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The ° Command

Command Summary Command Syntax Calculator Compatibility Token Size
Converts an angle to degrees, if necessary. angle° This command works on all calculators. 2 bytes
  • Press 2nd MATH to enter the MATH popup menu.
  • Press 2 to enter the Angle submenu.
  • Press 1 to select °.

The ° Command

The ° symbol used after an angle makes sure the angle is interpreted as being in degrees. If the calculator is already in degree mode, x° is equal to x; in radian mode, x° is equal to πx/180; and in gradian mode, x° is equal to 10x/9.

If you're using degree measure extensively in a program, it's a better idea to use 68k:setMode() to switch to degree mode and not worry about this. However, there are two reasons you might want to use °:
- If you need an angle in degrees only once or twice, don't bother changing the mode setting.
- In a function, you're forced to use °, since setMode() isn't valid in a function.

In radian mode:

:sin(30)
           sin(30)
:sin(30°)
           1/2
:180°
           π

In degree mode (no conversion is necessary, so no conversion is done):

:sin(30)
           1/2
:sin(30°)
           1/2
:180°
           180

Another possible use of ° is to write an angle in degrees, minutes, and seconds as x°y'z" (using the usual apostrophe and quote symbols) — this stands for x degrees, y minutes (equal to 1/60th of a degree) and z seconds (equal to 1/60th of a minute). There's no "degree/minute/second" mode setting, so an angle entered in this form will always be simplified: first to (x+y/60+z/3600)2 degrees, and then (if necessary) converted to the correct angle measure. However, you can use 68k:▶DMS to express output in this form.

Authors: KG