How to use this TI-30XS calculator online
This is an emulator of the TI-30XS MultiView, the four-line scientific calculator that many US schools require and that the GED test shows on screen. Every key sits where it sits on the real calculator, so what you practise here transfers directly. Press 2nd to reach the green function printed above a key: 2nd then x² is the square root, 2nd then (−) recalls the last answer, 2nd then mode quits any menu. The display keeps your previous entries; press the up arrow to scroll back through them and enter to paste one back into the entry line. Order of operations follows the calculator's EOS rules: parentheses first, then functions such as sin and log, then fractions, then x² and angle marks, then powers, negation, nPr and nCr, multiplication and division, and finally addition and subtraction. So −2² gives −4 while (−2)² gives 4, and 2^3^2 is evaluated right to left as 512, exactly as the MathPrint mode of the real calculator does.
Fractions
Press n/d to open a stacked fraction. Type the numerator, press the down arrow to move to the denominator, type it, then press the right arrow to step out of the fraction and carry on. If you type a number first and then press n/d, that number becomes the numerator, the same shortcut the real calculator has. For a mixed number press 2nd then n/d (U n/d): the whole-number part goes first, then the fraction. Fraction answers are simplified automatically: 2/3 + 1/6 shows 5/6. Press the ◂▸ toggle key, just below the plus key, to see 0.8333333333 instead, and press it again to go back. Answers that contain a square root or pi are kept exact too, so √8 shows 2√2 and π × 12² shows 144π until you toggle. Two conversions live on the 2nd layer: 2nd ×10ⁿ swaps between an improper fraction and a mixed number, and 2nd table (f◂▸d) converts the entry to a decimal or back. Note the difference between the two ways of dividing: 2 ÷ 3 produces the decimal 0.6666666667, while 2 n/d 3 produces the fraction 2/3. A fraction that contains a decimal, such as (1.2 + 1.3) over 4, comes out as a decimal, 0.625.
Function table
Press table and the display asks for f(x)=. Enter any expression in x, using the x variable key, for example x(36 − x), and press enter. On the next screen set Start, the first x value, and Step, the spacing between rows (press delete to remove the default 0 and 1 before typing new values), then choose Auto or Ask-x with the left and right arrows and press enter. Auto fills a table you can scroll with the up and down arrows, which is the quickest way to find where a function changes sign or reaches a maximum; in the parabola example the table turns at (18, 324). Ask-x lets you type the x values yourself, one per row, and reads off f(x) for each. Press clear to go back to the setup screen or 2nd mode to return to the home screen.
Statistics
Press data to open the data editor with three lists, L1, L2 and L3. Type a value and press enter or the down arrow to move to the next row; the left and right arrows switch lists, and values can be fractions or expressions. Press data again inside the editor for the Clear menu. When the data is in, press 2nd data for the stat menu and choose 1-Var Stats or 2-Var Stats. Pick which list holds the data and, for 1-Var, whether a second list holds frequencies, then select CALC. The results screen lists n, the mean x̄, the sample standard deviation Sx, the population standard deviation σx, Σx, Σx², and for one variable the minimum, quartiles, median and maximum. Two-variable stats add the y statistics, Σxy, the linear regression slope a and intercept b, the correlation coefficient r, and the x′ and y′ predictions. For the braking-distance example in the TI guidebook the line of best fit comes out as y = 0.67732519x − 18.66637321, the same digits the real calculator shows. After a calculation the stat menu gains a StatVars entry so you can paste any of these values into a new calculation.
Angle modes and the angle menu
Press mode to see the four setting rows: DEG, RAD or GRAD for angles; NORM, SCI or ENG for number notation; FLOAT or a fixed number of decimal places; and CLASSIC or MATHPRINT for how entries are drawn. Move with the arrows, press enter on the setting you want, then 2nd mode to quit. The calculator starts in degrees, so sin(30) is 0.5 and tan⁻¹(1) is 45. In radian mode tan⁻¹(1) shows π/4, and the toggle key turns it into 0.7853981634. You can also mark a single angle without changing the mode: 2nd prb opens the angle menu with degree, minute and second marks, the radian mark r, the gradian mark g, and ▸DMS, which displays a decimal angle as degrees, minutes and seconds. Typing 12°31′45″ + 26°54′38″ and then ▸DMS gives 39°26′23″. The second page of that menu converts between rectangular and polar coordinates.
Powers, roots, logs and probability
The ^ key opens a raised exponent box; x² squares, x⁻¹ takes the reciprocal, 2nd ^ is the x-th root, so 6 ˣ√ 64 gives 2. log and ln have 10ˣ and eˣ on their 2nd layer. ×10ⁿ enters scientific notation: 2 ×10ⁿ 3 means 2 × 10³. The prb key opens the probability menu with nPr, nCr and the factorial, plus a second page with rand and randint(. 52 nCr 5 gives 2598960 and 4! gives 24; factorials above 69 and non-integers return a DOMAIN error, as on the device. Store a value with sto▸ followed by the variable key, and press the variable key repeatedly to cycle through x, y, z, t, a, b and c.
Keyboard shortcuts
| Typed | Calculator key |
|---|---|
| 0–9 . + - * / ^ ( ) , ! % | the same key; / is the ÷ key, not n/d |
| Enter or = | enter |
| Backspace / Delete | delete the character before / under the cursor |
| Esc | clear |
| arrow keys | the arrow pad |
| f r p e d | n/d, √, π, ×10ⁿ, the ◂▸ toggle |
| s c t l n q i x | sin, cos, tan, log, ln, x², x⁻¹, the variable key |
| Shift+2, i.e. @ | 2nd |
Frequently asked questions
Can I use this calculator in an exam?
No. This page is for practice only. Exams that allow a TI-30XS expect you to bring the physical calculator, and the GED test provides its own on-screen version inside the testing software. What this emulator gives you is familiarity: by the time you sit down, finding n/d, the toggle key, the angle menu and the stat menu is automatic.
Is it the official Texas Instruments software?
No. It is an independent emulator that imitates the layout and behaviour of the TI-30XS MultiView. Texas Instruments did not make it and does not endorse it. If you need the official product, buy the calculator or use the TI-SmartView software from TI.
Why do fraction answers sometimes appear as decimals?
Because the real calculator does the same. The ÷ key gives decimals, n/d gives fractions, a fraction containing a decimal point gives a decimal, and SCI, ENG or FIX modes always show decimals. The ◂▸ toggle converts any answer that has a fraction, root or pi form.
How many digits does it show?
Ten, like the device. Larger or smaller results switch to scientific notation, shown as a mantissa times 10 to a power. Internally the engine keeps fractions exact, so toggling 1 ÷ 3 back to a fraction returns exactly 1/3.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes. The keypad fits a 375-pixel-wide screen without scrolling sideways, each key is at least 40 pixels tall, and it responds to touch. Nothing is downloaded and no account is needed.
Is anything saved or sent anywhere?
No. The history, variables and data lists live only in the page while it is open. Reloading the page clears all of them and returns every setting to its default.
How this emulator differs from the real TI-30XS MultiView
- The display is not a strict 16-character grid: long entries scroll inside the line instead of wrapping exactly as the LCD does, and stacked fractions take the height they need.
- Typing always inserts at the cursor. The device types over the character under the cursor unless you press 2nd insert; here 2nd insert is accepted but changes nothing.
- List formulas (the FORMULA page of the data menu, which fills a list from another list) are not implemented in this version. Enter the values directly.
- Random numbers come from the browser and cannot be seeded by storing a value to rand.
- Contrast, on, off and the automatic power-down are cosmetic: the display never switches off, and the ◂● and ●▸ contrast functions only darken or lighten the display colours.
- The constant feature K, store and recall, the angle and polar conversions and the statistics follow the guidebook, but edge cases of the firmware, such as the exact wording of every error, may differ. Errors shown here are DIVIDE BY 0, DOMAIN, SYNTAX, ARGUMENT, OVERFLOW, STAT and FRQ DOMAIN.