The product of a number and 1 is less than the number is 90. find the number.

90 = -9×-10 = 10×9

The number could be either -9 or +10.


You can solve this based only on your knowledge of the factors of 90. If you like, you can write an equation ...
  x(x-1) = 90
  x² - x - 90 = 0
Factoring this has you seeking factors of 90 that differ by 1, the same as the original problem does. Of course, you can solve this by other means, including the quadratic formula or completing the square or graphing.