneous equation solver once (though it didn't apply specifically to division). Also, if you read the summary you wrote, you'll notice that the summary you wrote is basically an "if-then-else" statement. I recommend just applying the use of conditionals to your problem. Also, if you want the number displayed as a fraction, you must put ">Frac" after it in the "Disp" statement. Let me know how it works!
(Also, what Lbl is "Goto 7" directed at in your code? I didn't notice a "Lbl 7" anywhere.)

Last edited on 19 Feb 2021 00:27 by J_Walker87 Show more

Re: How to get the calculator to ignore the "Divide by Zero" rule

Sitay Huber 19 Feb 2021 16:17

Good idea- I was thinking about this last night, and I realized that I should have the calculator check to see if the numbers equal zero, if so, skip the division, if not, do the division and give the result.

The "Goto7" redirects to the main menu page. I only put a snippet of the entire code here.

Would writing the equation something like this work?

If C-A=0
Then
(C-A)²+(D-B)²→X
√(X)→Y
Disp "SQRT",X
Disp "DISTANCE REAL",Y
Else
(C-A)²+(D-B)²→X
√(X)→Y
(D-B)/(C-A)→Z
Disp "SQRT",X
Disp "DISTANCE REAL",Y
Disp "SLOPE",Z

Thank you!

Re: How to get the calculator to ignore the "Divide by Zero" rule

Sitay Huber 19 Feb 2021 16:22

I just tested it, and it worked on the first try! That never happens! Lol

Re: How to get the calculator to ignore the "Divide by Zero" rule

J_Walker87 19 Feb 2021 23:29

Great job! Remember to add a ">Frac" (found by pressing [Math] and then [Enter]) after the variable you want as a fraction. If you want slope displayed as a fraction, change "Disp "SLOPE",Z" to "Disp "SLOPE",Z>Frac".

Last edited on 19 Feb 2021 23:30 by J_Walker87 Show more

Re: How to get the calculator to ignore the "Divide by Zero" rule

J_Walker87 19 Feb 2021 23:34

Also, you don't need to include certain statements in both the "then" and the "else" part of the code. You can place the lines "(C-A)²+(D-B)²→X", " √(X)→Y", "Disp "SQRT",X", and "Disp "DISTANCE REAL",Y" before or after the if statement since you do them no matter what. It's a waste of memory to repeat code you don't need to, so try to avoid coding things like that twice.