Where Do We Start?
Write down the inputs and outputs and list the (symbolic) values they can take.
Choose a "language" in which to express the behavior of the machine. Is a truth table sufficient here? How would you use it?
For sequential systems, we will start by using state transition tables or state transition graphs.
We will be assuming discrete-valued time - "instant" to "instant." At any particular instant, the finite number of storage elements in the machine will have particular, well-defined values stored in them - we will be describing problems which can be implemented directly with a Finite-State Machine.