In order to successfully factor you should follow these steps:
1.) Take out the GCF (ALWAYS DO THIS FIRST)
2.) Diff of Perfect Squares
a^2-b^2=(a+b)(a-b)
3.) Diff/Sum of Cubes
a^3+b^3=(a+b)(a^2-ab+b^2)
a^3-b^3=(a-b)(a^2+ab+b^2)
4.) Key Number
5.) Grouping
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It is: 7
If you know that a number is divisible by three, then you know that three and the number that results from the dividing are both factors of the original number. If you know that a number is not divisible by three, then you won't waste time performing that function. It's rare that the first factor other than one isn't a number between two and ten. If you know the divisibility rules, it will make factoring easier and faster.
You can test successive prime numbers to see if your number is divisible by them, but knowing the divisibility rules will help you eliminate some steps, depending on what your number is. If your number is odd, you don't have to test for 2. If the sum of your number's digits do not total a multiple of 3, you don't have to test for 3. If your number doesn't end in a 5 or 0, you don't have to test for 5. Just by looking at your number, you can include or eliminate the three most common primes if you know the rules of divisibility.
The divisibility rules for a prime number is if it is ONLY divisible by 1, and itself.
To determine which numbers 404 is divisible by, we can test divisibility rules for common factors. 404 is divisible by 1, 2, 4, 101, and 404 itself. These numbers evenly divide into 404 without leaving a remainder.