Education Technology

Solution 11696: Cause of the "Error: Data Type" Message When Using the Normalcdf Command on the TI-83 Family and TI-84 Family Graphing Calculators.

Why do I get a Data Type Error when using the normalcdf( ) command on a TI-83 family or TI-84 family graphing calculator?

This error can occur when using a list in the command syntax. For example, inputting normalcdf(-1E99,200,L1*.9,L1*.9*.1) will return the Data Type error. Some of the distribution functions are not designed to accept list as a valid parameter. Normalpdf() and normalcdf() are two of those. They are designed to accept floating number or integer only.

This is done by design and not a software or calculator malfunction.

Please see the TI-83 family and TI-84 Plus family guidebooks for additional information.