QMTools can animate any function that has a recognized time variable in its parameter list. The default time variable is t, but others may be present and are recognized from the context in which they appear. During animation, the time variable is changed automatically in pre-defined increments.

To Animate a Function

1. Right-click in the formula field of a function that contains the time variable, or in the value field of the time variable itself. From the popup menu, select the Animate... item to activate the Animator, the special editor used for manipulating recognized time variables.
2. The command buttons across the top row constitute a VHS-like console used to control the animation: from left-to-right, the controls are Stop, Reset, Reverse, Step Back, Step Ahead, and Play. Altogether, they afford complete control over the developing function. Simply click 'Play' to start the animation.
3. The two fields below the command console are used to 'tweak' the [apparent] speed of animation:

   Refresh rate [Hz] sets the desired number of screen redraws per second.

   Δt [power of 10] alters the elapsed time between successive 'ticks' of the animator 'clock', in decades of the base animation time step Δt. The latter is set internally, and defaults to unity (but see QM Waves for other possibilities).

   Both the refresh rate and the time step can be adjusted 'on-the-fly' to obtain the most desireable results.
   Like any parameter, the current time is read from the Math Palette. This field is updated continually to remain synchronized with the animator 'clock'.

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