Graphing Calculator to Borrow?

[cjsmith]

I would love to borrow a calculator capable of solving quadratic equations automatically. Do you have one you wouldn't mind going without for six to eight weeks? Are you anywhere near Sunnyvale, CA?

Pleeeeeeeez?

Comments

[lizzie-omalley.livejournal.com]

I am not going to be evil and say I do. But it's in TX. I wish you luck in finding one although, I will say you can pick them up at Target or Office Depot, or any similar box store, these days for not a lot of money. Graphing Calculators are standard fare in higher level high school math and science classes.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Good point. Last time I looked for one, ~$100 was the right range. It's possible that something a lot cheaper would do what I need; I don't truly need graphing capability, just the quadratic formula. But if I have to spend $100 I'll spend $100. I'd be a fool to endanger my long-term goals with frugality at that level.

[lizzie-omalley.livejournal.com]

Target has a Casio for 50ish and an HP for 75. (http://www.target.com/dp/B000JEP19W/ref=sc_qi_detailbutton?ie=UTF8&pf_rd_r=1BDG1VX4KF01N32BSSB6&pf_rd_p=465357931&pf_rd_i=B000JEP19W&pf_rd_s=bottom-6&pf_rd_m=A1VC38T7YXB528&pf_rd_t=5101)

I am rambling. I think it's time to go to sleep.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Nice! Thanks. And good night :-)

[plymouth.livejournal.com]

I thought you ended up borrowing a spiffy graphing calculator for one of your classes already?

I bet one of mine does this quadratic equation thingie but I have not played with them in a long time so I wouldn't even know how to do it.

[tiger-spot.livejournal.com]

I have got a TI-80-something which can be programmed to do that. However, it needs new batteries; one of the sorts of batteries it needs is some kind of weird watch-battery type thing. Also I'm not sure whether it still works (as it's been sitting in the bottom of a box with no batteries for some years now). But if you'd like to try it you most certainly may.

[leback.livejournal.com]

I had no idea I even owned my old TI-82 anymore, but it took Alexei about five minutes to dig it up. Since I've not used it in something like ten years, I'm pretty sure I won't notice another six to eight weeks. :-) And it does still work, but the batteries were dead long enough that it's lost all its saved memory, so my old quadratic formula program is no longer there. (It can still save new stuff, but its backup battery is dead, and I don't have a replacement for that on hand, so one would need to acquire that before the new set of batteries run out if one had saved anything one couldn't easily replace.) I don't even remember how to operate it anymore, but Alexei looked it up on the web and found out how to create a quadratic formula program even more quickly than he found the calculator itself, so I suspect you'd have little trouble figuring it out.

Also, he's got a TI-85 that's got quadratic formula stuff built in, but the battery compartment is in fairly nasty shape (leaking and corrosion), so he's not yet sure whether he can get it cleaned out and working again. But if so, you'd be welcome to borrow that one instead.

So if you want to grab one of these from us before your exam, just let me know. We're even nearer to you now than the last time you were at our place, so it would be no trouble to arrange a handoff.

[leback.livejournal.com]

Actually, scratch that; my TI-82 now has a quadratic formula program. It really wasn't that hard. :-)

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Ooo, this sounds perfect! Can I drop by some time today or tomorrow? I could even say hi to kitties!

Where are you, by the way? Did you move? I must have missed that.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Not yet. Someone else on my flist recently did; Mary, perhaps? I thought I was going to need one for statistics, but on the first day of class the prof said we could get by with a TI-30XA, so I returned the $120 jobbie and picked up a nice $11 TI-30XA. :-)

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Ooo! I have another offer of one with batteries, but if we can't arrange a pickup I would be overjoyed to come borrow yours. I'll return it with good batteries.

BTW, since I haven't said it elsewhere: THANK YOU so much for the chocolate care-package. I'm almost finished with it. That was very thoughtful, and it went a long way to ease my self-pity over not going anywhere that weekend. :-)

Actually, hang on: I'm being an idiot. Yes I'd like to borrow yours! If I do wind up with two, we can all do a coin flip on whose gets returned first. What's your schedule today/tomorrow? (Test is Monday, so I'm looking to pick up the calculator this weekend.)

[tiger-spot.livejournal.com]

You're welcome! It was Rob's idea, so I can't take too much credit here. If you want more chocolate, Jon brought some that didn't get opened....

I should be basically home today and tomorrow, so whenever you want to drop by is fine. (It's my turn to be sick and not go anywhere. I am okay with this except for the sick part.) As it turns out, we have a TI-83 and a TI-85, so you can take your pick! (They both need new batteries, although the 85 is getting enough power that if you squint real hard you can kinda see the screen.)

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Aw man! Sick is annoying. Do you need anything? I have an immense variety of cough drops, decongestants, and the like. I also have some extremely dark chocolate!

Right now I've got stuff in the oven, so I'll wait a bit. I'll come by some time this afternoon & will phone first to give you some warning.