S.O.S. Mathematics CyberBoard

[Cyberman]

How is Precalculus different than College Algebra and Trigonometry combined?

The College Board is closing out the option of taking trigonometry and replacing it with precalculus.
I wanted to "CLEP-out" of college algebra and then test out of trigonometry.
However, the College Board his disabled the latter from being taken after June 30th of 2006.

I will now have to study precalculus instead of college algebra and then trignometry.

Because of this I have a few questions:

Why would studying precalculus be different than studying college algebra and trignometry?

Why would it be different than picking up a college algebra and trigonometry book and studying them?

What type of material would be covered that is different than both combined?

How is it all different?

[prowl92]

The only difference I see is maybe the study of complex numbers, DeMoivre's theorem, other methods for finding the roots of polynomials higher than degree two, graphing rational functions, and the binomial theorem.
_________________
I have made this [letter] longer, because I have not had the time to make it shorter.

~ Blaise Pascal

[Cyberman]

Would there be much of a problem if I were to study things in this order: college algebra, trigonometry, and precalculus.

Would much of precalculus study be the same as previous studies of the other mathematics?

[prowl92]

College algebra pretty much is the foundations of precalculus... it teaches you how to factor, combine like terms, divide polynomials, work with exponents etc..

I can't tell you too much about trig, but I'd imagine it's everything to do with the sine and cosine function: graphing, applications, inverse functions...

And precalculus is everything I mentioned with the addition (I forgot to mention) of logarithms and exponential graphs and equation solving.
_________________
I have made this [letter] longer, because I have not had the time to make it shorter.

~ Blaise Pascal

[Cyberman]

Would it be faster to skip studying college algebra and trigonometry books and stick with a precalculus book, perhaps reading multiple precalc. books?

Everything covered in the other courses is covered in precalc, right?

[prowl92]

Well of course it would be faster, but I don't think it would be a particularly good decision to go through precalculus without a strong grounding in college algebra. Factoring and basic algebra rules are extremely important.
_________________
I have made this [letter] longer, because I have not had the time to make it shorter.

~ Blaise Pascal