Impossible, unusable, invisible

[JimP]

As if anyone need be convinced otherwise -- this thread (or similar) may have come up in the past but perhaps not as biased...;o) For grins, I acquired a TI-89 Titanium for about $20 on TAS so I could compare with my HP50G and Prime models, and within 10 minutes was totally convinced that the 89 was pretty much worth its weight in soot.

Any calculator where one needs a magnifying glass to see what one is doing is beyond hope. For a 55-year-old bloke this is to be expected, one might think. But add to that the first operation or attempt to use a program resulting in the machine freezing, requiring multiple internet searches to find out how to reset it (battery removal didn't work, although an obscure key combo did!). And to get sin 29 one has to hunt for a tiny blue secondary function, punch in the 29, THEN add a closing parenthesis, and hit enter. Whatever happened to "29 sin" and getting the answer directly? Impossible, unusable, and invisible.
OK rant over with. Maybe some school kid wants the Ti-89. I don't.

I'm so glad I became an HP user all those years ago. And the Prime's mondo display is wonderfully easy on the eyes. The 50 g is so much more intuitive also.

And all you need for "sine of 29 degrees" is to hit 29 sin and you're done.

[jebem]

Nice find for such a low price!
58 years old here. I understand your points and agree with most of them.

RPN is a very direct and efficient entry mode way to work with, as long as one is old enough to have used these HP machines in the 70's and preferred it to the biggest competitor at the time that was in the other camp with algebraic input: Texas.

The Texas TI-89 Titanium keeps going strong and expensive everywhere I look for it.
Despite its so many alleged shortcomings, there is something appealing in it to attract so many young users around the globe.

I spoke so many times with high school students and even younger work colleagues in my company about this HP vs Texas debate, while showing them some of my RPN capable HP machines:
Here are some comments from them:

- RPN what? No way!
- Are you nuts? Do I have to type the variable values from inside out in order to get my equation result?
- Look here my 89 Titanium: I just punch in the equation as it is on the paper and press Enter. See?
- You think the Titanium display is muddy? We find it very readable. That's a feature we love, as in this way nobody around, specially the teacher, will see what we are looking at!
- Can you safely store and hide our cheat papers in your calculator and get away with it in the school exams? Well, with the Titanium it is a piece of cake...

[walter b]

"High school students" are in fact pupils as your collected reactions show. Hiding cheat sheets is more important for them than math - that was and is ok in that age.

I may be wrong but for appreciating the benefits of RPN you need some minimum mathematical level - most kids will need to be 16 for it at least. And don't forget that most math textbooks used in school are strictly arithmetic in their approach, so for the majority attending a class an arithmetic calculator will be the way to go. After all, the fraction of math lovers is just a tiny fraction of overall population.

Based on this, I'd expect algebraic calcs in schools up to the level where kids start thinking themselves. So the whole "educational market" (as the USA defines it) is algebraic and will remain so. Young people visiting a university (i.e. real students) and studying something where math is more than just a (unloved) tool should be the target group of RPN and may appreciate it.

Just my 20m€

d:-)

[roadrunner]

(12-20-2015 09:13 AM)jebem Wrote:  Nice find for such a low price!

If you like that you’ll love this story:

Just last week I was in a thrift store and saw a calculator sitting on a shelf of old electrical equipment. Removing the cover reviled a ti-89 titanium. The price was $3.93 so I assumed it didn’t work; but being good at tinkering, I bought it. When I put in batteries, it worked perfectly.

On a side note, my eyes will be 60 next May but can see the screen well enough as long as the light’s good.

-road

[jebem]

(12-22-2015 08:30 PM)roadrunner Wrote:  

(12-20-2015 09:13 AM)jebem Wrote:  Nice find for such a low price!

(...) Removing the cover reviled a ti-89 titanium. The price was $3.93 so I assumed it didn’t work; but being good at tinkering, I bought it. When I put in batteries, it worked perfectly.

On a side note, my eyes will be 60 next May but can see the screen well enough as long as the light’s good.

Congrats! That's the kind of business I rarely find on my side of the planet.
Texas 89 Titanium is highly sought in this region, where extensively used specimens goes above 60 Euros and better looking used ones have asking prices of around 90 Euros.

[JimP]

(12-22-2015 08:30 PM)roadrunner Wrote:  

(12-20-2015 09:13 AM)jebem Wrote:  Nice find for such a low price!

The price was $3.93 so I assumed it didn’t work; but being good at tinkering, I bought it. When I put in batteries, it worked perfectly.

I'm guessing the person who junked it had eyesight worse than yours! Good catch!