hypotenuse calculator

what's it for?

Use this calculator tool to figure out the approximate length of an edge resulting from decreasing or increasing a number of stitches over a number of rows. This calculation is useful when you're trying to estimate the length of the perimeter of your knitting -- for example, the perimeter of a sleeve cap or armscye -- or when you're trying to figure out how to space increases or decreases so that the edge of the knitted piece will fit a certain length.

how do you use it?

Enter values into the fields above. The stitch and row gauge are mandatory (note that you must enter the values per inch or per centimetre). Non-zero values must be entered for one or two sides of the triangle:

• If you enter values for both sts and rows and set the hypotenuse to 0, the calculator will solve for the length of the hypotenuse.
• If you enter a value for sts and a length for the hypotenuse, the calculator will solve for the number of rows.
• If you enter a value for rows and a length for the hypotenuse, the calculator will solve for the number of stitches.
• If you enter a value for sts and set both the rows and the hypotenuse to 0, the calculator will assume that you are describing a horizontal edge, for example a bind-off or cast-on row.
• If you enter a value for rows and set both sts and the hypotenuse to 0, the calculator will assume that you are describing a vertical edge where there are no increases or decreases.

Leaving a field blank is the same as setting it equal to zero.

In addition to calculating the hypotenuse length, the calculator will also tell you how many stitches or rows will fit into that length at your current gauge.

more details

If you enter three non-zero values for the three sides of the triangle, the calculator will tell you to change one value to zero -- that will be the value that is calculated. If you enter values that will not result in a real number, the calculator will tell you so (for example, a triangle with a side measuring 2 inches and a hypotenuse measuring 1 inch is impossible in our dimension).

You can switch between inches and centimetres, but this has no effect on the actual calculated numbers because the gauge values you enter are per unit measurement. If you have gauge values expressed in stitches per 2.5 cm, just select inches.

Stitches and rows are rounded to the nearest whole number; lengths are rounded to two decimal places. Rounding is carried out using the javascript math class as a final step before displaying the result.

troubleshooting

This page was tested in Safari and Firefox. You must have javascript enabled for the calculator to work. If you're using another browser and you're having difficulties getting the calculator to work, do this:

1. Move your mouse pointer to the bottom left-hand corner of the screen.
2. Click on the Start Menu icon.
3. Click on Run....
4. Type in calc.exe and press Enter.
5. You're on your own.

mac widget

This calculator tool is available to download as a widget for Mac OS X Tiger users only (click the icon). Your Mac should automatically unzip and install the widget in your library.