Modern calculators

Calculator

Navigate to: previous, Jump to (Calcium)Next (Caleb)A simple calculator

It is a calculator is an instrument for performing calculations. Modern calculators often incorporate a general-purpose computing system, but they are often designed for specific purposes. For instance graphing calculators focus specifically on graph-centered math, including trigonometry as well as statistics. In addition, modern calculators are much more portable than the majority of computers even though some personal electronic aids (PDAs) are comparable in size with hand-held calculators.

Since calculators are tiny, in the future, devices that are smaller than credit cards can perform the exact calculations as today's big scientific calculators. Another possibility is like a handheld computer which has notations that are not input by buttons but written on a screen. This would mean that the requirement for buttons would be eliminated and the overall size of the device could be further reduced.

Overview

At one time, clerical tools made of mechanical such as abaci, comptometers and Napier's bones, mathematical books, Tables, Slide Rules, or mechanical addition machines were employed for numeric work. The word "calculator" denoted a person who worked for a living using such tools as well as writing instruments and pen. The process of calculation, which was semi-manual was tedious and error-prone.

Modern calculators are powered by electricity and come in many designs and sizes, from basic, give-away credit-card sized models to more robust models with built-in printers.

Electronic calculators

In the past calculators had the same size as our computers today. Mechanical calculators first appeared as mechanical desktop calculators, which were later replaced by electromechanical calculators for desktops, and eventually, electronic devices that utilized first thermionics valves, and then transistors, and finally hard-wired integrated circuit logic. Nowadays, the majority of calculators are hand held microelectronic devices.

Basic configuration

The sophistication of calculators is contingent according to the purpose they were designed for. A simple , modern calculator may consist of the following parts:

• A source of power like a battery or a solar panel or both
• Displays, typically constructed from LED lights and liquid crystal (LCD), that can display a variety of numbers (typically either 8 or 10.)
• Electronic circuitry
• A keypad with:
  • The ten digitsin ten, 0 through 9
  • The decimal point
  • The equals sign to ask for the answer
  • The four arithmetic functions (namely, addition, subtraction multiplication, division and subtraction)
  • The cancel button is used to end the current calculation
  • On and off buttons
  • Other functions that are fundamental are square root, for example and percentage (%).
• Higher-end models may come with only one number in memory, and can be recalled where necessary. It might also have the Cancel Entry button, to erase the numbers currently being entered.

In the last decade Simple calculators were installed in other small devices, such as cell phones, pagesters, or wrist watches.

Electronic calculators with advanced technology

Advanced scientific calculators can support trigonometric, statistical and different mathematical applications. The most sophisticated modern calculators are able to display graphics and also include features from computers algebra systems. They can also be programmed; calculator applications include algebraic equation solvers, financial models, and even games. The majority of calculators can print numbers as large as 10 decimal numbers with full resolution on the display. Scientific notation is used to note numbers up to 9.999999999*10 ⁹⁹. If a larger number or a mathematical expression yielding higher numbers than this is entered (a frequent example is entering "100! ", read as "100 factorial") then the calculator will show "error."

"Error" is also displayed when a function or operation is not mathematically defined or mathematically. For instance, division with zero or roots of negative numbers (most scientific calculators don't permit complex numbers, but some of the more expensive models have a special function for working with them). However, some, but not all, calculators do recognize these two types of "error," though when they do, they are not simple for the user to grasp because they are usually given by the numbers "error 1" or "error 2."

Only a few companies design and produce modern, high-end finance and engineering calculators Most well-known are Casio, Sharp, Hewlett-Packard (HP), and Texas Instruments (TI). Such calculators are good examples of embedded systems.