Help with Proving Ruled Surface Equation

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rulo1992
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Hello, I am studying for an analytic geometry final but I am totally lost for this problem... We didn't even cover this topic in class (my prof didn't show up for class for two weeks) and I have no clue on how to do it. If anyone could help I would appreciate it.

Question: Prove that the equation: $$x^2-y^2+xy-1=0$$ is a ruled surface.

I understand that a ruled surface is a surface composed of straight lines but that is as far as my knowledge goes for this question... Again any help is appreciated.
 
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rulo1992 said:
Hello, I am studying for an analytic geometry final but I am totally lost for this problem... We didn't even cover this topic in class (my prof didn't show up for class for two weeks) and I have no clue on how to do it. If anyone could help I would appreciate it.

Question: Prove that the equation: $$x^2-y^2+xy-1=0$$ is a ruled surface.

I understand that a ruled surface is a surface composed of straight lines but that is as far as my knowledge goes for this question... Again any help is appreciated.
You're close, but this article gives a more complete definition of ruled surfaces:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruled_surface
 
rulo1992 said:
Hello, I am studying for an analytic geometry final but I am totally lost for this problem... We didn't even cover this topic in class (my prof didn't show up for class for two weeks) and I have no clue on how to do it. If anyone could help I would appreciate it.

Question: Prove that the equation: $$x^2-y^2+xy-1=0$$ is a ruled surface.

I understand that a ruled surface is a surface composed of straight lines but that is as far as my knowledge goes for this question... Again any help is appreciated.
Unrelated to your question -- the homework template is required. If you post a question again, please don't delete the three parts.
 
rulo1992 said:
Hello, I am studying for an analytic geometry final but I am totally lost for this problem... We didn't even cover this topic in class (my prof didn't show up for class for two weeks) and I have no clue on how to do it. If anyone could help I would appreciate it.

Question: Prove that the equation: $$x^2-y^2+xy-1=0$$ is a ruled surface.

I understand that a ruled surface is a surface composed of straight lines but that is as far as my knowledge goes for this question... Again any help is appreciated.

With the ##z## variable missing, isn't this a cylindrical surface? For any fixed ##(x,y)## satisfying the equation, what happens to ##(x,y,z)## as you vary ##z##?