Question 508960
equation is:
1/2x-1/5=-1
add 1 to both sides of that equation to get:
(1/2)x - (1/5) + 1 = 0
simplify to get:
(1/2)x - (1/5) + (5/5) = 0
simplify further to get:
(1/2)x + (4/5) = 0
set the equation equal to y to get:
y = (1/2)x + (4/5)
the equation is now in y = mx + b format.
you can graph this equation to get:
{{{graph(400,400,-5,5,-5,5,(1/2)x + (4/5))}}}


by substituting y for 0, you generalized the equation to be solved for all values of y, not just 0.
if you set y = 0 then you get your original equation back.