Enter, Evaluate, and Retrieve Expressions (Concept)

Enter expressions in QuickCalc using standard mathematical rules of precedence; review and retrieve computations from the History area; and understand the rules for using imperial units: length, area, and volume.

QuickCalc evaluates expressions according to the following standard mathematical rules of precedence:

The Input box of the calculator is where you enter and retrieve expressions. With QuickCalc, there are two ways you can enter data in the Input box. You can either enter expressions using the QuickCalc Number Pad buttons, or you can use the computer keyboard or numeric keypad. To use the computer numeric keypad, you must have NUMLOCK on.

To evaluate an expression, click the equal (=) sign on the QuickCalc Number Pad, or press ENTER on the computer keyboard.

Understand the Syntax of Expressions

The syntax for QuickCalc expressions and command prompt calculator expressions is identical. For example, to perform an operation on the vector or coordinates 5,2,0, you enter [5,2,0] in the Input box.

You can use the GETVAR function to read the value of a system variable. The syntax is

getvar(variable_name)

For more information see CAL.

Use the History Area

The History area keeps an ongoing record of calculations, similar to the paper tape in a physical desk calculator. You can use the History area to review previous operations and pass them back to the Input box for re-evaluation with different parameters.

Rules for Displaying and Handling Units

QuickCalc adheres to the following rules:

Results of calculations are always expressed in decimal format unless a distance is entered in feet and inches
Angular values entered in the Input box are assumed to be degrees regardless of the settings in the Drawing Units dialog box. To specify radians, grads, and degrees, append an r, g, or d after the angle value.
Results of angular calculations are always expressed in degrees with full AutoCAD precision.

When the drawing units are set to architectural units, the calculator displays the results of calculations of imperial units in the architectural format and rounds to the display precision (LUPREC) specified in the drawing. The results for all other calculations display in decimal format with full precision.

You can separate feet, inches, and fractional inches with a dash, a space, or nothing. You can use any of the following syntax cases to enter valid feet-inch formatted values:

5' or 60"
5'-9" or 5' 9" or 5'9"
5'-1/2" or 5' 1/2" or 5'1/2"
5'-9-1/2" or 5' 9-1/2" or 5'9-1/2"
5'-9 1/2" or 5' 9 1/2" or 5'9 1/2"

To designate inches for linear calculations, entering double quotes (") is optional. For example, instead of entering 5'9-1/2", you could enter 5'9-1/2.

WarningWith imperial units, QuickCalc interprets a minus or a dash (-) as a unit separator rather than a subtraction operation. To specify subtraction, include at least one space before or after the minus sign. For example, to subtract 9" from 5', enter 5' -9" rather than 5'-9".

You can use QuickCalc to calculate square feet and cubic feet. To enter square or cubic feet, you must enter units using these abbreviations:

sq. ft. or sq ft
cu. ft. or cu ft

Convert Decimal Units into Imperial Units

For distance measurements, enter an inches sign (") after the number in the results display. For example, if the computed distance is 15, enter " after the 15, press ENTER or click = and the result displays in imperial units as 1'-3".

For computed results, enter the initial values in feet (') and inches (") to display the results in feet and inches. For example:

5 * 6 = 30
5" * 6 = 2'-6"
5" * 6" = 30 sq. in.
5" * 0'-6" = 0.208333333 sq. ft.