Flags

Flags for beginners

For the uninitiated, eg. haven't done computer science, flags are a way for a program ( or operating system) to keep track of what is going on throughout a programs execution. Flags are a variable, like any variable they can be accessed for use within a program. Certain flags within will tell the 50g to behave in different ways depending on whether a flag is in the "set" or "not set" position. Flags are used within the hp50g to tell the calculator how to act given a certain input, for example the first flag in the flag viewer tells the calculator to return either the principle result or general solution for an equation.

Details of flags

With the 50g, it contains flags numbered from 1 to 128, not all of these are being used however. There are two ways of dealing with the flags, though the flag viewer or using the built in commands CF, SF, CF. These are genrally used when programming the calculator to perform routine or complex operations.