LPL Software Manual

LPL Software Manual

Dave Barker-Plummer, Jon Barwise, John Etchemendy
Albert Liu, Michael Murray, Emma Pease

CSLI Publications
Copyright 1999,
c 2000, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015,
2017
CSLI Publications
Center for the Study of Language and Information
Stanford University
Contents

1 Introduction 1
1.1 System requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.2 Obtaining the applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.3 Installing the applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.4 Getting Help . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

2 Using Submit 5
2.1 Getting started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.2 Choosing files to submit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.3 How you know your files were received . . . . . . . . 9
2.4 Preferences and User Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
2.4.1 Proxy Server Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.4.2 Preferred Host Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.4.3 Timeout settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
2.4.4 Personality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
2.4.5 Check for Updates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
2.4.6 Use Native File Chooser . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

3 Using Tarski’s World 13

3.1 Getting started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
3.1.1 Opening saved files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
3.1.2 Starting new files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3.1.3 Saving a file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
3.1.4 Closing Tabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
3.1.5 Reverting a File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
3.1.6 Printing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
3.1.7 Quitting (Exiting) Tarski’s World . . . . . . 17
3.2 The World Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
3.2.1 Adding blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
v
vi / LPL Software Manual

3.2.2 Selecting blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

3.2.3 Moving blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
3.2.4 Sizing and shaping blocks . . . . . . . . . . . 18
3.2.5 Naming blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
3.2.6 Deleting blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
3.2.7 Cutting, copying, and pasting blocks . . . . . 19
3.2.8 Hiding labels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
3.2.9 2-D view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
3.2.10 Rotating Worlds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
3.3 The Sentence Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
3.3.1 Writing formulas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
3.3.2 Commenting your sentences . . . . . . . . . . 21
3.3.3 Creating a list of sentences . . . . . . . . . . 21
3.3.4 Moving from sentence to sentence . . . . . . 21
3.3.5 Deleting sentences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
3.3.6 Typing symbols from the keyboard . . . . . . 22
3.3.7 Cutting, copying, and pasting . . . . . . . . . 23
3.4 Verifying syntax and truth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
3.5 Playing the game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
3.5.1 Picking blocks and sentences . . . . . . . . . 25
3.5.2 Backing up and giving up . . . . . . . . . . . 25
3.5.3 Controlling the interaction in the game . . . 26
3.5.4 When to play the game . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
3.6 Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

4 Using Fitch 29
4.1 Getting started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
4.1.1 The menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
4.1.2 The proof toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
4.1.3 The FOL toolbar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
4.1.4 The proof window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
4.2 Creating and editing proofs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
4.2.1 Step numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
4.2.2 The current focus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
4.2.3 Moving the focus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
4.2.4 Adding new steps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
4.2.5 Entering sentences into steps . . . . . . . . . 34
4.2.6 Deleting steps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
4.2.7 Specifying a step’s rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
4.2.8 The Lemma Rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
 Contents / vii

4.2.9 Changing a step’s rule . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

4.2.10 Specifying a step’s supports . . . . . . . . . . 37
4.2.11 Checking steps and verifying proofs . . . . . 37
4.2.12 Rule Defaults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
4.2.13 Add Support Steps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
4.2.14 Starting and ending subproofs . . . . . . . . 38
4.2.15 Boxed constants in subproofs . . . . . . . . . 39
4.2.16 Collapsing subproofs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
4.2.17 Deleting subproofs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
4.3 Goals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
4.4 Copying and pasting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
4.4.1 Copying and pasting sentences . . . . . . . . 40
4.4.2 Copying and pasting goal sentences . . . . . . 41
4.4.3 Copying and pasting ranges of steps . . . . . 41
4.5 Printing proofs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
4.6 Setting up exercises . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
4.6.1 Adding and deleting premises . . . . . . . . . 43
4.6.2 Adding and deleting goals . . . . . . . . . . . 43
4.6.3 Saving new problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
4.7 Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

5 Using Boole 46
5.1 Getting started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
5.1.1 The menus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
5.1.2 The toolbars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
5.1.3 The assessment panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
5.1.4 The table panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
5.1.5 Adjusting the table panel . . . . . . . . . . . 49
5.2 Writing and editing tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
5.2.1 Entering target sentences . . . . . . . . . . . 49
5.2.2 Creating reference columns . . . . . . . . . . 50
5.2.3 Filling in truth values . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
5.2.4 Using the Column Ordering Panel . . . . . . 51
5.3 Specifying your assessment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
5.4 Verifying your table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
5.5 Saving or printing your table . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
5.6 Preferences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

6 Languages 55
6.1 Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
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6.2 Pets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
6.3 Sets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
6.4 Arith . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Index 58
Chapter 1

Introduction

This manual contains instructions for the applications Submit,

Tarski’s World, Fitch, and Boole. These four applications are de-
signed to be used with the textbook Language, Proof and Logic.
We refer to these applications collectively as “the LPL software”.
This manual simply tells you how to use the software, not about
the logical concepts behind the software. For that you need to
read, and complete exercises from, the text.
This manual assumes that you know the basics about using your
computer, things like plugging it in, starting applications, opening
and saving files, using menus, basic editing, muttering quietly when
things go wrong, and quitting. If you don’t, you should ask a friend,
consultant, your instructor or a younger sibling to get you started.
We will focus on what is special about the packaged applications.
Tarski’s World, Fitch, and Boole are used for completing exer-
cises interspersed through the text. Submit, by contrast, is used for
submitting the exercise files thus completed to an Internet-based
grading service called the Grade Grinder. The Grade Grinder re-
ceives the files sent by Submit, and then returns an assessment of
those files to you (and to your instructor, if you so choose). To
submit exercises, you will need the unique Book ID that comes
with the package and your computer must be able to access the
Internet. (If you can browse the Web from your computer, then
you will also be able to submit files.)
This manual should be used as a reference when you are work-
ing through the textbook. When you start using one of the ap-
plications, you should read through enough of the corresponding
1
2 / LPL Software Manual

chapter of the manual to get started. Then, if you have trouble

with some feature, or can’t figure out how to do something, you
should try to look it up in the manual.

1.1 System requirements

All four of the applications run on

◦ Macintosh computers running Mac OS 10.7 or later,

◦ computers equipped with Microsoft Windows 7, Windows 8,

Windows 10 and,

◦ 64 bit versions of the most recent long term support releases

of Fedora and Ubuntu Linuxes.1

Consult the ReadMe file in the installation if you have problems

getting the applications to run.
To submit files to the Grade Grinder using the Submit appli-
cation, your computer must have access to the Internet. If you are
using a computer at a college or university, the computer is proba-
bly connected to the campus network and thus to the Internet. If
you are using a computer at home, you will have to connect first to
your Internet Service Provider (ISP). The rule of thumb is that if
your browser can access the World Wide Web, then Submit should
be able to find the Grade Grinder.

1.2 Obtaining the applications

You will obtain the software package, including the text book and
this manual, by downloading an installer from our web site, and
running the installer to install the software.

◦ If you purchased the paperless package from our online store,

an account is automatically created for you at our web site
https://www.gradegrinder.net.
1 Older versions of our software have, and current software may still, run on

Windows back to 98 and MacOS back to 8.5 but we no longer support these
configurations. The software may run on other flavors of Linux, but again we
do not support these configurations. You can obtain these older versions from
our web site.
 Introduction / 3

◦ If you purchased a physical text book, you can register and

obtain the software using information provided with your
text book. First locate the pouch attached to the inside
back cover of this book. Once this pouch is detached from the
cover or opened, you will be unable to return the book. Open
the poucht and turn over the card to reveal your registration
information.
On the card you will see the URL of the registration page
on our web site, a registration id beginning with the letter
L, and also a Quick Response (QR) code. If you have a QR
code reader (software that is available, free for most com-
puters, tablets and phones) you can simply scan this code.
Alternatively, you can enter the URL manually into your web
browser. In either case, you will see a form which requires
you to enter your name, email address and registration code,
which you should fill out to complete your registration.

Once you are registered, you can log into this account to down-
load an installer appropriate for your computer. You may down-
load any installer, as many times as you would like, and can install
the software on as many different computers as you like, provided
they all belong to you.

1.3 Installing the applications

As a first step, you should install the software on your computer’s
hard disk. Just launch the installer that you downladed and follow
the prompts. If you are on a Linux machine, the installers as shell
scripts that you will need to execute as a privileged user (typically
using the sudo command).
If you are not permitted to install software on the computer
that you are using, and that computer is an Apple Macintosh, you
can install the applications onto a USB stick. Just choose the USB
stick as the target drive in the installer. On a Windows machine
it is possible to run the software directly from the cd-rom.
You will need to save your homework files on a writable disk
(such as a hard disk or USB stick). If you are working on a public
computer, you should be careful not to leave your homework files
on the computer once you are finished, since the files may be erased
or copied by another user.
4 / LPL Software Manual

You can register at

https://www.gradegrinder.net/gradegrinder/login

(select ‘register as a student’) using the Book ID number (see page

6), login, and download the software.
If you buy online, you will be registered automatically and
taken to the page where you can download the software.

1.4 Getting Help

If you encounter problems with the software, you should consult
the help pages on the LPL web site. The address of this web site
is:
https://www.gradegrinder.net/
The web site also contains the latest information about the soft-
ware, and downloadable updates for registered users. You can also
visit the application-specific help pages by clicking on the help icon
in the applications. This is a small question mark found in the top
right corner of each of the applications main screen.
If you discover a bug in the software, first consult the web
site above for any information that we might have about the is-
sue. In particular you should consult the list of Frequently Asked
Questions (FAQ) at the web site to see if we have advice on fix-
ing your problem. If you don’t find the information that you
need, you can contact us either by filing a bug report, or send-
ing a more general comment from the web site, or by email to
lpl-bugreports@lists.stanford.edu.
Chapter 2

Using Submit

Submit is a computer program that allows you to submit your

homework exercises over the Internet to the Grade Grinder, a grad-
ing server that checks your homework and returns reports to you
and, if you ask, your instructor. In this chapter we describe how
to use Submit.

2.1 Getting started

The computer you use to submit homework to the Grade Grinder
must be connected to the Internet. Submit uses the same form
of communication used by web browsers, so if you can access the
Internet with your web browser, you should be able to submit files
to the Grade Grinder.
To submit files to the Grade Grinder, you need to have all of
the following ahead of time:

1. The solution files you want to submit. You might want

to collect together all the files you want to submit in a single
folder. Remember that the files must be named exactly the
way you are asked to name them in the book. Submit will
only send files whose names begin with World, Sentences,
Proof, Table, or Solution and that are of the appropriate type
(Tarski’s World, Fitch, Boole, or text files). If you try to
submit a file with an incorrect name, it will give you a chance

5
6 / LPL Software Manual

Figure 2.1: Main window of Submit.

to correct the name. If you try to submit a file with an

incorrect exercise number (e.g., World 1.1 rather than World
10.1), then Submit will send it but the Grade Grinder will
tell you that it doesn’t know how to grade it or grade it as the
wrong exercise. Be careful when naming your solution files!

2. Your Book ID number. This is a unique ID number that

is included in the LPL package. It is of the form L21-1234567,
that is, a letter, followed by two digits, a dash, then seven
more digits. Do not let anyone else use your ID number,
since the number is how the Grade Grinder associates your
homework exercises with you.

3. Your name and full email address. The name you enter
should be sufficient for your instructor to identify you. You
must use the same email address throughout the course, so
make sure you choose the right one and enter it correctly.

4. Your instructor’s name and full email address. If you

want your results to be sent to an instructor as well as to you,
you will need his or her name and full email address. The
instructor’s email address must match one of the instructors
in the Grade Grinder’s database, so make sure you find out
what it is. If you do not want results sent to an instructor,
you won’t need this information.
 Using Submit / 7

Launching Submit
To launch Submit double-click on the application. Its icon shows
a cogged wheel with a gold G in the middle.1 After a moment,
Submit’s main window will appear on your screen. You’ll know it
by the spinning cog.
Your goal is simply to fill in the various parts of this window
by typing in the information requested and specifying the list of
files to be submitted. Once that is done, you will simply press the
Submit Files button in the lower right of the window.
Start by filling in the information requested (Book ID, your
name, etc.). Read about this information above if you haven’t
already. Remember to use your full email address and to spell
it correctly. Once you have submitted files, your Book ID will
be associated with the email address you type in, so that no one
can use your Book ID to submit bogus homework in your name.
In later submissions, you will have to use the exact same email
address with your Book ID, so if you have more than one email
address, remember which one you used.

2.2 Choosing files to submit

There are several ways to choose the files you want to submit. The
most common is to click on the button Choose Files to Submit
in the lower left corner of the main Submit window. This will open
another window showing two file lists. The list on the left shows
all the files in the current folder (directory). The list on the right
will be built by you as you choose files to submit. The goal is to
find the names of your solution files on the lefthand list and move
them to the righthand list.
To find your solution files, you will have to navigate around
the folder structure of your computer in the lefthand list. To move
to “higher” folders, those containing the folder whose contents is
currently shown in the list, click on the folder name that appears
above the list. A menu will pop up and show all the folders (and
volume) that contain this folder. Choose the folder whose contents
you want to view. To move to “lower” folders, those contained in-
1 If you installed Submit on a Windows machine, you can also launch

the program from the Start menu by choosing All Programs/LPL Soft-
ware/Submit.
8 / LPL Software Manual

side the folder whose contents you are viewing, choose those folder
names from the list and click Open, or simply double-click on
the folder names. Using these two techniques, you will be able to
find any file located on your computer’s hard disk or on any disk
inserted into one of the computer’s drives.
Once you have found the file(s) you want to submit, select the
file name in the lefthand list and click the Add>>> button to add
the name to the righthand list. If you want to add all files in a
folder, just select the folder and use the Add>>> button. Keep
doing this until the righthand list contains all the files you want
to submit. If any of the files are of the wrong type or have names
of the wrong form, Submit will let you know before putting them
on the list. It will give you a chance to correct the names of files
that are of the right type, but not named correctly. (This does not
change the names of the files on your computer, only the name sent
to the Grade Grinder.) You will also be able to skip files that are
not appropriate for submission. When you are finished choosing
files, click the Done button under the righthand file list.
Another way to specify files to submit is by choosing Choose
File to Submit. . . from the File menu while you are at the main
Submit window. This gives you the standard file open dialog box.
If you choose a file of an appropriate type (e.g., a Fitch file), it will
be added directly to the list of files to submit. This takes longer if
you have more than one file to submit.
The fastest way to specify the files to submit is to drag the files
(or a folder containing them) to the Submit application icon. This
will launch Submit (if it is not already running) and put the file
names directly onto the list of files to submit.

Submitting the files

Once you have entered all the information on the main Submit
window and have constructed the list of files to submit, click the
Submit Files button under the list of files. Submit will ask you
to confirm that you want to submit the files on your list, and
whether you want to send the results just to you or also to your
instructor. When you are submitting finished homework exercises,
you should select Instructor Too, but if you just want to check
to see if you’ve done the problems right, select Just Me. One of
these boxes must be chosen before you click the click the Proceed
button, which sends your submission.
 Using Submit / 9

The first time you make a submission, you are registered as

a user of the Grade Grinder system. This registration associates
your book ID number with your email address. Because it is so
important to enter the email address correctly, you will be asked
to confirm your email address the first time you make a submis-
sion. On subsequent submissions, you will only have to enter your
address once.
If you wish, you can use the Add Text Message button to
send a text message with your submission. This message will ap-
pear in the text of the grade report. It is useful for complaining to
your instructor about how long you spent on the exercises.
After a moment, you will get a notice back from the Grade
Grinder telling you which files it received and which of them it
knows how to grade. (If you misnumbered a solution, it won’t
know how to grade it.) You can save this notice as a receipt to
prove that the files got to the Grade Grinder.

What Submit sends

When you submit files to the Grade Grinder, Submit sends a copy
of the files. The original files are still on the disk where you origi-
nally saved them.

2.3 How you know your files were

received
If you receive the notice back from the Grade Grinder described
above, then you know your files were received. If you receive an
error message, or if nothing at all happens when you try to submit
your files, then the Grade Grinder has not received them. If your
submission does not get through, it is probably a problem with your
Internet connection. You should try submitting the files again,
perhaps from another computer. If you are certain that you are
connected to the Internet, you may be able to solve this problem
by modifying the proxy server settings in the preferences dialog
(see section 2.4.1.)
A second confirmation that your submission was received is
the email message that the Grade Grinder will send you with the
results of its grading. This will arrive a while after you make the
submission, depending on how large the submission was, how many
10 / LPL Software Manual

Figure 2.2: Submit Preferences Window

other submissions the Grade Grinder is checking, and how long it

takes email to reach you. Generally, you will receive the email
message within minutes of submitting your files.
Logging into at our web site allows you to check all your suc-
cessful submissions.
You can check on a submission by clicking on the GG Status
button at the bottom of the Submit window. If the Grade Grinder
was unable to grade your submission, it will tell you which of your
submissions have been delayed and for what reasons.

2.4 Preferences and User Data

The information that you enter into the main Submit window,
other than the files to submit, is known as the user data. All of this
information except the Book ID is saved on your behalf, so that
you can avoid typing your name, email address, etc., each time
you run Submit, This information will automatically be entered
into the appropriate fields when you launch the program.
Submit also has preference settings which may be changed from
the Preferences window, which is obtained by using the Preferences
command from the Application menu (Macintosh) or Edit menu
(Windows). If you use this command, a window similar to that
shown in figure 2.2 will appear. You can change a number of
aspects of the way in which Submit behaves using the controls in
this window.
 Using Submit / 11

2.4.1 Proxy Server Settings

In some cases, you may not be able to connect directly to the
Internet to make web connections, usually because your machine
is located behind a firewall. In such a situation, there will be a
computer that you are allowed to access, and this machine makes
connections to the Internet on your behalf, returning the results to
your machine. A computer configured in this way is called a “proxy
server”. If you need to use a proxy server, you should check the
box marked Use Proxy Server and enter the name of the server, and
the port to connect to, in the text fields below. You will be able
to obtain the correct information from the corresponding proxy
settings in your web browser, or from a local computer expert.
The default setting is not to use a proxy server, and unless
it is necessary to use one, these settings should normally be left
unchanged.

2.4.2 Preferred Host Settings

The Grade Grinder is implemented by multiple computers called
grade servers. By default, when you make a submission, Submit
will determine which server is least busy, and send your submission
to that server. This is called “load balancing”. However, if you
wish you can ask Submit to prefer one of the servers over the
other(s). To do this, check the radio button marked “Use Preferred
Server”, and then the radio button that corresponds to your choice
of server.
The default setting is to use load balancing, and we do not
recommend changing from the default, since you run the risk of
unnecessarily delaying your own submissions. The only situation
in which selecting a preferred server might be beneficial is if prob-
lems with one of the Grade Grinder servers, causes it to accept
submissions but be delayed in grading them. If this happens, then
preferring to send submissions to the other server would be appro-
priate.
It is important to know that selecting a preferred server does
not guarantee that your submissions will always go to that server.
It is a preference, not a guarantee. Submit will try to send your
submission to your preferred server first, but if that server is un-
available then the other server(s) will be used instead.
12 / LPL Software Manual

2.4.3 Timeout settings

Submit waits a period of time called the “timeout” when connect-
ing to a grade server. If the server does not respond within this
time, the next server is tried, until either one accepts the submis-
sion or all have been unsuccessfully tried, in which case you will be
notified of the problem. You can modify the length of the timeout
value using the timeout choice menu. If you are routinely having
difficulty connecting to a grade server within the timeout period,
perhaps because you are connecting over a slow dialup line, or
sending very large submissions, then you may wish to change the
setting to Patient or Very Patient in order to instruct Submit to
wait longer for a response. You might like to experiment with the
(Very) Impatient settings if you think that you will routinely get
very fast responses from the server (perhaps because your connec-
tion is very fast due to being on the Internet backbone.)

2.4.4 Personality
The Grade Grinder generates congratulatory messages in the grade
report when you get an exercise completely correct. By default,
the “classic” behavior, these are randomly selected. You can con-
trol the exclamations that are generated by using the Personality
setting, or switching all exclamations off using the setting “None”
if you prefer.

2.4.5 Check for Updates

There is a global preference which controls whether all of the ap-
plications check for updates when they are launched. If this box
is checked, the application will determine if an update is available,
and ask if you want to download and install it.

2.4.6 Use Native File Chooser

Use Native File Chooser (only visible in MacOS) preference is
shared with the other Language, Proof and Logic applications; in
almost all cases you should leave it checked.
Chapter 3

Using Tarski’s World

Tarski’s World lets you represent simple, three-dimensional worlds

inhabited by geometric blocks of various kinds and sizes, and test
first-order sentences to see whether they are true or false in those
worlds. We begin with instructions on how to start and stop
Tarski’s World, and explain the basic layout of the screen.

3.1 Getting started

The Tarski’s World application is contained inside the folder called
Tarski’s World Folder. Also in this folder is a folder called TW
Exercise Files, in which you will find the Tarski’s World exercise
files referred to in the book.
When Tarski’s World is running you will see a large window
divided into three sections. The first narrow gray tool bar is the
Tarski toolbar.
Second (either on the left or in middle depending on window
layout, see section 3.6) is the world panel containing a checkerboard
on which blocks are placed, called a world, and a toolbar above for
manipulating the content of this world, which we call the world
toolbar. In the area between the toolbar and the world is a tab
which contains the name of the world. Initially this is Untitled
World.
The third section has the sentence panel which is the white
panel to the right or bottom of the window (depending on window
layout) with the fol toolbar above it. At first the sentence panel
13
14 / LPL Software Manual

Figure 3.1: Main window of Tarski’s World.

contains only the numeral “1” inside. This is where sentences are
entered and evaluated to see whether they are true or false in the
world represented in the world panel. Feel free to type something
in the sentence panel, say, “I’d rather be in Philadelphia.” Immedi-
ately above the sentence panel is a tab which contains the name of
the collection of sentences. Initially this is Untitled Sentences.
The fol toolbar above the sentence panel is used to enter sen-
tences of first-order logic. Feel free to play around by clicking on
the buttons in the fol toolbar.

3.1.1 Opening saved files

Both worlds and sentence lists can be saved as files on your disk.
Indeed, many prepackaged world and sentence files come with
Tarski’s World. To open a saved file, you use the Open. . . com-
mand on the File menu.
To open a file, pull down the File menu and choose Open. . . .
A file dialog will appear which allows you to navigate to the file that
 Using Tarski’s World / 15

you wish to open. You will have to navigate to the right folder to
find the prepackaged files, which are in TW Exercise Files. Find this
folder, select it, and then click Open, or simply double-click on the
name. Feel free to open one of the files you see, say, Ackermann’s
World, but if you make any changes to the world, don’t save them.
When you open a file, a new tab will be created above the new
sentence or world panel.1 This tab will contain the name of the file
that you opened. To return to viewing any other world or sentence
file, just click on its tab, and it will reappear.

3.1.2 Starting new files

If you want to start a new world or sentence file, choose New
from the File menu. You may then specify whether you want a
new world or new sentence file from the menu which appears. The
New World and New Sentences commands create a new empty
world or sentence panel as appropriate. These are created as new
tabs within the collection of worlds or sentences.
The command New Random World on the New menu cre-
ates a new world, and populates it with randomly chosen blocks.
The New Window item on the New menu creates a new
window identical to the initial main window.
You may have noticed that there is another New command on
the File menu. depending on which panel is active, this reads New
Sentences or New World, and is equivalent to the corresponding
item on the New submenu. This item also has a shortcut.

3.1.3 Saving a file

If you want to save a file, use the Save submenu from the File
menu. There are items here which allow you to save the current
world, Save World or Save World As..., the current sentences,
or all worlds and sentences in all tabs.
If the file has never been saved before, a dialog box will appear
giving you the option of naming the file you are about to create.
If you were to hit the return key, or click the Save button, the file
would be saved with the default name. You should type in some
other name before hitting the return key or clicking Save. You
1 There is one exception to this rule, and that is when the current tab is

one of the “Untitled” tabs that has not been changed. In this case the old tab
will be replaced by the new one.
16 / LPL Software Manual

should also make sure you are saving the file where you want it.
Check the directory name at the top of the save dialog box. If
you’re not in the folder where you want to save the file, navigate
to the right one by clicking on this name.
You may have noticed that there is another save command on
the File menu. depending on which panel is active, this reads Save
Sentences or Save World, and is equivalent to the corresponding
item on the Save menu. This item also has a shortcut.
Once a file has been saved, the name of the file appears in the
corresponding tab. If you are working on a named file, the Save
and Save As. . . commands behave differently. The first will save
a new version of the file under the same name, and the old version
will be gone. The second gives you a chance to create a new file,
with a new name, and keeps the old file, with its name. For this
reason, Save As. . . is the safer of the two options.
You can also access the save commands by right-clicking or
control-clicking (Macintosh) on the corresponding tab to get the
tab popup menu.
All files created by Tarski’s World can be read by either the
Macintosh or Windows version of the application.

3.1.4 Closing Tabs

When you are done with a world or sentence file, you can close it
using the Close commands on the File menu. As usual, there is
a command which closes the active tab whether it is a world or
sentence, and a submenu which allows you to close the tab of your
choice. The close commands can also be accessed from the tab
popup menu or by clicking on the close icon (a red dot) on the tab
itself.

3.1.5 Reverting a File

If you want to reload a tab from its corresponding file, you can do
so using the Revert submenu on the File menu. You will be asked
first whether you want to save the changes that you have made to
the file (to a different file), and then the content of the current tab
will be replaced from the file. This command can also be accessed
from the tab popup menu.
 Using Tarski’s World / 17

3.1.6 Printing
To print your sentences or world, choose the appropriate Export
HTML command from the File menu, or from the tab popup
menu. This will export the sentences and/or world to a new tab
in your default browser. From there you can print. Note that you
should print with background colors and images turned on.

3.1.7 Quitting (Exiting) Tarski’s World

Eventually you will want to leave Tarski’s World. To do this,
choose Quit from the application menu (Exit from the File menu
on Windows). If you’ve made any unsaved changes to the files,
Tarski’s World will give you a chance to save them.

3.2 The World Panel

In this section we explain how to create, edit and save worlds.
Worlds can be edited using a variety of different commands. Each
of these can be undone using the Undo command from the File
menu, and redone using the Redo command, on the same menu.

3.2.1 Adding blocks

To put a block on the grid, simply click the New button on the
world toolbar. This is the leftmost button on the toolbar, and
looks like an arrow pointing at the world, with blocks above it.
Try this out. The size and shape of block that is created can be
controlled by setting a preference (see section 3.6). A small cube
is created by default.

3.2.2 Selecting blocks

A block can be selected by clicking on it. The block will change
color to indicate its selection. To deselect a block, click elsewhere
in the world panel.
To select more than one block, hold down the command key
(control key on Windows) while clicking on the blocks. If you
want to deselect a block, repeat the command-click.
18 / LPL Software Manual

3.2.3 Moving blocks

To move a block, position the cursor over the block and drag it to
the desired position. (That is, move the mouse’s arrow over the
block and then, with the button depressed, move the mouse until
the block is where you want it.) If multiple blocks are selected, they
will all move. There is one exception to this. Large blocks are so
big that they overlap onto the adjoining squares. Consequently, it
is impossible to move blocks so that a large block adjoins a square
that is occupied.
If you move a block (or blocks) too close to the edge it will fall
off and be deleted.

3.2.4 Sizing and shaping blocks

To change a block’s shape, select it and click on one of the shape
buttons on the world toolbar. These display a tetrahedron, cube
and dodecahedron and change the shape appropriately. If multiple
blocks are selected all will changed to the new shape.
Similarly, to change a block’s size, select it and click on one
of the size buttons on the world toolbar. These display circles of
small, medium and large sizes. If multiple blocks are selected all
will changed to the new size. There is one exception to this. Large
blocks are so big that they overlap onto the adjoining squares.
Consequently, it is impossible to make a block large if it adjoins
any square which has a block on it.

3.2.5 Naming blocks

When a block is selected, the name checkboxes on the world toolbar
are activated. To add a name to the selected block, click on the
appropriate name button, which looks like a cube with a name on
it. If the box is already selected, the name will be removed from
the block.
In first-order logic, one object can have several names, but two
objects cannot share the same name. Hence Tarski’s World lets
you give a block more than one name, but once a name is used,
that name cannot be assigned to another block. So if one block
is named a and you want a different block to be named a, you
must remove the name from the first block before adding it to the
second.
 Using Tarski’s World / 19

3.2.6 Deleting blocks

To delete a block, drag the block off the edge of the grid and drop
it. Alternatively, select the appropriate block or blocks and hit the
Delete key.

3.2.7 Cutting, copying, and pasting blocks

If you want to copy some blocks from one file to another, use the
cut, copy, and paste functions.
If you select blocks and then choose Cut or Copy from the
Edit menu, the blocks are stored on the computer’s clipboard.
The difference between the two commands is that Cut deletes
the blocks from their present position, while Copy leaves them in
place. You can’t see the contents of the clipboard, but the blocks
will be there until you cut or copy something else to the clipboard.
Once some blocks are on the clipboard, they can be pasted into
a different (or the same) world. Just select the relevant tab and
choose Paste from the Edit menu. A copy of the blocks on the
clipboard will be inserted.
You can paste several copies if you want to, even into the same
world. Tarski’s World will attempt to paste the blocks in the same
configuration as they were cut, but will need to move them if there
are already blocks in any of those positions. Because two blocks
cannot have the same name, pasted blocks will have their names
removed.

3.2.8 Hiding labels

Whenever you name a block, Tarski’s World labels the block with
its name. Of course, in the real world we only wear name tags
at unpleasant social occasions. Like us, blocks in Tarski’s World
can have names without wearing labels. To hide the labels, simply
choose Hide Labels from the World menu. To redisplay the
labels, choose Show Labels from the World menu.
This command toggles the display of labels in all open worlds.

3.2.9 2-D view

Labels aren’t the only things that can hide. Sometimes a small
block can be obscured from view by another block in front of it.
To get a bird’s eye view of the world, choose 2-D View from
20 / LPL Software Manual

the World menu. To get back to the usual perspective, choose

3-D View from the World menu. These commands can also be
accessed from the world toolbar using the button which looks like
a small version of the checkerboard.
Blocks can be moved, selected, and changed from the 2-D view
in exactly the same way as the 3-D view. You can even change to
the 2-D view in the middle of playing the game (see section 3.5);
sometimes you will have to in order to pick an appropriate block,
or to see what Tarski’s World is referring to.

3.2.10 Rotating Worlds

To rotate a world by 90 degrees in either direction, choose Rotate
World Clockwise or Rotate World Counterclockwise from
the World menu. Such a rotation counts as a change to the world
and will be saved when you save the world.
You can also rotate the world from the world toolbar using the
arrow buttons.

3.3 The Sentence Panel

There are two ways to enter formulas into the sentence panel, from
the fol toolbar or from the keyboard. Most people find it easier
to use this toolbar than the keyboard.
All sentence edits can be undone and redone using the Undo
and Redo commands from the File menu.

3.3.1 Writing formulas

Tarski’s World makes writing first-order formulas quite painless.
As you may have noticed while playing with the fol toolbar, when
you enter a predicate, like Tet or BackOf, the insertion point lo-
cates itself in the appropriate position for entering “arguments”—
variables (u, v, w, x, y, z) or individual constants (a, b, c, d, e, f).
What this means is that a sentence like BackOf(a,b) can be
entered into the sentence list with three mouse clicks in the toolbar:
first on the BackOf button, then on the a button, then on the b
button. To enter the same thing from the keyboard would require
11 keystrokes.
In order to allow you to write more readable formulas, Tarski’s
World treats brackets (“[ ]”) and braces (“{ }”) as alternatives to
 Using Tarski’s World / 21

parentheses when grouping formulae. Thus, for example, you could

write [LeftOf(a, b) ∧ Large(a)] and Tarski’s World will read this sen-
tence as (LeftOf(a, b) ∧ Large(a)). But you have to type brackets
and braces from the keyboard, and you must use parentheses to
indicate the arguments in atomic sentences.

3.3.2 Commenting your sentences

You can add comments to your sentences in a way that will be
ignored by the program when it is checking to see if they are well
formed or true. You do this by prefacing each line of text you
want ignored by a semicolon (;). This will cause Tarski’s World
to ignore anything that follows on the same line. Tarski’s World
displays all of the characters in the comment in green to remind of
their (in)significance.

3.3.3 Creating a list of sentences

To create a whole list of sentences, you first enter one sentence,
and then choose Add Sentence After from the Sentence menu.
You are given a new, numbered line, and can then enter a new
sentence. If you hit the Return (or Enter) key, this will not start
a new sentence, but will simply break your existing sentence into
two lines. Use Add Sentence After!
Instead of choosing Add Sentence After from the Sentence
menu, you can do this from the fol toolbar by clicking the Add
After button or you can do it directly from the keyboard in two
ways. You can type Shift-Return (that is, hit the Return (or En-
ter) key while holding the shift key down) or use the keyboard
equivalent shown in the menu.
To insert a new sentence in your list before the current sentence,
choose Add Sentence Before from the Sentence menu, or using
the Add Before button on the fol toolbar.

3.3.4 Moving from sentence to sentence

You will often need to move from sentence to sentence within a
list of sentences. You can move the insertion point with the up
and down arrow keys (↑, ↓) on the keyboard or by clicking on the
sentence of interest with the mouse. The left and right arrow keys
(←, →) on the keyboard also move the insertion point, but only
within a single sentence.
22 / LPL Software Manual

Table 3.1: Keyboard equivalents for typing symbols.

Symbol Key Symbol Key
¬ ∼ 6= #
∧ & ∨ |
→ $ ↔ %
∀ @ ∃ /
⊆ ∈ \

If you hold down the Option key, the up arrow takes you to the
first sentence of the list, the down arrow takes you the last sentence
of the list, and the left and right arrows take you to the beginning
and the end of the current word. Holding down the command key
while using the left and right arrow keys will move to the beginning
or end of the current sentence.

3.3.5 Deleting sentences

To delete a whole sentence and renumber the sentences that re-
main, choose Delete Sentence from the Sentence menu. First
make sure the insertion point is somewhere in the sentence you
want to delete.
Note that you cannot highlight parts of two different sentences
and then delete them. If you want to delete a sentence boundary,
you must use the command Delete Sentence from the Sentence
menu.

3.3.6 Typing symbols from the keyboard

Sentences can be entered into the sentence panel by typing them
on the physical keyboard. When typing predicates in the blocks
language, you must be sure to spell them correctly and to capitalize
the first letter (since otherwise they will be interpreted as names,
not predicates). You also have to insert your own punctuation:
parentheses after the predicate, and commas to separate multiple
“arguments” (as in Between(a, x, z)). To get the logical symbols
use the keyboard equivalents shown in Table 3.1.
The sentence panel must be “active” before typing on the phys-
ical keyboard will have any effect. If you type and nothing shows
up, that’s because the world panel is currently the active panel.
 Using Tarski’s World / 23

To activate the other panel, just click in it somewhere.

You can change the size of the font used to display sentences
using the Text size submenu on the Sentence menu.

3.3.7 Cutting, copying, and pasting

If you want to change the order of the sentences in a list, or copy
a sentence from one file to another, use the cut, copy, and paste
functions.
If you highlight a string of symbols and then choose Cut or
Copy from the Edit menu, the string of symbols is stored on the
computer’s clipboard. The difference between the two commands
is that Cut deletes the highlighted symbols from their present po-
sition, while Copy leaves them in place. You can’t see the contents
of the clipboard, but the symbols will be there until you cut or copy
something else to the clipboard.
Once something is on the clipboard, it can be pasted anywhere
you want it. Just put the insertion point at the desired place and
choose Paste from the Edit menu. A copy of the string of symbols
on the clipboard will be inserted. You can paste several copies at
several different points, if you want to.
You can copy sentences out of Tarski’s World and paste them
into Fitch or Boole, and vice versa.

3.4 Verifying syntax and truth

As you will learn, only some strings of symbols are grammatically
correct, or well formed, as we say in logic. These expressions are
usually called well-formed formulas, or wffs. And only some of
these are appropriate for making genuine claims about the world.
These are called sentences. Sentences are wffs with no free vari-
ables. You will learn about these concepts in the text.
To see if what you have written in the sentence panel is a sen-
tence, and if so, whether it is true in the world currently displayed,
click on the Verify button in the Tarski toolbar. This is the leftmost
of the group of three colored buttons on the toolbar. Alternatively,
you can type Command-Return (Control-Enter on Windows). If
you want to check a whole list of sentences, choose Verify All
Sentences from the Sentence menu. Alternatively, use the Ver-
ify All button on the toolbar, which is in the center of the group..
24 / LPL Software Manual

When you verify a sentence, the results are displayed in the

margin to the left of the sentence number: “T” or “F” indicates
that the sentence is true or false in the world, “∗” indicates that
the formula is not well-formed or not a sentence, while “+” indi-
cates that the formula is a sentence of first-order logic, but not
evaluable in the current world. When you enter something that
is not well-formed, Tarski’s World will display the portion of the
expression after the error in red. If you are unsure why a sentence
is not evaluable, verifying the sentence again will result in a dialog
explaining the reason.
The evaluations are removed when the sentence or world is
changed.

3.5 Playing the game

When you stake out a claim about a world with a complex sentence,
you are committed not only to the truth of that sentence, but also
to claims about its component sentences. For example, if you are
committed to the truth of a conjunction A ∧ B (read “A and B”)
then you are also committed both to the truth of A and to the truth
of B. Similarly, if you are committed to the truth of the negation
¬A (read “not A”), then you are committed to the falsity of A.
This simple observation allows us to play a game that reduces
complex commitments to more basic commitments. The latter
claims are generally easier to evaluate. The rules of the game are
part of what you will learn in the body of this book. Here, we will
explain the kinds of moves you will make in playing the game.
To play the game, you need a guess about the truth value of
the current sentence in the current world. This guess is your initial
commitment. The game is of most value when this commitment is
wrong, even though you won’t be able to win in this case.
Clicking on the Game button, the rightmost of the group of
three colored buttons on the Tarski toolbar, will start the game.
Tarski’s World will begin by asking you to indicate your initial
commitment. At this point, how the game proceeds depends on
both the form of the sentence and your current commitment. A
summary of the rules can be found in Table 9.1 in Chapter 9 of
the textbook.
 Using Tarski’s World / 25

3.5.1 Picking blocks and sentences

As you see from the game rules, at certain points you will be asked
to pick one sentence from a list of sentences. You do this by clicking
on the desired sentence and then clicking OK.
At other points in the game, you will be asked to pick a block
satisfying some formula. You do this by moving the cursor over
the desired block and selecting it. Then click OK. If necessary,
Tarski’s World assigns a name to the chosen block, for example n1,
and labels it.

3.5.2 Backing up and giving up

Tarski’s World never makes a mistake in playing the game. It will
win if it is possible for it to win, that is, if your initial commitment
was wrong. However, you may make a mistake, and so lose a game
you could have won. All it takes is some bad choices along the way.
Tarski’s World will take advantage of you. It will not tell you that
you made a bad move until it has won, when it will inform you
that you could have won. What this means is that there are two
ways for you to lose: if you were wrong in your initial assessment,
or if you make a faulty choice in the play of the game. To put this
more positively, if you win a game against the computer, then you
can be quite sure that your initial assessment of the sentence, as
well as all subsequent choices, were correct.
To make up for the edge the computer has, Tarski’s World
allows you to retract any choices you have made, no matter how far
into the game you’ve gone. So if you think your initial assessment
was correct but that you’ve made a bad choice along the way, you
can always retract some moves by clicking on the Back button.
If your initial assessment really was correct, you should, by using
this feature, eventually be able to win. If you can’t, your initial
commitment was wrong.
The Back button undoes the last step of the game, while the
Reconsider button undoes all of the moves since the last time
that you made a choice.
If, halfway through the play of the game, you realize that your
assessment was wrong and understand why, you can stop the game
by clicking the End Game button. This ends the game, but does
not shut down Tarski’s World.
26 / LPL Software Manual

3.5.3 Controlling the interaction in the game

There are three checkboxes which can be used to control the detail
with which the game is presented. Some moves can be carried
out completely automatically rather than require you to click a
confirmation button. We recommend leaving these in the checked
(most verbose) position until you gain some experience with the
game. The function of these checkboxes are described below
◦ Rewrites: At some points in the game one formula is re-
placed by another equivalent formula. This is how impli-
cations and biconditionals are handled. Since there are no
choices to be made at this point, you can make the game
proceed with these replacements without requiring interac-
tion by switching off this checkbox.
◦ Formula Choices: At some points in the game Tarski’s
World must choose one formula from a range of choices. Since
the are choice is out of your control, you can make the game
proceed with these choices without requiring interaction by
switching off this checkbox. Of course, when you are required
to make a choice of formula, the game will ask you what to
do regardless of the state of the checkbox.
◦ Block Choices: At some points in the game Tarski’s World
must choose a block from the world. Since the are choice
is out of your control, you can make the game proceed with
these choices without requiring interaction by switching off
this checkbox. Of course, when you are required to make a
choice of block, the game will ask you what to do regardless
of the state of the checkbox.

3.5.4 When to play the game

In general, you won’t want to play the game with every sentence.
The game is most illuminating when you have incorrectly assessed
a sentence’s truth value, but are not sure why your assessment
is wrong. When this happens, you should always play the game
without changing your commitment. Tarski’s World will win, but
in the course of winning, it will usually make clear to you exactly
why your assessment was wrong. That’s the real value of the game.
You might wonder what happens when you play the game with
a correct assessment. In this case, if you play your cards right, you
 Using Tarski’s World / 27

Figure 3.2: Tarski’s World Preferences Dialog

are guaranteed to win. But Tarski’s World does not simply give up.
At those points in the game when it needs to make choices, it will
make them more or less randomly, hoping that you will blunder
somewhere along the line. If you do, it will seize the opportunity
and win the game. But, as we have noted, you can always renege
by backing up.

3.6 Preferences
Some aspects of the behavior of Tarski’s World can be controlled
using the preferences dialog. This can be accessed by choosing
the Preferences. . . command from the application menu (Edit
Menu on Windows). The preferences dialog is shown in figure 3.2.
The preferences allow you to control various aspects of the ap-
plications. The FOL Editor Preferences are shared by Fitch,
Tarski’s World, and Boole and control the style of the text you
type such as bold/italic, size, and whether parentheses give hints
28 / LPL Software Manual

on how they are paired. Use Native File Chooser (only visible
in MacOS) is also shared; in almost all cases you should leave it
checked. Automatic Updates is also a global preference which
controls whether the applications check for updates when they are
launched. If this box is checked, the application will determine if
an update is available, and ask if you want to download and install
it.
Preferences specific to Tarski’s World include the Open panel.
With it you can opt to create a random world instead of an empty
one when a new world is created by selecting the Open with ran-
dom world checkbox. You can view an animation as the world is
opened or created by selecting the Open with flythrough check-
box, and you can opt to always open worlds in 2-D by selecting
Open in 2D. The Window Layout panel determines whether the
world and sentence sections are side by side (landscape or horizon-
tal, the default) or world section above sentence section (portrait
or vertical).
You can control the speed of animations, or switch all anima-
tions off using the Animation panel. The speed of animations is
controlled by a slider. When the slider is set to the Fast end of the
scale, the animations will have fewer frames, resulting in a more
jerky animation which takes less time. The Smooth end of the
scale will result in smoother, but longer, animations. You might
like to play with this setting to get the effect that is just right for
your computer. If nothing seems right, then you can switch all
animation off.
You can choose a different effect for how new blocks are created
with the Block Creation Effect panel, varying from dropping
from the sky, materializing or growing in place. We think that the
effects are pretty nifty. You might like to try them out.
You can determine the size and shape of the block that is cre-
ated when the New Block button is pressed with the Initial
Block Choice panel. You have the option of allowing Tarski’s
World to choose a size and shape for you, having a dialog, or al-
ways creating the same kind of block.
Chapter 4

Using Fitch

Fitch is an application that makes it easy to construct formal proofs

in first-order logic. We begin with instructions on how to start and
stop Fitch, and explain the basic layout of the screen.

4.1 Getting started

The Fitch application is contained inside the folder called Fitch
Folder. Also in this folder is a folder called Fitch Exercise Files, in
which you will find the Fitch exercise files referred to in the book.
When Fitch is running, you will see (from top to bottom) the
ubiquitous menu bar, a narrow proof toolbar, a wider, gray fol
toolbar, and a large, mostly blank window, called the proof win-
dow, with a goal strip at the bottom. Here are the basic facts to
remember about each of these.

4.1.1 The menus

Fitch has the following menus:

◦ File: This menu lets you start new proof files, open existing
proofs, save proofs, and export proofs for printing.

◦ Edit: This is the customary edit menu allowing one to cut,

copy and paste items in proofs. In addition one can toggle
author mode (see section 4.6)

29
30 / LPL Software Manual

Figure 4.1: Main Fitch window.

◦ Proof: The items on this menu allow you to add steps to

proofs, to begin and end subproofs, to check the correctness
of proofs, and to display step numbers.
◦ Goal: The items on this menu allow your instructor to set
goals in problems and allow you to see whether any special
constraints apply to the goals.
 Using Fitch / 31

◦ Window: This menu gives you access to various Fitch files

you have open, and allows you to change the font and ap-
pearance of your open windows.
◦ Help: This menu allows you to get help on using the appli-
cation, and also to check whether updates are available.

4.1.2 The proof toolbar

The narrow toolbar at the top of the window is called the proof
toolbar. This is like the window toolbar in Tarski’s World, and
contains buttons which allow you to control the display of the
proof. These tools include buttons for changing the font to bold or
italic, and to control the size of text in the proof. There are also
buttons for checking the current step, and the whole proof. Finally,
there are buttons to print (actually export to the default browser)
the proof, and to open the help system for the application. One
can toggle the visibility of this toolbar under the Window menu.

4.1.3 The FOL toolbar

The strip containing logical symbols and predicates located at the
top of the proof window is called the fol toolbar. It is like the fol
toolbar in Tarski’s World, and is used for writing and editing in the
proof window. Clicking on a button enters the symbol or predicate
into the proof. One can toggle the visibility of this toolbar under
the Window menu.

4.1.4 The proof window

The proof window is itself divided into two areas. The larger top
part or proof panel is where you construct proofs. When you add
steps or subproofs to proofs, for example, this is where they will
show up. When you add a step to a proof, the word Rule? appears
on the right. This is a popup menu that you click on to choose
the rule you want to use at the step.
The bottom panel of the proof window is where the problem’s
goals appear, that is, the sentences to be proven. If the goal strip
is not visible, choose Show Goal Strip from the Goal menu. To
hide it, and give yourself more room in the proof panel, choose
Hide Goal Strip from the Goal menu.
32 / LPL Software Manual

At the extreme bottom of the proof window, under the goal

strip, is a status line that displays comments and error messages. It
is usually blank but is used to present useful information, especially
when proof or goal steps don’t check out. In some cases (e.g., Taut
Con errors) a Show It button appears there, click on that to get
more information. You can also check the step of the proof in focus
by simply clicking on the status line.

4.2 Creating and editing proofs

The body of a proof appears in the large proof panel in the middle
of the window, sandwiched between the fol toolbar and the goal
strip. In this section, we explain how to create, modify, and nav-
igate around a proof. Before doing this, we present a list of some
of the graphical elements you will encounter in the proof panel:
Proof line and Fitch Bar. Proofs and subproofs are
demarcated by a vertical gray line. Attached to the line
is a horizontal bar called the Fitch bar. The Fitch bar
separates the assumptions of the proof from the steps
that follow from those assumptions.
Focus Slider. The focus slider appears just to the left
of the proof and points to the currently focused step. If
there are goals in the goal strip, the focus slider can also
point at one of the goals. There is only one focus slider
in the window at any time.
Step Bullet. This circular icon indicates the presence
of a step in the proof. You can either add a new sen-
tence at the step, if none is present, or you can edit an
existing sentence. If step numbers are displayed (Show
Step Numbers from the Proof menu), the step bullet
is replaced by the step number.
Goal Bullet. This “turnstile” icon precedes each of the
goal sentences in the goal strip (unless one is in focus, in
which case the turnstile is replaced by the focus slider).
 Using Fitch / 33

Constant Box. The constant box appears at the top of

subproofs in which a new constant or constants have been
introduced. The constant box depicted here indicates
that a is a newly introduced constant. The downarrow to
its right indicates a menu where constants can be added
or removed from this box.

Rule menu icon. This indicates a popup menu where

you can choose a rule to justify a step of the proof.

4.2.1 Step numbers

Normally, Fitch does not display step numbers, but simply indi-
cates the steps with bullets. Choosing Show Step Numbers from
the Proof menu will replace the bullets with numbers. When you
display step numbers, the support steps are indicated by number
next to the rule name, exactly as they are shown in the text.

4.2.2 The current focus

As you work on a proof, there is always one step that is “in focus.”
This step is indicated by a red triangle on the far left of the proof,
called the Focus Slider. The focused step is the step affected
when you perform any of the editing functions. It is also the step
that is checked if you click on the Check Step button or on the
status line at the very bottom of the proof window.

4.2.3 Moving the focus

There are three ways to change the focus from one step to another:
You can drag the focus slider up and down, you can click in the
focus slider area next to the step you want to focus on, or you can
use the arrow keys on the keyboard to move the focus up and down.
Clicking on a step other than the currently focused step won’t
move the focus, unless you click in the focus slider area to the left.
This is because clicking on steps is the way we enter supports for
the currently focused step (see page 37).
Shift-clicking in the focus slider area beside a step other than
the currently focused step selects a range of steps which can then
be copied or deleted.
34 / LPL Software Manual

4.2.4 Adding new steps

To add a new step to a proof, choose Add Step After or Add
Step Before from the Proof menu. These commands will give
you a new proof step immediately after or before the step you were
focused on, unless you were focused on a premise, in which case
the new step will be the first step following the premises. To add
a step at the end of the proof, focus on the last step of the proof
and choose Add Step After. If you are working backwards in a
proof, you will often want to add a step immediately before the
step in focus, using Add Step Before. Steps can be inserted in
the middle of a proof in the obvious way, by first moving the focus
and then choosing the appropriate add step command.
New steps added within a subproof will appear in the same sub-
proof. Starting and ending subproofs require different commands.
These are described on page 38. Adding premises to a proof is
discussed on page 42. Normally, though, you will not be adding
premises to your proofs, since the exercise files contain the premises
already.

4.2.5 Entering sentences into steps

When you add a new step to a proof, the step icon (a small circle)
will appear. At this point you can enter a sentence. To enter,
either use the fol toolbar or type directly from the keyboard. To
type the logical symbols from the keyboard, refer to the list of
keyboard equivalents found in Table 3.1 on page 22. These are the
same keyboard equivalents used in Tarski’s World and Boole.
In general, entering sentences is faster using the toolbar. How-
ever some sentences must be entered using the keyboard, since
the predicates, names, or sentence letters may not appear on the
toolbar. For example, you will have to type parts of the sentence
P → (Q ∨ R), since P, Q, and R don’t appear on the toolbar.

4.2.6 Deleting steps

To delete a step, focus on the step and choose Delete Step from
the Proof menu. If you delete the assumption step of a subproof
(the step just above the Fitch bar), the entire subproof containing
that step will be deleted. Be careful in deleting assumption steps,
since you could lose a lot of work. If you simply want to change
the assumption, just edit the sentence.
 Using Fitch / 35

Figure 4.2: Using hierarchical menus to specify rules.

4.2.7 Specifying a step’s rule

When you add a new step, the word “Rule?” appears to the right
of the step. To specify a rule for the step, focus on the step, click
down on the word “Rule?” A popup menu will appear. This
menu has five submenus plus the rule of Reit.
The submenus are attached to Intro, Elim, Con, Lemma,
and Induction. Moving the cursor over these submenus will cause
a second menu to appear with a list of further options. To specify
the rule of, say, Negation Introduction, first move the cursor over
the item Intro. Then, when the second menu appears, move the
cursor to the item ¬ (or “not”) and release the mouse button. This
operation is illustrated in Figure 4.2. Similarly, to specify the rule
of Taut Con, first move the cursor over the item Con and then
choose Taut from the second menu.
You can also specify a rule from the keyboard, by typing the
appropriate keystroke equivalent. A list of these appears in Ta-
ble 4.1. Note that in using these keyboard equivalents, you should
not hold down the shift key unless it is explicitly mentioned in the
table. For example, to specify the rule ∀ Elim, you will actually
type Option-2 (Macintosh) or Alt-2 (Windows); holding down the
shift key will change the rule to ∀ Intro instead. In most cases, we
have listed the shifted (“uppercase”) characters because they are
easier to remember. For example, it is easier to remember that ∧
Elim is Option-& than to think of it as Option-7.
36 / LPL Software Manual

Table 4.1: Keystroke equivalents for specifying rules.

Rule Equiv Rule Equiv
∧ Elim Opt(Alt)-& ∧ Intro Shift-Opt(Alt)-&
∨ Elim Opt(Alt)-| ∨ Intro Shift-Opt(Alt)-|
¬ Elim Opt(Alt)-∼ ¬ Intro Shift-Opt(Alt)-∼
⊥ Elim Opt(Alt)-ˆ ⊥ Intro Shift-Opt(Alt)-ˆ
→ Elim Opt(Alt)-$ → Intro Shift-Opt(Alt)-$
↔ Elim Opt(Alt)-% ↔ Intro Shift-Opt(Alt)-%

= Elim Opt(Alt)-= = Intro Shift-Opt(Alt)-=

∀ Elim Opt(Alt)-@ ∀ Intro Shift-Opt(Alt)-@
∃ Elim Opt(Alt)-/ ∃ Intro Shift-Opt(Alt)-/

Reit Control-Opt(Alt)-R FO Con Control-Opt(Alt)-F

Taut Con Control-Opt(Alt)-T Ana Con Control-Opt(Alt)-A

4.2.8 The Lemma Rule

Lemma allows you to reference another proof file and use it in
your proof. Once a lemma is referenced, its name appears as the
rule and two extra buttons will be to the right of it. The left one
(display lemma, a rectangle with lines) will open a new window
with the lemma in it (do not edit this displayed lemma but you
can do a ’save as’ and then edit). The right one (expand lemma,
an up arrow) will expand the lemma within the proof and make
any necessary substitutions (be aware that this is not reversible so
save first).
The Lemma rule will check out when the formula in the step
matches the only goal in the lemma file, the same number of steps
are cited as there are premises in the lemma file, and these cited
steps all match the premises in the lemma (in any order). The
premises and the cited steps have to match but do not have to be
identical. If the lemma contains the premises P and Q, for example,
citing the formula P ∧ Q won’t work. However some substitution
does work. If for instance the lemma proves P ∨ ¬P you can use it
on a step that states Tet(a) ∨ ¬Tet(a).
 Using Fitch / 37

4.2.9 Changing a step’s rule

To change the rule of an existing step, you must first move the
focus to that step. Then specify the new rule using either the
popup menu or the keystroke equivalents.

4.2.10 Specifying a step’s supports

Most rules require that you cite other steps as justification or “sup-
port.” To specify the supports for a step, focus on that step and
click on the steps to be cited. The steps you click on will be high-
lighted. If your support is a subproof, clicking anywhere in the
subproof will cite the whole subproof. If you click on a step or
subproof that has already been cited, it will be uncited.
To see a step’s supports, just focus on the step in question. The
supporting steps will then become highlighted. To change a step’s
supports, focus on the step and click on the steps you wish to add
or delete from the step’s supports.
If you are displaying step numbers in a proof, the support steps
are highlighted and the step numbers appear to the right of the
rule name. Thus with step numbers displayed, your proofs will
look like the proofs in the text.

4.2.11 Checking steps and verifying proofs

To check whether a step is correct, focus on the step and either
press the Check Step button on the proof toolbar or click on
the status line at the bottom of the window. (On the Macintosh,
you can also check a step by hitting the Enter key on the numeric
keypad.)
You can check all of the steps in your proof, plus the goals, by
clicking Verify Proof on the proof toolbar or by choosing Verify
Proof on the Proof menu.
After you check a step, one of four symbols will appear to the
left of the rule name.
Check mark. A check mark means that the step is
logically correct.
X. An X means that the step is logically incorrect.

Asterisk. An asterisk means that the sentence at that

step is not syntactically well-formed.
38 / LPL Software Manual

Question mark. A question mark will appear if a Con

rule is unable to determine the validity of your step.
If you don’t get a check mark for one of your steps, focus on
that step and look at the message in the status line. It will provide
you with some (hopefully) helpful information about why your step
did not check out.

4.2.12 Rule Defaults

Many of rules have defaults that can save you considerable time
when constructing a proof. For example, if you choose the rule →
Elim, cite two sentences of the form P → Q and P, and then check
the step, Fitch will automatically fill in the step with the sentence
Q. To get Fitch to provide a default for a step, the sentence must
be blank, that is, there must not be any text already in that step.
If the sentence is blank when the step is checked, Fitch will try to
provide a default sentence for that step. The defaults for the rules
are described in detail in the textbook.
Not all inference rules have defaults.

4.2.13 Add Support Steps

Many of the rules allow you to use the Add Support Steps
command to automatically insert the appropriate support steps
needed to derive a particular formula using that rule. To use this
feature, focus on a step and insert the formula to be derived at this
step. Then select the inference rule to use. Finally select the Add
Support Steps command from Proof menu. If this is disabled,
then the rule does not support this option (or you didn’t choose a
rule or enter a formula.) Otherwise using this command will insert
the necessary steps into the proof.

4.2.14 Starting and ending subproofs

A subproof is started by choosing New Subproof from the Proof
menu. When you start a new subproof, you can enter a sentence (or
boxed constant) in the first step. Once you are within a subproof,
any new steps you add will be part of that subproof. To add a
step after a subproof, you need to know how to end the subproof.
To end the subproof, focus on any step in the subproof and choose
End Subproof from the Proof menu. This will end the subproof
and give you a new step following that subproof.
 Using Fitch / 39

If, when you end a subproof, the last step of the subproof is
empty, then that step will just be moved out of the subproof. This
means you can end two embedded subproofs by choosing End
Subproof twice. The first time, you will end the innermost sub-
proof and get a new step in the outer subproof. The second time,
the new step will be shifted out of that subproof as well.

4.2.15 Boxed constants in subproofs

When you start a subproof, a downward-pointing triangle appears
next to the step bullet. This triangle indicates the presence of
a popup menu. If you click down on the triangle, the menu will
appear. In this case, the menu presents you with a list of all the
names available in Fitch. Choosing one of these names adds the
name as a boxed constant—unless it is already boxed, in which
case it is removed from the box. Boxed constants are used in the
rules ∀ Intro, and ∃ Elim.

4.2.16 Collapsing subproofs

When you complete a subproof, you might want to “collapse” it so
that you don’t have to think about it any more. This is particularly
true if the subproof is long, and you want to avoid scrolling back
and forth over it while working on a different part of the proof.
You can do this using the Collapse Subproof command from
the Proof menu, when you are focused on any step within the
subproof. The subproof will be replaced by a single step containing
an icon to represent the collapsed proof. To open the proof again,
chose Expand Subproof from the Proof menu when you are
focused on the step containing the collapsed proof.

4.2.17 Deleting subproofs

To delete a subproof, focus on the assumption step that begins the
subproof and choose Delete Step from the Proof menu. This
will delete the entire subproof, so make sure you really want to do
that. If you simply want to change the assumption step, edit the
sentence, don’t delete the step.
40 / LPL Software Manual

4.3 Goals
The goals for a problem are represented by sentences that appear
in the goal strip at the bottom of the proof window. These are the
sentences that are to be proven in your proof. If the goal strip is
not visible and you would like it to be, choose Show Goal Strip
from the Goal menu. If the goal strip is visible but you would like
more room for the proof, choose Hide Goal Strip from the Goal
menu.
When you are working on a problem and think that you have
satisfied one or more of the goals, choose Verify Proof from the
Proof menu. Either a check or an X will appear to the right of
each goal. If an X appears, focus on the goal by clicking on it, and
read the error message that will appear in the status line.

4.4 Copying and pasting

Fitch allows you to cut, copy, and paste various parts of a proof.
Mastering these operations will make the construction of proofs
much easier.
When you cut or copy something from a proof, it is placed
on the “clipboard.” The clipboard is a part of the computer’s
memory that you can’t see, but which stores whatever you have
cut or copied so you can later paste it somewhere else in the proof.
The difference between cut and copy is that the former deletes the
item in question from its current place in the proof, while the latter
leaves the proof itself untouched, and stores a copy of the item on
the clipboard.
Once something is on the clipboard, you can paste copies of it
into the proof as many times as you want. It will remain on the
clipboard until something else is cut or copied, at which point the
new item replaces what used to be on the clipboard.

4.4.1 Copying and pasting sentences

To cut or copy a sentence, or part of a sentence, you must first
be focused on the step that contains the sentence. Select the por-
tion you want by clicking down at one end and dragging to the
other, holding the mouse button down as you drag. Once it is se-
lected, choose Copy or Cut from the Edit menu. Both of these
 Using Fitch / 41

commands place a copy of the selected text on the clipboard; the

second simultaneously deletes it from the step.
If you want to copy an entire sentence from a step, you simply
focus on the step and choose Copy from the Edit menu. There
is no need to select the sentence. This places a copy of the whole
sentence from that step on the clipboard, ready to paste elsewhere
in the proof (or in another proof). This shortcut is particularly
useful if you want to copy one of the premises when the authoring
mode is off, for in that case the premise will be locked and you will
not be able to select it.
Once the sentence is on the clipboard, you can paste it into
another step by moving to that step and choosing Paste from
the Edit menu. The text will appear wherever text typed from
the keyboard would, so if you want to paste it into the middle of
some existing text, make sure the blinking insertion point is located
where you want the text to appear.

4.4.2 Copying and pasting goal sentences

You can copy a goal sentence by focusing on it and choosing Copy
from the Edit menu. This is an easy way to grab the desired
sentence and paste it into your proof.

4.4.3 Copying and pasting ranges of steps

Fitch allows you to cut or copy a range of steps and paste them
at another location in the same proof or in another proof. This
is especially useful if your proof requires several similar subproofs,
each containing a similar sequence of steps.
To cut or copy a range of steps, you must first select the steps.
Shift-clicking on a step will select the range of steps between the
focus step and that step. You cannot select a range containing just
one step, so shift-clicking on the focus step will do nothing.
A gray box will appear, showing which steps are selected. If
the rectangle doesn’t contain the steps you want, click somewhere
else in the proof and the rectangle will disappear. You can then
try selecting the steps again. Note, however, that Fitch will not
allow the selection rectangle to cut a subproof in half: you must
either select steps entirely from within a subproof, or else select
the subproof as a whole. When the rectangle contains exactly the
steps you want, choose Cut or Copy from the Edit menu. Both
42 / LPL Software Manual

of these commands place a copy of the steps on the clipboard; Cut

also deletes the selected steps from the proof.
Once a sequence of steps is on the clipboard, choosing Paste
will insert the steps at the point of focus. If you are currently
focused on an empty step, the pasted steps will replace the empty
step. If you are currently focused on a step that is not empty, the
pasted steps will be inserted after the focused step.
If you want to paste steps into your proof immediately following
a subproof, but not as part of the subproof, you will have to end
the subproof before pasting. This will give you an empty step
outside the subproof and Paste will replace this empty step with
the steps on the clipboard.
When you paste steps into a proof, Fitch will try to keep track
of the appropriate supports for those steps. Sometimes, though,
the supports for the pasted steps will no longer be “legal” in the
new location, for example if you paste a step into the proof at a
point earlier than one of its support steps. In such cases, Fitch will
remove the illegal support from the step’s list of supports.
Note that this method also gives you a handy way to delete a
large number of steps. Rather than repeatedly choosing Delete
Step from the Proof menu, simply select all of the steps you wish
to delete, and choose Clear from the Edit menu. Simply hitting
the Delete key will also delete the selected range of steps.

4.5 Printing proofs

To print a proof, choose Export HTML from the File menu.
When you do this, your default browser will open a new tab with
the proof displayed in it and you can print using your browser’s
standard print command. In the displayed proof Fitch adds num-
bers to all of the steps and uses these numbers to indicate each
step’s supports so that the printed proofs look like the proofs in
the textbook. Note that you should print in the browser with
background colors and images turned on.

4.6 Setting up exercises

Fitch has two modes of operation, user mode and author mode.
Exercise files are always opened in user mode. This mode allows
you to construct proofs, but not to change the premises or goals of
 Using Fitch / 43

the proof, which of course is not permitted in solving the exercises.

(The Grade Grinder always checks to make sure that no changes
have been made to the premises or goals of a proof.)
Author mode is used for creating new exercises, and so new
files are always opened in author mode. This mode allows you to
enter premises into the proof, add goals to the proof, and specify
any constraints that apply to the goals.
You can tell which mode you are in by looking at Author
Mode on the Edit menu. If there is a check in front of Author
Mode, Fitch is in author mode; otherwise, it is in user mode.
Choosing Author Mode will toggle between these two modes.
The current mode is saved with the file, so if you create a
new problem, you should turn off author mode before saving it.
Alternatively, you can use Save As Problem. . . from the File
menu. This command is available only in Author Mode, and will
save only the premises and goals in the new file. The created file
is saved in user mode.

4.6.1 Adding and deleting premises

To add a premise, you must be in Author Mode. Choose Add
Premise from the Proof menu. If you are currently focused on
a premise step, the new premise will appear immediately after the
focused step. If you are focused on a step in the body of the proof,
the new premise will appear at the end of the list of premises.
To delete a premise, focus on its step and choose Delete Step
from the Proof menu.

4.6.2 Adding and deleting goals

To add a goal to a problem, choose New Goal from the Goal
menu and enter the goal sentence you want. As noted above, this
can only be done in Author Mode. To delete a goal from a problem,
click on the goal in the goal strip and choose Delete Goal from
the Goal menu.
You can check use the Check Goal Forms from the Goal
menu to check that the goal formulas are well formed. Goals that
are not well formed will be marked with a star.
If you want to modify the constraints on a goal, choose Edit
Goal Constraints from the Goal menu (see figure 4.3). When
you initially add a goal, Fitch assumes that you want the goal to
44 / LPL Software Manual

Figure 4.3: Fitch Edit Goal Constraints window

be proven using just the introduction and elimination rules of F. If

you want to allow the use of the Con procedures, or if you want to
disallow the use of any standard rules, you will have to modify the
constraints associated with the goal. Constraints are associated
with individual goals, so a problem can have different constraints
for different goals.

4.6.3 Saving new problems

To save a newly created file as an exercise to be solved, choose
Save As Problem. . . from the File menu. This saves the file,
but also turns on User Mode in the file, so that users will not
accidentally change the premises or goals of the exercise.

4.7 Preferences
Some aspects of the behavior of Fitch can be controlled using the
preferences dialog. This can be accessed by choosing the Prefer-
ences. . . command from the application menu (Edit Menu on
Windows). The preferences dialog is shown in figure 4.4.
The preferences allow you to control various aspects of the ap-
plications. The FOL Editor Preferences are shared by Fitch,
Tarski’s World, and Boole and control the style of the text you
type such as bold/italic and whether parentheses give hints on
how they are paired. Use Native File Chooser (only visible
 Using Fitch / 45

Figure 4.4: Fitch Preferences Dialog

in MacOS) is also shared; in almost all cases you should leave it

checked. Automatic Updates is also a global preference which
controls whether the applications check for updates when they are
launched. If this box is checked, the application will determine if
an update is available, and ask if you want to download and install
it.
Proof Editor Defaults are specific to Fitch and allow you to
darken proof lines, always show step numbers, and set the font size
for the proof.
Chapter 5

Using Boole

Boole is an application that makes it easy to construct truth tables.

We begin with instructions on how to start and stop Boole, and
explain the basic layout of the screen.

5.1 Getting started

The Boole application is contained inside the folder called Boole
Folder. When Boole is running, you will see (from top to bottom)
the menu bar (on the mac this is not part of the window), the table
toolbar, the fol toolbar, a narrow assessment panel, and finally a
large, mostly blank area for constructing truth tables, called the
table panel. At the very bottom is the status line which is used to
display useful information about your work, including a description
of errors that you may have made. Here are the basic facts to
remember about each of these.

5.1.1 The menus

Boole has the following menus:
◦ File: This menu lets you start new truth tables, open ex-
isting tables, save tables, and print (actually export to the
default browser) tables.
◦ Edit: This is the customary edit menu allowing you to cut,
copy and paste items in truth tables. See section 5.2.3 for
the By Row feature.
46
 Using Boole / 47

Figure 5.1: Main Boole window.

◦ Table: This menu has commands for adding new columns,

for generating reference columns automatically, for verifying
your table, and for showing or hiding the column order (see
section 5.2.4).
◦ Window: This menu gives you access to various Boole files
you have open and allows you to adjust font size and style.
◦ Help: This menu allows you to get help on using the appli-
cation, and also to check whether updates are available.

5.1.2 The toolbars

At the very top of the window is the table toolbar which is very
like those in the corresponding places in Fitch and Tarski’s World.
There are buttons here for changing the size and format of the sen-
tences to be displayed in the truth tables, as well as three buttons
for checking and making edits to the table.
◦ Build Reference Columns: This shows a collection of
columns and a bidirectional arrow. This button can be used
after you have entered one or more target sentences on the
right side of your table. If you choose this button, Boole
will automatically create all of the reference columns needed
48 / LPL Software Manual

for your table. You should use this feature only if the exer-
cise says that you can, since otherwise the Grade Grinder will
complain that you did not create your own reference columns.
Learning how to create reference columns is part of what you
must master when learning to build truth tables.

◦ Fill Reference Columns: This button fills in the truth

values under the reference columns for you. It shows a col-
lection of truth values and a downward pointing arrow. Like
the preceding button, you should only use this if the exercise
says that you can, since filling in the reference columns is
another crucial skill to master in building truth tables.

◦ The remaining button verifies the correctness of your table

by first checking whether the rows of the table are correctly
filled in, then that all of the required rows are present (and
there are no extra rows), and finally checks to see whether
your assessment is correct. You can also check the table using
the Verify menu item from the Table menu.

Immediately below this toolbar is the fol toolbar containing

logical symbols and predicates. It is just like the fol toolbar in
Tarski’s World and Fitch. Clicking on a button enter the corre-
sponding symbol or predicate, if the insertion point is located in
one of the sentence fields at the top of your table.

5.1.3 The assessment panel

The assessment panel is similar to the goal panel in Fitch. This
is where you look to see whether your truth table is correctly con-
structed. It also contains a button that allows you to assess the
target sentence or sentences in your table. When you click the
Assessment button, you are presented with a list of possible as-
sessments. For example, if you are asked to determine whether a
sentence is a tautology, you can specify whether or not it is. If
you are asked to determine whether a sentence is a tautological
consequence of other sentences, you can specify this here as well.

5.1.4 The table panel

The large, mostly white area is where you construct truth tables.
A thin horizontal line divides the headings of the columns from
 Using Boole / 49

the truth value columns. A thick vertical line divides the reference
columns from the body of the table. When the insertion point is
in the heading area, you can enter target sentences on the right or
reference sentences on the left.
New sentence columns are added using the “plus” buttons in
the heading area. These buttons add a new column at the end of
the existing columns, nearest to the button. If you hold the Alt key
down when you click, the new column is added at the end furthest
from the button. You can also use the commands Add Column
After or Add Column Before from the Table menu. These add
new columns to the left (right, respectively) of the column that is
currently in focus. Once sentences are entered, truth values can be
entered in the appropriate places under those sentences.

5.1.5 Adjusting the table panel

The table panel is divided into two parts: the reference columns on
the left and the target columns on the right. These are separated by
a vertical divider. Often when you open or construct a table, you
will not be able to see all of the columns on one or the other side.
You can adjust the overall size of your window in the usual way,
and you can also change the position of the divider by grabbing it
and dragging to the left or right.

5.2 Writing and editing tables

There are three steps in creating a truth table: specifying the
target sentence (or sentences), building the reference columns, and
filling in the truth values. Once a table is complete, it can be used
to assess the logical properties of the target sentences.

5.2.1 Entering target sentences

To enter a target sentence, the insertion point must be blinking
in the upper right section of the table. If it is not, click in this
area to place the insertion point where you want it. Then enter
the desired sentence using the toolbar or keyboard. To type the
logical symbols from the keyboard, refer to the table of keyboard
equivalents on page 22. Notice that as you enter the sentence, the
characters you type change color. If the expression is ill-formed,
some of the characters will be displayed in red.
50 / LPL Software Manual

If you are constructing a truth table for two or more sentences

(a joint truth table), you will need to use the “plus” button, or
choose Add Column After or Add Column Before from the
Table menu to add a new target sentence to your table.
Another way to enter sentences is by copying them from Fitch
or Tarski’s World and pasting them into the appropriate place in
Boole.

5.2.2 Creating reference columns

There are two ways to create reference columns: you can do it by
hand or you can have Boole do the work for you. You should always
do the work yourself unless the exercise or your instructor gives you
permission to let Boole build the reference columns for you.
To enter a reference sentence, click at the top of the first column
to the left of the thick dividing line. Then enter the desired atomic
sentence. (Boole will allow you to enter any formula in a reference
column. As in the case of the target columns the characters change
color to indicate ill-formed expressions.) To add additional refer-
ence sentences, choose Add Column After or Add Column
Before from the Table menu or the “plus” button, and enter the
sentence.
If you want Boole to build the reference columns for you, click
on the button Build Ref Cols on the table toolbar. This will
generate the necessary reference columns for the target sentences
currently appearing on the right. If Boole generates the reference
columns the column header will be displayed with a grey back-
ground to remind you that Boole built them. Reference columns
built by Boole cannot be edited, but clicking anywhere in the
header area will enable you to remove all of the reference sentences.

5.2.3 Filling in truth values

To fill in truth values in your table, click in the desired column
and type T or F. (You can also type “1” for T and either “0” or
“2” for F, if you find this more convenient.) After the letter is
entered, the insertion point will move down one row in the same
column. If you are working in a column on the right side of the
table, Boole will highlight the values elsewhere in the table that
the current value depends on. In other words, Boole implements
the “two finger” method described in the textbook.
 Using Boole / 51

Boole will also fill in truth values in the reference columns of

a table automatically, should you so desire. Only do this if the
exercise or your instructor says that you can. (The Grade Grinder
will complain if you do this without permission.) To fill them in
automatically, select the Fill Reference Columns item from the
Table menu. If Boole fills the truth values, the table is shown
with a grey background. You may not edit the truth values, but
clicking on the panel will enable you to have Boole remove all of
the values, so that you can start over and fill them yourself.
In its default mode, Boole will fill in values column by column.
That is, when you type a T or F, the insertion point will move
down one row so that you can fill in the next value in the column.
If you prefer filling in your table row by row, choose By Row in
the Edit menu. In Row mode, Boole will move the insertion point
to the next column after you type a truth value.

5.2.4 Using the Column Ordering Panel

The column ordering panel appears above the sentences. It is
closed initially, and can be opened using the Show Column Or-
dering command from the Table menu. When it is open the panel
contains a single-line table with columns for each of the connec-
tives in each target sentence. Unlike the main truth table, these
columns should contain numbers.
To fill the column ordering panel correctly, you should place
numbers in the columns, starting at 1 and increasing until you
reach the number of connectives in the sentence. The numbers
should reflect the order in which you can fill the columns of the
truth panel. The column containing the number 1 indicates that
you think that you can fill this column of the truth table first. To
be able to fill it first, the values that the column contains must
depend only on values in the reference columns. The column num-
bered 2 could depend column number 1 and on reference columns,
and so on. Each numbered column can depend only on reference
columns and columns with smaller numbers. Since only single digit
numbers can be used, the column ordering panel can only be used
for sentences containing less than 10 connectives.
Filling the column ordering panel is optional. If the column
ordering panel contains at least one number, then the ordering
that is given is checked as part of the assessment of the table. If
all of the columns are empty, then the column ordering panel is
52 / LPL Software Manual

Figure 5.2: Boole Assessment window

ignored when checking the table.

5.3 Specifying your assessment

Typically you will be asked to use truth tables to determine whether
a sentence is a tautology, whether two sentences are tautologically
equivalent, or whether a sentence is a tautological consequence of
others. Thus after you have constructed your truth table, you will
need to specify the relevant assessment of the sentence or sentences
in your table. To do this, click on the Assessment button in
Boole’s assessment panel. This will open a window (see figure 5.2)
allowing you to specify your assessment.

5.4 Verifying your table

There is a single command for verifying your table. This is avail-
able both from the Table menu and on the table toolbar. Verifying
the table involves the following steps.

1. If the column ordering panel contains any numbers, then

these are checked first. If the numbers in the panel are cor-
rect, then a checkmark will appear to the left of the row, one
 Using Boole / 53

for each sentence on the right hand side of the table. If you
are going to give a column ordering for any of the sentences,
then you must give one for all of them, or the missing ones
will be marked incorrect.
2. Each of the rows is checked next. If all of the references
columns are present and the values filled in under the target
sentence are correct, a checkmark will appear to the left of
the row on the target side of the table.
3. Next, Boole checks whether the table has exactly the required
rows that it needs. If a row is missing, or if there are extra
rows, then this check will fail.
4. Finally Boole checks to see whether your assessment is cor-
rect. Before it can do this, you must specify an assessment,
as described above. The checkmark for this will appear in
the assessment area.

5.5 Saving or printing your table

To save your table, choose Save or Save As. . . from the File
menu. If you are submitting a table to the Grade Grinder, you
should name it Table n.m, where n.m is the number of the exercise.
To print a table, choose Export HTML from the File menu.
When you do this, your default browser will open a new tab with
the table displayed in it and you can print using your browser’s
standard print command. Note that you should print with back-
ground colors and images turned on.

5.6 Preferences
Some aspects of the behavior of Boole can be controlled using the
preferences dialog. This can be accessed by choosing the Pref-
erences... command from the application menu (Edit Menu on
Windows). The preferences dialog is shown in figure 5.3.
The preferences allow you to control various aspects of the ap-
plications. The FOL Editor Preferences are shared by Fitch,
Tarski’s World, and Boole and control the style of the text you type
such as bold/italic, font size, and whether parentheses give hints
on how they are paired. Use Native File Chooser (only visible
54 / LPL Software Manual

Figure 5.3: Boole Preferences Dialog

in MacOS) is also shared; in almost all cases you should leave it

checked. Automatic Updates is also a global preference which
controls whether the applications check for updates when they are
launched. If this box is checked, the application will determine if an
update is available, and ask if you want to download and install it.
Chapter 6

Languages

Fitch, Tarski’s World, and Boole all share a common fol toolbar
and one part of that are shortcuts for various languages used in
the three programs though the Blocks language is the most used
and is shown by default.

6.1 Blocks
Predicates
Tet(a) a is a tetrahedron
Cube(a) a is a cube
Dodec(a) a is a dodecahedron
SameShape(a, b) a is the same shape as b
Small(a) a is small
Medium(a) a is medium
Large(a) a is large
SameSize(a, b) a is the same size as b
LeftOf(a, b) a is located nearer to the left edge of the grid
than b
RightOf(a, b) a is located nearer to the right edge of the grid
than b
FrontOf(a, b) a is located nearer to the front of the grid than b
BackOf(a, b) a is located nearer to the back of the grid than b
55
56 / LPL Software Manual

SameCol(a, b) a is in the same column as b

SameRow(a, b) a is in the same row as b
Between(a, b, c) a, b and c are in the same row, column, or diago-
nal, and a is between b and c
Adjoins(a, b) a and b are located on adjacent (but not diago-
nally) squares
Larger(a, b) a is larger than b
Smaller(a, b) a is smaller than b
Happy(a) a is happy
Likes(a, b) a likes b

6.2 Pets
Predicates
Pet(x) x is a pet
Person(x) x is a person
Student(x) x is a student
Home(x) x is at home
Happy(x) x is happy
Angry(x, t) x was angry at time t
Hungry(x, t) x was hungry at time t
Fed(x, y, t) x fed y at time t
Owned(x, y, t) x owned y at time t
Gave(x, y, z, t) x gave y to z at t
t < t0 t is earlier than t0 (for times)
Names
max, claire Max, Claire (people)
pris, scruffy Pris, Scruffy (cats)
folly, carl Folly, Carl (dogs)
2:00, 2:05, 3:00 2:00pm, 2:05pm, 3:00pm, Jan 2, 2011 (times)
 Languages / 57

6.3 Sets
Predicates
a ∈ b a is an element of b
a ⊂ b a is a subset of b

6.4 Arith
Functions
s(a) the successor of a
a × b a multiplied by b
a + b a added to b
Predicates
a < b a is less than b
The only name is 0 (zero).
Index
add hiding labels, 19
Boole in Game, 25, 26
Column After, 49 moving, 18
Column Before, 49 naming, 18
Fitch pasting, 19
goal, 43 preferences, 28
premise, 43 selecting, 17
Step After, 34 sizing or shaping, 18
Step Before, 34 Book ID, Submit, 1, 6, 7, 10
Submit By Row, Boole, 51
files to list, 8
Tarski check mark, Fitch, 37, 38
blocks, 17 Check Step, Fitch, 37
Sentence After, 21 Choose Files, Submit, 7–8
Sentence Before, 21 Closing tabs, Tarski, 16
animation, Tarski, 28 column order, Boole, 47, 51–52
arrow keys columns, Boole, see reference columns
Fitch, 33 and target columns
Tarski, 21 Con menu, Fitch, 35
assessment, Boole constant box, Fitch, 33
button, 48 copy
panel, 48, 52 Boole, sentences, 46
asterisk, Fitch, 37 Fitch
author mode, Fitch, 42 goals, 41
sentences, 40–41
blocks, Tarski steps, 41–42
2-D view, 19, 20 Tarski
add, 17 blocks, 19
copying, 19 sentences, 23
cutting, 19 current focus, Fitch, 33
delete, 19 cut
58
 Index / 59

Fitch Game, Tarski

sentences, 40 backing up, 25
steps, 41 ending, 25
Tarski giving up, 25
blocks, 19 playing, 24, 27
sentences, 23 GG Status, Submit, 10
goal, Fitch, 30
delete adding, 43
Fitch bullet, 32
goal, 43 deleting, 43
premise, 43 strip, 31
step, 34, 39 Grade Grinder, 1, 5, 6, 8–10
Tarski
blocks, 19 hide
sentence, 22 Fitch
display lemma, Fitch, 36 fol toolbar, 31
Done Goal Strip, 31, 40
Submit, 8 proof toolbar, 31
Tarski
Edit Labels, 19
Tarski, 19, 23 home page, LPL, 4
Elim menu, Fitch, 35
Induction menu, Fitch, 35
End Game, Tarski, 25
installing the applications, 2, 3
exercise files
Instructor Too, Submit, 8
Fitch, 29
Intro menu, Fitch, 35
creating, 42–44
Tarski’s World, 15 Just Me, Submit, 8
expand lemma, Fitch, 36
Export HTML launching
Boole, 53 Boole, 46
Fitch, 29, 31, 42 Fitch, 29
Tarski Submit, 7
Sentences, 17 Tarski, 13
World, 17 Lemma menu, Fitch, 35–36
LPL home page, 4
Fitch bar, Fitch, 32
focus, Fitch menus
current, 33 application, 17
moving, 33 Boole, 46
slider, 32 Edit, 46, 51, 53
60 / LPL Software Manual

File, 46, 53 open

Help, 47 Fitch, 29
Table, 47–52 Submit, 8
Window, 47 Tarski, 14, 15
Fitch, 29–31
Constant, 33, 39 panel
Boole
Edit, 29, 40–44
assessment panel, 48, 52
File, 29, 42–44
table panel, 48–49
Goal, 30, 31, 40, 43
Fitch
Help, 31
goal strip, 31, 32, 40, 43
menu bar, 29
proof panel, 31, 32
Proof, 30, 32–34, 37–40,
Tarski, 15, 16
42, 43
sentence, 13, 20–23
Window, 31
world, 17–20
Fitch rule, 31, 33, 35, 37
paste
Con menu, 35
Boole, 46
Elim menu, 35
Fitch
Induction menu, 35
goals, 41
Intro menu, 35
sentences, 40–41
Lemma menu, 35–36
steps, 41–42
Submit
Tarski
File, 8
blocks, 19
Tarski
sentences, 23
Edit, 19, 23, 27
premise, Fitch
File, 14–17, 20
adding, 43
New Random World, 15
deleting, 43
New Sentences, 15 printing, see Export HTML
New World, 15 Proceed, Submit, 8
revert file, 16 proof, Fitch
Save File, 15 creating, 32–40
save file, 16 editing, 32–40
Sentence, 21–23 line, 32
tab popup, 16, 17 verifying, 37
World, 19, 20 window, 31–32
mode, Fitch
authore, 42–43 question mark, Fitch, 38
user, 42–43 quitting, Tarski application, 17
moving blocks, Tarski, 18
reference columns, Boole, 47, 49–
naming blocks, Tarski, 18 51, 53
 Index / 61

add, 49 Fitch, 32, 33, 37, 38, 40

build, 47 step, Fitch
fill, 48 bullet, 32
Reit, Fitch, 35 checking, 37
reverting a file numbers, 33
Tarski, 16 submitting files, Submit, 7–9
Rotating Worlds, Tarski, 20 subproof, Fitch
rule, Fitch as support, 37
Add Support Steps, 38 boxed constants, 33, 39
changing, 37 collapsing, 39
defaults, 38 copying, 41
keyboard equivalents, 36 cutting, 41
popup menu, 31, 33 deleting, 39
specifying, 35 deleting assumption, 34
ending, 30, 38–39
save starting, 30, 38–39
Boole, 53 support, Fitch
Fitch, 29 specifying, 37
as problem, 43, 44 syntax
Tarski, 15 Tarski, 23–24
selecting blocks, Tarski, 17
sentences, see writing wffs table panel, Boole, 46, 48–49
shaping blocks, Tarski, 18 adjusting, 49
Shift-Return target columns, Boole, 49, 50,
Tarski, 21 53
show add, 49
Fitch order, 51–52
Goal Strip, 31, 40 target sentences, Boole, 47–50,
Step Numbers, 33 53
Tarski toolbar
Labels, 19 fol (First-Order Logic), 55
sizing blocks, Tarski, 18 Boole
solution files, Submit, 5 fol (First-Order Logic),
starting 46
Boole, 46 sentence, 48–50
Fitch, 29 table, 47–48, 50, 52
Submit, 7 Fitch
Tarski, 13 fol (First-Order Logic),
Status Line 29, 31–32, 34
Boole, 46 proof, 29, 31, 37
62 / LPL Software Manual

Tarski’s World using toolbar, 34

fol (First-Order Logic), Tarski, 20–21
14, 20, 21
Tarski, 13, 23, 24
world, 13, 17, 18, 20
truth
Tarski, 23–24

user data, Submit, 10

user mode, Fitch, 42

verify
Boole, 48
assessment, 53
column ordering, 52
rows, 53
table, 53
Fitch
proof, 37, 40
Tarski
all, 23
all sentences, 23
vertical divider, Boole, 49
view
Tarski
2-D, 19
3-D, 20

web page, 4
Window menu
Fitch, 31
windows layout, Tarski’s World,
28
world panel
Tarski, 13
writing wffs
Boole
using keyboard, 49
using toolbar, 49
Fitch
using keyboard, 34