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2 Introduction
viewpoint taken in this book. It is now desirable for an engineer with average
job assignments to make effective use of small computers. Tasks that were not
feasible just 10 years ago can now be performed routinely. Hamming also
noted that computing is for insight; modern technology certainly demands a
high level of understanding. Design difficulties often can be detected early by
computer analysis.
Running the programs in this book will provide many engineers with a
convincing display of principles and results that are often elusive as abstractions.
For example, calculus literally works before your eyes on the computer
screen when an optimizer is reporting its strategy and progress! Program
modifications are suggested throughout the text to demonstrate computational
behavior for degenerate cases. Most readers will find that using the programs
while studying this material will improve comprehension immensely. Many of
the suggested extensions have been developed and programmed by the author,
and are known to be both feasible and worthwhile.
The computer programs furnished in this text are deliberately unsophisticated.
The best program is one written, or at least adapted, by the end user.
This avoids a significant amount of computer programming, namely the effort
any programmer expends to anticipate aU possible reactions of the unknown
user. Also, a prudent engineer will be skeptical unless programs written by
others are exceptionally well documented, tested, and constructed to deal with
degenerate cases and to provide user prompting. Often there is little professional
satisfaction in simply running programs others have developed; after
all, a clerk could do that job at lower cost.
A valuable feature on many desktop computers is a TRACE program that
allows the user to either step through the program execution one line at a time
or to execute slowly with current line numbers displayed for correlation with
code listings and/or flowcharts. Another recommended computer feature is
an EDITOR program that enables a search for the names of variables. Most
BASIC languages allow only "global" variable names, which are not private
within subroutines. A good EDITOR facilitates the expansion and combination
of programs in this book without the risk of conflicting variable names.
Most of the short programs are furnished in Hewlett-Packard's reverse
Polish notation (RPN). For Texas Instruments hand-held calculators, such as
the T1-59 and others using an algebraic operating system (AOS) language,
coding can originate with the equations provided and in the format of the
given programs. Differences between RPN and AOS have been discussed by
Murdock (1979). Hand-held computers have not been made obsolete by
desktop computers; there are many occasions when a completely portable
computer is much more effective when used at the place of immediate need.
Numerous geometric illustrations have been employed in place of more
abstract explanations. A number of graphs depicting design parameter trends
are also presented; use of computers does not diminish the value of graphic
displays, sensitivity and similar computations not withstanding.
It is assumed that the reader will pursue interesting topics at his or her own