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-- Calculator modules (http://discussion.visorcentral.com/vcforum/showthread.php?threadid=8679)

Discuss the graphing and financial calculator announcements here.

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James Hromadka
Old Friend

Unfourtunally, because all the math teachers in my school know how to use the 83's and 89's only, it would be hard for me to use one of these, no matter how cool it was.
BEN

I'm in college and I carry the TI-85 (for graphing and problem solving) and the HP-12C Financial Calculator with me. I also have a VDX, cellphone, textbooks, make-ups all in one bag.

I will consider this module since I can carry less or lighter gadgets. But I don't think I can use it during exam. They banned the HP calculator that has the IR port.

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What is new today will be old tomorrow..

Nice for professionals

This will be great for professionals I'm sure. But I can't use this on exams for school, so I'm stuck with a traditional solution like a TI-83 .

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-Vincent

I don't get why they don't let you use a Visor, you can type stuff into the TIs also, so they can't get you on that. I'm not sure about the AP tests, but I think the rule is that you can use any calculator that doesn't have a QWERTY keyboard and the Visor doesn't have one really :-)

Re: why ban Visor - - Maybe they've heard just how fast you can type with FitalyStamp?!?

Near as I can tell, the apps in these modules are identical to the "regular" versions. As an avid ebook reader and AvantGo user, I need to save as much memory as possible on my Visor; so being able to get an advanced calculator on a module is just great - especially since there is no extra cost involved!!

The school don't ban PDA. But they ban anything that has an IR Port to prevent the students from beaming answers back and forth. And our good VDX have an IR Port...

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What is new today will be old tomorrow..

I might get one after VC does a review of it. It actually looks pretty neat. My school hasn't benned anything with an IR port so I'm OK (most teachers don't even know what a palm is ).

My advice for those of you who's teachers won't let you use something with an IR port, ask if its okay if you tape a piece of paper over it, that should work.

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No handheld computers were harmed in the creation of this message.

I had a chance this morning to download the 30-day demo from the powerOne web site and test-drive it. Here's my $0.02... For background purposes, I am a college mathematics professor who uses technology on a regular basis (mainly the TI-89/92, although we are switching to Maple 6 next year), and I was also a grader for the AP Calculus test this past year. So let me try to give my views from a prof's perspective as well as from the AP's perspective (if possible). (Although it goes without sayign that I am not an employee of ETS, and my views do not necessarily reflect theirs, etc. etc. etc.)

Overall review: This module is OK for professionals who might need a good scientific calculator with basic graphing capabilities. It will be nice to have a springboard module that does the things it does, as opposed to having to carry around a TI-8* with you. And you have to like the fact that powerOne is actually shipping the module at the same time that they announce it; this is an agreeable departure from the "vaporware" syndrome that has dogged springboard modules in the past.

One thing I liked especially about this program is that it uses the Visor platform quite well in its functionality. For instance, when you have a graph up on the screen and you want to "ZoomBox" to zoom in on a part of it (i.e. you draw a little box around the area you want a close-up of), then you literally *draw* the box with the stylus. Tracing is the same way --- rather than move the cursor to a certain point, you just tap on the screen. I liked being able to put in my entries (especially variable names) using graffiti, too.

However, this module is rather limited in terms of its functionality. There are many things that this program does NOT do which some people -- high school and college mathematics students especially -- will need. Some of the big things missing from this program are:
- Matrix entry and operations
- Anything having to do with Calculus (including numerical derivatives and integrals... this is a real biggie!)
- Certain kinds of regression analysis (e.g. logistic regression, which can be found on the TI-89)

And some key features of the TI-89 and TI-92 that are missing from this module are:
- Symbolic entry and manipulation of functions (You can enter in functions for graphing on the program, but to enter in an equation in the "home" screen you have to first assign a numerical value to all but one of the variables.)
- Symbolic algebra, trig, and calculus features
- Differential equations capabilities

Additionally, it seems that the statistical features of the powerOne program are not anything to write home about. Except for some of the regression methods, most of the statistical features here are things I can do just as easily (and with greater integration with other programs) with Quicksheet.

From an educator's standpoint, another reason I would probably not shelve my TI-92 just yet is because this program really doesn't seem to be intended for educational use. There is no way, for instance, to hook the Visor up to an overhead projection device for classroom demonstrations (that I know of). This is too bad, because in light of the growing number of college initiatives to get a laptop in the hands of each of its students (Rose-Hulman Institute, for example, does this), I think that the Visor would be a great solution -- require a Visor of each student (or provide one for them), that way you could have e-books, spreadsheets, graphing calculators, you name it all on the same portable package, and that package is considerably cheaper than a laptop (important for colleges like ours, where the median family income of freshmen is only about $30K, about $10K of which goes into their kids' tuition!) I think Handspring and springboard developers ought to look further into the educational market, because it seems like this market is essentially untapped.

That said, if all you are looking for is a pretty good graphing program, this module looks good. I don't think anyone expects a springboard module to have all the functionality of a TI-89 -- that's a pretty high-powered machine! -- so perhaps it is a bit unfair to compare this module with one. But for me at least, and I think for all professionals and students, the question boils down to a choice of (1) ditching or forgoing a graphing calculator in favor of a module with less features and (2) carrying around both the Visor and a TI-8*. From my perspective, if it doesn't do matrices and calculus, then I'll stick with my trusty TI-92+. But my perspective is rather advanced; those with more basic needs might want to give the demo program a look.

As for the AP -- don't count on powerOne being allowed on the AP any time soon. My understanding about the ban on TI-92's is that it wasn't because the TI-92's admit text entry (because calculators 10 years ago could do that), but rather that text entry was relatively painless with the QWERTY keyboard. The TI-89 has a text editor, for instance, but you have to hunt-and-peck to get each letter. The Visor is, arguably, even easier to enter text. There is also the whole beaming issue which makes the Visor even less likely to make it into the AP exam, not to mention the fact that the Visor is a computer, unlike the TI-92; you could conceivably download an entire Calculus textbook into SmartDoc or something for use during a test. There are a LOT more ways to cheat with a Visor than with a TI.

Sorry for the long-windedness of this post, but mathematical calculator/computer technology is something very close to my heart. Thanks for the indulgence...

-bertbert

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BertBert
Mark 12:28-31

Re: TI calculator features

After reading BertBert's message, I asked Infinity Softworks if the versions of powerOne in the SBMs are updateable, and they replied that they are. I then asked what TI calculator features they would be adding; and they replied that are working at incorporating the functionality of the TI-83 (they made no specific promises), but they are open to feature requests.

I'm going to give them URL to this message thread, but I'm sure it won't hurt if more folks contact them with their requests. I think they should be commended for being responsive to inquiries, and for being open to feature requests.

BTW, thanks to BertBert for the application review!!

PowerOne Finance software vs springbnoard module

Is there a difference the between PowerOne Finance v1.0 software version and Springboard module version?

Seems like I would prefer the software version in order to leave the Springboard available for other uses.

Software vs SBM

Same thing (from a features point of view). Same price.