230 Appendix D: A Detailed Look at _

If the algorithm terminates its search near a local minimum of the function's magnitude, clear the Error 8 display and observe the numbers in the X-, Y-, and Z-registers by rolling down the stack. If the value of the function saved in the Z-register is relatively close to zero, it is possible that a root of your equation has been found – the number returned in the X-register may be a 10-digit number very close to a theoretical root. You

can explore this potential minimum further by rolling the stack until the returned estimates are back in the X- and Y-registers and then executing _ again using these numbers as initial estimates. If an actual minimum has been found, Error 8 will again be displayed and the number in the X-register will be approximately the same as before, but possibly closer to the actual location of the minimum.

Of course, you may deliberately use _ to find the location of a local minimum of the function's magnitude. However, in this case you must be careful to confine the search in the region of the minimum. Remember, _tries hard to find a zero of the function.

If the algorithm stops searching and displays Error 8 because it is working on a horizontal asymptote (when the value of the function is essentially constant for a large range of x), the estimates in X- and Y-registers usually are significantly different from each other. The number in the Z-register is the value of the potential asymptote. If you execute _ again using as initial estimates the numbers that were returned in the X- and Y-registers, a

horizontal asymptote may again cause Error 8, but with numbers in the X- and Y-registers that will differ from the previous numbers. The value of the function in the Z-register would then be about the same as that obtained previously.