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TI-83 Graphing Calculator
Selected Instructions
Your calculator manual is the best reference. It contains worked out examples and sample screen views, as well as a complete index of features and actions. A new manual, either hard copy or electronic version, is available from Texas Instruments. Most of the instructions also apply to the TI-83 Plus.
Calculator key strokes are shown in brown: ON
Features that appear above the keys have the complete key sequence in brackets:
OFF [ 2nd ON ]
Alpha characters (letters) appear in turquoise above many keys. For example, to access the character "A", press
[ ALPHA MATH ]
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Basics
Turn calculator on: ON
Turn calculator off: OFF [ 2nd ON ]
Stop an ongoing process: ON
All calculations are done on the home screen.
Get to home screen: QUIT [ 2nd MODE ]
4+5 : 4 + 5 ENTER
52 : 5 x2 ENTER
54 : 5 ^ 4 ENTER
Clear the home screen: CLEAR
Some keys add an opening parenthesis, which you decide when to close.
: 
9 ) + 4 ENTER [ 2nd x2 9 ) + 4 ENTER ] The answer is 7.
: 9 + 4 ) ENTER [ 2nd x2 9 + 4 ) ENTER ] The answer is 3.60555...
Darken (lighten) the display: repeatedly press 2nd up-arrow (down-arrow)
Menus
Move around: use the four arrow keys
Select an item: press the number next to the item, or move the cursor there and press ENTER
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Functions
Once you enter a function you can graph it, put values into a table, and do calculations with the function name. The keys to manipulate functions are at the top, just under the display window.
Enter a function formula: Y=
Example: to define the function y = 3x+2 as the function Y3 use the down arrow key to place the cursor next to Y3= and type as follows:
3 
+ 2
The key which produces the variable X in this example will produce other variables when the calculator is in different modes.
Graph a function: GRAPH
Adjust the graph window: WINDOW
Turn the graph of a defined function off or on: Y= Place the cursor on the = sign, press ENTER
Table of function values: TABLE [ 2nd GRAPH ]
Adjust values shown by table: use the arrow keys to scroll up and down, or
TBLSET [ 2nd WINDOW ]
Access the function name Y3: VARS Y-VARS 1 3
The name will be printed at the last cursor position.
Clear a function definition: Y= Place the cursor on the formula, press CLEAR
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Graphing Features
You can do some calculations from the graphing screen.
Get a cursor to follow a graph: TRACE and use the right and left arrow keys. Watch the values at the bottom of the screen.
Move the cursor among several functions on the screen: Use the up and down arrow keys.
Zoom in: first TRACE and place the cursor where you want the center of the new graph to be. Press
ZOOM 2 ENTER
The same Zoom menu contains a zoom out feature, as well as useful standardized axes.
Find x-intercept of graph: CALC 2 [ 2nd TRACE 2 ]
You will be prompted for bounds and a guess, which you type on the number keypad and then press ENTER each time. The left bound should be to the left of a visible intercept, the right bound to the right, and the guess in between the two bounds. The (approximate) intercept appears at the bottom of the screen.
There are other calculations on the CALC menu, including minimum, maximum, derivative, definite integral, and intersection of two graphs.
Matrices
Access matrix names: MATRX
TI-83 Plus: MATRIX [ 2nd x-1 ]
Enter the matrix 
: MATRX, use the arrow keys to highlight EDIT, choose a name (A-I) and press the number for that name (1-9). The given matrix has 2 rows and 3 columns, so press 2 ENTER 3 ENTER. Then enter the numbers in order by row, pressing ENTER after each: 2 ENTER 3 ENTER 1 ENTER 4 ENTER 0 ENTER 5 ENTER.
Do a matrix calculation: access the matrix name and press the corresponding number. Complete the calculation.
Example: assume you called the above matrix A. To calculate 3A, press 3 * MATRX 1. The home screen now contains 3 * [A]. Press ENTER.
Square matrices sometimes have inverses. To find B-1: MATRX 2 x-1 ENTER.
Find the row-reduced echelon form of A: MATRX, highlight MATH, use the down arrow key to find rref( and press ENTER. Your home screen now says rref(. Fill in the matrix name A, close the parenthses, and evaluate: MATRX 1 ) ENTER. Do not confuse rref( with ref(.
If a matrix is too large to fit completely on the home screen, use the arrow keys to see more columns or rows.
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Sequences and Series
Get in sequence mode: MODE, use the arrows to highlight Seq, press ENTER.
Check the formatting: FORMAT [ 2nd ZOOM ], use the arrows to highlight Time, press ENTER.
Enter a closed-form sequence: Y=
Example: to define the sequence an = 1/n, n ³ 1 as the sequence u(n) use the down arrow key to place the cursor next to nMin= and type 1
Then place the cursor next to u(n)= and type 1 ¸
Enter a recursive sequence: Y=
Example: to define the sequence a1 = 3, and an = nan-1, for n ³ 2 as the sequence u(n), use the down arrow key to place the cursor next to nMin= and type 1
Place the cursor next to u(n)= and type n * u [2nd 7] ( - 1 )
Place the cursor next to u(nMin)= and type 3. When you leave this line a pair of braces {} will automatically enclose the number 3.
This sequence should read 3, 6, 18, 72, 360, ... .
Table of sequence terms: Adjust table values first (below)!
TABLE [ 2nd GRAPH ]
Adjust values shown by table: TBLSET [ 2nd WINDOW ]
Make sure TblStart = nMin and DTbl = 1.
Graph sequence values: Adjust WINDOW as for functions, paying attention to extra parameters that must be entered. Then GRAPH.
Access the sequence name u: 2nd 7. Other names are v and w, above 8 and 9.
The name will be printed at the last cursor position.
Clear a sequence definition: Y= Place the cursor on the formula, press CLEAR
Enter a series: Y= Use u for the sequence of individual terms and v for the sequence of partial sums of u.
Example: to enter the series 
, enter the following values:
nMin = 1; u(n) = 1/n2; u(nMin) = {1}; v(n) = v(n-1)+u(n-1); v(nMin) = {0}. The nth partial sum 
will appear as v(n+1).
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Lists
Enter data in lists: STAT then choose EDIT.
Clear a list: STAT EDIT, use the up arrow to place the cursor on the list name, press
CLEAR ENTER
Warning! Pressing the DEL key instead of CLEAR will delete the list from the calculator. You can get it back with the INS key. See Insert a new list below.
List name: there are six built-in lists, L1 through L6, and you can add more with your own names.
To access the built-in list L1: L1 [ 2nd 1 ]
Insert a new list: STAT EDIT, use the up arrow to place the cursor on a list name, then press
INS [ 2nd DEL ]
Type the name of a list: use the alpha character keys. The ALPHA key is locked down for you. Press ENTER The new list is placed just before the point where the cursor was.
Make values in list L2 a function of the values in L1:
STAT EDIT, use the up arrow to place the cursor on the L2 list name, type a formula using the variable L1, press ENTER
Prepare to graph list values: STATPLOT [ 2nd Y= ]
Press a plot number, move the cursor to On, and press ENTER
Make sure the list names you want appear opposite Xlist: and Ylist:
Set the WINDOW to view the values in the lists.
Graph list values: GRAPH
Both list graphs and function graphs can be turned on and off in the function menu: Y= |
Statistics
To access the built-in list L1: L1 [ 2nd 1 ]
Calculate a linear regression with x = L1 and y = L2:
STAT CALC 4 ENTER
Calculate a linear regression with x = L3 and y = L4:
STAT CALC 4 ( L3 , L4 ) ENTER
Show the values of r and r2 in a regression:
Start from the home screen.
Select DiagnosticOn from CATALOG: [2nd 0 ]
Press ENTER twice.
It should say DONE.
Now every time you do a regression, r and r2 are displayed.
Quadratic, Cubic, Exponential, and other regressions are available on the STAT CALC menu.
Calculate statistics from list L1: STAT CALC 1 ENTER
Calculate statistics from list L2: STAT CALC 1 ( L2 ) ENTER
Use the down and up arrows to scroll through all the statistics.
To access statistical distributions: DISTR [ 2nd VARS ]
Example: if a normal distribution has mean 10 and standard deviation 2, and you want the probability that a sample will be between 7 and 9, press
DISTR 2 7 , 9 , 10 , 2 ) ENTER
Note the commas.
Complex Numbers and Fractions
Get in complex number mode: MODE then choose a+bi.
Access i: i [ 2nd . ] (That's the decimal point.)
Use i as you would use any number in a calculation.
To convert the current number on the screen to a fraction: MATH Frac ENTER
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Memory
Store the last number appearing on the home screen: STO A ENTER [ STO ALPHA MATH ENTER ]
The number is now in storage location A. There are 27 different storage locations, one for each letter (!)
Use a previously stored number from register A: A [ ALPHA MATH ]
If you're in the home screen and not sure of the value in register A, you can "recall" the value in A, giving you a chance to delete that part of the calculation and try again:
RCL A ENTER [ 2nd STO ALPHA MATH ENTER ]
Example: store the number 5 in register A. Then try both of these sequences:
- 3 + A ENTER [ 3 + ALPHA MATH ENTER ]
- 3 + RCL A ENTER ENTER [ 3 + 2nd STO ALPHA MATH ENTER ENTER ]
Mode
Only change these settings for special purposes. The usual settings are: Normal, Float, Radian (for calculus) or Degree (for noncalculus courses), Func, Connected, Sequential, Real, Full.
Press MODE
Format
Only change these settings for special purposes. The usual settings are the first choices in each row:: RectGC, CoordOn, GridOff, AxesOn, LabelOff, ExprOn. In sequence mode (MODE Seq), the usual setting for the first row is Time.
Press FORMAT [ 2nd ZOOM ]
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