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From: Murray Eisenberg on 18 Jul 2010 01:06
You'll probably get scores of replies... Two methods:

(1) If on a PC, use Shift-Enter. (On a Mac, there's a separate Enter
key on the numeric keypad that does it.)

It IS documented, and in a fairly obvious place: From Help Menu, open
Documentation Center. Now you noticed that you're dealing with a
_notebook_, so it's rather natural to click the "Notebooks and
Documents" section there. The first entry in the expanded list is
"Notebook Basics"; click that. Right near the top of the page that
opens (guide/NotebookBasics" is:

Shift+Enter -- do a computation

Another way to get there: From Help menu (or from icon at top of
Documentation Center home page) open the "Virtual Book". Obviously,
look at Introduction. First section there: "Running Mathematica".
Obvious next to click entry "Using a Notebook Interface". This opens
page tutorial/UsingANotebookInterface", and near the top of that you'll
read about Shift + Enter.

(2) You used the "computerese" terminology "make the commands in the
file execute". Think instead of a more mathematical terminology:
"evaluate" something. So from the main Mathematica menu, select
Evaluation. You should be able to take it from there.

On 7/17/2010 8:15 AM, Michael Robinson wrote:
> I downloaded mathematica tonight so I can do an assignment. I have to
> modify a file our teacher posted on the class website, solve some equations
> and generate a curve...
> okay, this file ends in the extension nb.
> I need to know how to make the commands in the file execute.
>
> Now don't laugh. I put the cursor at the end of the line (for example a
> ParametricPlot command) and hit enter. I get a carriage return.
>
> My problem is so elementary that the help menus don't even address it.
>
>

--
Murray Eisenberg murray(a)math.umass.edu
Mathematics & Statistics Dept.
Lederle Graduate Research Tower phone 413 549-1020 (H)
University of Massachusetts 413 545-2859 (W)
710 North Pleasant Street fax 413 545-1801
Amherst, MA 01003-9305

From: Helen Read on 18 Jul 2010 01:07
On 7/17/2010 8:16 AM, Michael Robinson wrote:
> I downloaded mathematica tonight so I can do an assignment. I have to
> modify a file our teacher posted on the class website, solve some equations
> and generate a curve...
> okay, this file ends in the extension nb.
> I need to know how to make the commands in the file execute.
>
> Now don't laugh. I put the cursor at the end of the line (for example a
> ParametricPlot command) and hit enter. I get a carriage return.
>
> My problem is so elementary that the help menus don't even address it.

Shift-Enter (that is, hold down the shift key while you press Enter).

Here's a getting started video that I made for my own students that you
might find useful. Try doing the examples in Mathematica along with the
video. If it goes too fast, pause the video so you can catch up.

--
Helen Read
University of Vermont

From: magma on 19 Jul 2010 02:09

> Here's a getting started video that I made for my own students that you
> might find useful. Try doing the examples in Mathematica along with the
> video. If it goes too fast, pause the video so you can catch up.
>
> --
> Helen Read
> University of Vermont

Helen, I was sure he is not one of your students :-)
Where is the video, by the way?

From: Helen Read on 19 Jul 2010 02:10
On 7/18/2010 1:07 AM, Helen Read wrote:
> On 7/17/2010 8:16 AM, Michael Robinson wrote:
>> I downloaded mathematica tonight so I can do an assignment. I have to
>> modify a file our teacher posted on the class website, solve some equations
>> and generate a curve...
>> okay, this file ends in the extension nb.
>> I need to know how to make the commands in the file execute.
>>
>> Now don't laugh. I put the cursor at the end of the line (for example a
>> ParametricPlot command) and hit enter. I get a carriage return.
>>
>> My problem is so elementary that the help menus don't even address it.
>
> Shift-Enter (that is, hold down the shift key while you press Enter).
>
> Here's a getting started video that I made for my own students that you
> might find useful. Try doing the examples in Mathematica along with the
> video. If it goes too fast, pause the video so you can catch up.
>

It might help if I actually include the link to the video.

http://www.uvm.edu/~cems/mathstat/mathematica/screencasts/mathematica_getting-started.mp4

--
Helen Read
University of Vermont

From: Helen Read on 19 Jul 2010 02:10
On 7/18/2010 1:03 AM, David Park wrote:
>
> It really would be nice if the public thought enough of Mathematica that
> young people were exposed to it early

Yes, but:

> and didn't have to learn the basics in
> the middle of some course dealing with substantial material.

In my experience, it really is not difficult for students to pick up
Mathematica by using it in a university level calculus class. I spend a
grand total of one class period during the first week getting them up
and running, and after that we use Mathematica routinely, without making
a fuss about it.

And now with the Classroom Assistant palette, the learning curve is very
gentle. I don't have to say a word about syntax on Day 1. I just get the
students started with Classroom Assistant, showing them where to find
Define Function, Plot, Table, and a few other things, and let them go to
it. They pick up Mathematica syntax _on their own_ over the next couple
of weeks. After a while they are mostly typing things in themselves, and
rarely use the Classroom Assistant. Every one of them is pretty good at
it by the end of the semester.

--
Helen Read
University of Vermont

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