Radio Shack TRS-80

Chapter
8
Two
Easy Features
The
Calculator
Mode
Before
continuing
our
exploration
of
the nooks
and
crannies
of our
Computer
—
acting
as
a
computer,
we should
be aware
that it
also
works
well
as a
calculator.
If
you
omit
the
line
number
before
certain
commands,
the Computer
will
execute
them,
print the
answer
on
the screen, then
erase the
command
you entered.
What's
more,
it will
work
as a calculator
even when
a computer
program
is loaded,
without
disturbing
that
program. All
you need,
to
be in the
calculator
mode, is the
prompt
>,
Example:
How much
is 3 times
4?
Type in
PRINT
3*4
. . . the answer
comes
back
12
Example:
How
much is
345
divided by
123?
PRINT
345/123
. . . the answer
is
2
.
80488
Spend
a few
minutes
making
up routine
arithmetic
problems of
your own,
using the
calcula-
tor
mode
to solve them.
Any arithmetic
expression
you might use in
a program
can also
be
evaluated
in the
calculator
mode.
This includes
parentheses
and chain
calculations
like
A*B*C.
Try
the
following
problem:
PRINT
(
2/3
)
*
{ 3/2
)
The
answer
comes
back:
1
.0000009
37