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Introduction

This module presents step-by-step instructions for creating, and then editing well-known formulas to illustrate how to use the editor. The example and what properties of the editor it illustrates are listed below. All of these assume you have a blank Math Editor open.

Quadratic equation

As a simple example, we'll step through several ways of writing the well-known Quadratic Equation (with real or complex coefficients): a x 2 b x c a x b b 2 4 a c 2 a x b b 2 4 a c 2 a

Method 1: pure keyboard

Probably the quickest way to enter math is by using the keyboard. This method requires entering a total of 3 statements and a few Tab key presses.

  1. Start off with a blank editor.
  2. Enter the following into the main editing area " a*x^2+b*x+c=a*(x-(-b+root)/(2*a))*(x-(-b+root)/(2*a)) ". See below for details .
  3. Press the Enter key. This will cause the text to be parsed and converted into math.

Most of the text in step 2 should look similar to the notation used in calculators, except for " root ". Many calculators follow different conventions for entering complicated math operations like integrals and vectors. For this version of the editor we decided to wait for feedback from users on which convention to adopt. Until one is chosen, any math element defined in the W3C MathML Specification can be entered. The toolbar also provides a way to see the available commands.

Finish entering equation

At this point the editor should have 2 remaining boxes that need to be filled out, and 2 optional ones (the degree of the root). To fill in the rest, you will need to do the following:

  1. Press Shift+Tab four times to move to the first empty block. (That is, hold down the Shift key, press the Tab key, and release the Shift key four times).
  2. Enter " b^2-4*a*c " into the empty block under the radical.
  3. Press the Enter key to convert the input into math.
  4. Press Shift+Left arrow key to select b 2 4 a c
  5. Press Ctrl+C to copy the selection to the clipboard.
  6. Press the Tab key twice to move to the other empty block.
  7. Press Ctrl+V to paste the selection into the current block.

Now, the equation should be complete. In the previous steps we used the Tab key to navigate to empty blocks that still needed information in them, skipping over optional ones. We used Shift+ arrow keys to select math and Ctrl+C and Ctrl+V to copy and paste that math.

Paste into connexions

Finally, we need to copy the math and paste it back into a module. We already used the same technique above. Right now, the cursor should be just to the right of the second b 2 4 a c . The following steps will place the newly created quadratic equation back into the Connexions module.

  1. Press Ctrl+A to select the entire formula, or Shift+Right (or Shift+Left) until the math you want to copy is selected.
  2. Press Ctrl+C to copy it to the clipboard.
  3. Switch back to the window where you were editing the module.
  4. Place the cursor at the location you want to insert the quadratic formula.
  5. Press Ctrl+V to insert the formula.

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Source:  OpenStax, Connexions guide to mathml. OpenStax CNX. Aug 24, 2009 Download for free at http://cnx.org/content/col10963/1.1
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