%File:  INTERACT.TXT  (c)	10/30/79	      The Soft Warehouse
.pc 36


                    INITIATING  A  muMATH  COM  FILE

    Initiating muMATH is easiest if someone has already saved a  COMmand 
file having a memory image including all of the muMATH or other programs 
which  you  wish  to use at that time.   The name of such a file  is  of 
course up to whoever creates it,  but in general the name assigned is of 
the highest-level math package loaded.   Thus ALGEBRA.COM would  be  the 
name of a command file containing ARITH.MUS and ALGEBRA.ARI.

    For  example when using a CP/M (tm) type operating system with  file 
ALGEBRA.COM  on  the  current drive,  one merely  enters  the  following 
system-level command terminated by a carriage return:

        ALGEBRA

After  a minute or so of loading from the diskette,  the response should 
be a message of the form:

	muSIMP-79  (Version month/day/year)  SAVE: size
	Copyright (c) 1979 by The SOFT WAREHOUSE  phone
	?

where appropriate numbers appear as the entries "month",  "day", "year", 
"size", and "phone".  You are now free to enter mathematical expressions 
as described below.


                    INITIATING  A  muMATH  SYS  FILE

    Unfortunately for reasons described in file READ1ST.TXT,  it may  be 
impossible to construct a muMATH COMmand file.   However,  the following 
means  of  initiating muMATH is always possible and quite easy  provided 
someone  has  saved  a SYS-type file containing a  memory image  of  the 
muMATH packages which are needed at that time. Here too the name of such 
a  file  is up to whoever creates it,  but in all probability  the  same 
naming  convention  describe above for COM files  was  used.   Therefore 
ALGEBRA.SYS  would have had the same source files loaded in as the  file 
ALGEBRA.COM would have.

    For example, if MUSIMP79.COM is on the current drive and ALGEBRA.SYS 
is on disk drive B,  the appropriate operating system load command would 
be as follows:

        MUSIMP79  B:ALGEBRA

About half a minute after the muSIMP logon message appears,  the  muMATH 
system  should  respond with the "?  " prompt characters.   Now you  can 
begin your interactive dialogue with muMATH.




                        THE  INTERACTION  CYCLE

    muSIMP prompts the user with a question mark indicating readiness to 
accept  a  command entered from the terminal.   The user then  types  an 
expression  followed by a semicolon and a carriage return.  First muSIMP 
parses  the expression and converts it into an internal  representation.  
After  printing  an  "@"  to herald  the  "@nswer",  the  expression  is 
evaluated, and then a space is printed to indicated the evaluation phase 
is complete.  Finally the result is deparsed and printed in mathematical 
notation. This interaction cycle is repeated indefinitely until a CTRL-C 
is typed (i.e. a "C" typed while depressing the CTRL key).

    For example, here is a segment of a trivial muSIMP dialogue:

	? 5;
	@ 5

	? 2 + 2;
	@ 4

	? JOHN = MARY;
	@ FALSE

	? MEMBER (APPLE, '(GRAPE, APPLE, PLUM));
	@ TRUE



                   CORRECTING  TYPOGRAPHICAL  ERRORS

    Since  muSIMP uses the operating system's console I/O routines,  all 
the  line-editing  features  of  that system are  inherited  by  muSIMP.  
Backspacing  is  usually accomplished by typing either a  CTRL-H,  or  a 
RUBout,  or  a  DELete key.   Some systems echo the  deleted  character; 
whereas,  others  erase the character from the screen and backspace  the 
cursor.   Entire lines can be deleted or flushed by typing a CTRL-U or a 
CTRL-X.   As a note of caution:  there is no way to modify a line once a 
carriage return has been typed.   If this happens, the entire expression 
can be flushed by typing a semicolon.


                        INTERRUPTING  EVALUATION

    An evaluation in progress can usually be aborted by typing a CTRL-Z, 
ESCape,   or  ALTmode.   An  options  available  message  will  then  be 
displayed.   The  usual  choice is typing  another  CTRL-Z,  ESCape,  or 
ALTmode  which  allows you to enter expressions as  before.   The  other 
alternatives are fully explained in file ERRORS.TXT.   As a last resort, 
the  computer  can of course be RESET and a "cold  start"  performed  to 
reload the operating system.

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