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There isn’t really a whole lot to this chapter it is mainly
here so we can get some basic definitions and concepts out of the way. Most of the definitions and concepts
introduced here can be introduced without any real knowledge of how to solve
differential equations. Most of them are
terms that we’ll use throughout a class so getting them out of the way right at
the beginning is a good idea.
During an actual class I tend to hold off on a couple of the
definitions and introduce them at a later point when we actually start solving
differential equations. The reason for
this is mostly a time issue. In this
class time is usually at a premium and some of the definitions/concepts require
a differential equation and/or its solution so I use the first couple
differential equations that we will solve to introduce the definition or
concept.
Here is a quick list of the topics in this Chapter.
Definitions 
Some of the common definitions and concepts in
a differential equations course
Direction Fields An introduction to direction fields and what
they can tell us about the solution to a differential equation.
Final Thoughts A couple of final thoughts on what we will be
looking at throughout this course.