The problem
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I'm a parent trying to help my daughter with her homework, Algebra was not a strong subject for me,I understand steps 1 & 2, how do you know you need to factor for lines 3 & 4?
Answer provided by our tutors
Regrets for the delay. The 3rd step is factoring out the common factors '2' and 'x', as both '14' and '8' are divisible by '2'. Simplifications are setup by factoring unless the tab 'Expand' is used, in which case all terms are expanded.
Clicking on a particular solution step allows you to quickly review the logic which is employed. It is also useful to point out the 'Options' tab and use it to control and number of solution steps... sometimes 'a lot of steps' can lead to more confusion and sometimes 'a few steps' is "just right" or 'too few'.
