\GoBillsInDallas/ Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 https://www.dallasnews.com/business/texas-instruments/2019/03/05/jerry-merryman-one-three-inventors-texas-instruments-calculator-dies-86 "It was late 1965 and Jack Kilby, my boss, presented the idea of a calculator. He called some people in his office. He says, we'd like to have some sort of computing device, perhaps to replace the slide rule. It would be nice if it were as small as this little book that I have in my hand."
The Senator Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 (edited) I remember buying a TI scientific calculator when I took college physics and calculus. At the time , it was fairly sophisticated, and quite expensive. Now they’re about 20 bucks at Office Depot, and do a lot more. A basic calculator is practically free. Hard to believe that Kelly Johnson and his team at Lockheed’s ‘Skunkworks’ designed the SR-71 Blackbird - perhaps the greatest airplane ever - with little more than sliderules and protractors. RIP Mr. Merryman . Edited March 9, 2019 by The Senator
Ridgewaycynic2013 Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 A ‘four banger’ Texas Instruments was in the 50-60 dollar range in the mid 70s at Brand Names. My Canadian girlfriend had me get her one over there since it still was so much cheaper than any Canadian retailers.
BUFFALOKIE Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 On 3/9/2019 at 1:49 PM, The Senator said: Hard to believe that Kelly Johnson and his team at Lockheed’s ‘Skunkworks’ designed the SR-71 Blackbird - perhaps the greatest airplane ever - with little more than sliderules and protractors. RIP Mr. Merryman . Expand As an aerospace engineer, this still blows my mind! The SR-71 flew on the walls of my childhood bedroom, above plastic models of the same design. The Blackbird is still the sexiest machine ever created, to me! With the advanced design tools we have today, I cannot fathom creating such a masterpiece with paper, graphite and a slide rule. Thank you indeed Mr. Merryman, because there is no way I could do my job without your contributions to technology. My TI-83 still never leaves arms reach. RIP
The Senator Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 On 3/9/2019 at 3:59 PM, BUFFALOKIE said: As an aerospace engineer, this still blows my mind! The SR-71 flew on the walls of my childhood bedroom, above plastic models of the same design. The Blackbird is still the sexiest machine ever created, to me! With the advanced design tools we have today, I cannot fathom creating such a masterpiece with paper, graphite and a slide rule. Thank you indeed Mr. Merryman, because there is no way I could do my job without your contributions to technology. My TI-83 still never leaves arms reach. RIP Expand A few years back I toured the Intrepid in NYC with a friend, a Boeing engineer, and they had a Lockheed A-12, predecessor of the Blackbird. My friend lit up and started telling me how it would slowly leak fuel when it sat on the ground because in flight, at Mach 3, the fuselage would expand and seal the leaks. How Johnson and his crew figured this out and accounted for it is beyond me. .
Augie Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 RIP And thank you! A few years ago I took some aptitude tests as part of management succession plans at a bank. After telling me a lot things I was good at (yes, there WERE things a was good at!), they warned me I should never be without a calculator by my side. Hey! Nobody told me there would be math! I would have brushed up had I known! I don’t need to know math.....because I DO always have a calculator (and now my phone) by my side.
BUFFALOKIE Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 On 3/9/2019 at 4:15 PM, The Senator said: A few years back I toured the Intrepid in NYC with a friend, a Boeing engineer, and they had a Lockheed A-12, predecessor of the Blackbird. My friend lit up and started telling me how it would slowly leak fuel when it sat on the ground because in flight, at Mach 3, the fuselage would expand and seal the leaks. How Johnson and his crew figured this out and accounted for it is beyond me. . Expand Im jealous. I've never seen a Blackbird in person, but seeing and touching and inspecting one is a bucket list item for me.
BUFFALOKIE Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 On 3/9/2019 at 3:15 PM, PromoTheRobot said: Expand I like techno, so that is kinda cool, but not really. Perfect for a tribute to Mr Merryman, though! Good job Promo!
The Senator Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 (edited) On 3/9/2019 at 4:40 PM, BUFFALOKIE said: Im jealous. I've never seen a Blackbird in person, but seeing and touching and inspecting one is a bucket list item for me. Expand https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intrepid_Sea,_Air_%26_Space_Museum Check out the list of Selected Exhibits. You’ll love it. . Edited March 9, 2019 by The Senator 1
Gray Beard Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 My freshman year in college (‘75-‘76) we had to use slide rules because scientific calculators were too expensive to assume that everyone would have one. I had a TI-50 which cost $75. From my sophomore year on, we were allowed to use calculators. When programmable calculators came along, we weren’t allowed to use them during tests. Anybody here a diehard HP RPN fan? I never got used to RPN. I was exclusively a TI user.
BUFFALOKIE Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 (edited) On 3/9/2019 at 4:54 PM, Gray Beard said: My freshman year in college (‘75-‘76) we had to use slide rules because scientific calculators were too expensive to assume that everyone would have one. I had a TI-50 which cost $75. From my sophomore year on, we were allowed to use calculators. When programmable calculators came along, we weren’t allowed to use them during tests. Anybody here a diehard HP RPN fan? I never got used to RPN. I was exclusively a TI user. Expand there are a few old HP calculator users in my office. Their key entry is bass akwards to me. I am impressed though, that their 40-50 year old calculators are still functioning like the day they were new Edited March 9, 2019 by BUFFALOKIE
Gray Beard Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 On 3/9/2019 at 5:10 PM, BUFFALOKIE said: there are a few old HP calculator users in my office. Their key entry is bass akwards to me. I am impressed though, that their 40-50 year old calculators are still functioning like the day they were new Expand I still have my TI from 1975, but I lost the battery charger, so it’s a paperweight. I agree with your HP key entry description.
Gugny Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 On 3/9/2019 at 4:27 PM, Augie said: RIP And thank you! A few years ago I took some aptitude tests as part of management succession plans at a bank. After telling me a lot things I was good at (yes, there WERE things a was good at!), they warned me I should never be without a calculator by my side. Hey! Nobody told me there would be math! I would have brushed up had I known! I don’t need to know math.....because I DO always have a calculator (and now my phone) by my side. Expand Something about this story doesn't add up. 1
Augie Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 On 3/9/2019 at 6:01 PM, Gugny said: Something about this story doesn't add up. Expand I wouldn’t know!
ExiledInIllinois Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 (edited) RIP Jerry! Man creates a museum for vintage calculators: https://www.wired.com/2010/08/vintage-calculators/ My mother was an accountant. Our first family calculator was a desktop Uniden... 4 function with memory... It was $70 bucks in early 1970s. Corded to wall... Figure a family of 6 went to Crystal Beach for $20, if that! Boy, She didn't trust that calculator! It had to have paper print out! LoL... I don't see it here: But Our Mother trusted this, LoL: Then thank God this! It had to have paper... Screw that fancy memory function... BUT, if She was living today, no doubt She'd be texting like mad and owning FaceBook, Twitter! /smh Neo-Luddites unite! On 3/9/2019 at 4:54 PM, Gray Beard said: My freshman year in college (‘75-‘76) we had to use slide rules because scientific calculators were too expensive to assume that everyone would have one. I had a TI-50 which cost $75. From my sophomore year on, we were allowed to use calculators. When programmable calculators came along, we weren’t allowed to use them during tests. Anybody here a diehard HP RPN fan? I never got used to RPN. I was exclusively a TI user. Expand When did that concept get thrown out the window... High Schools now mandate $600 iPods (and upgrades)... /smh... And annotating perfectly fine books so you can't pass them down to other children is the sick rule in education. Teachers, the system are really ***** -ed up! Edited March 9, 2019 by ExiledInIllinois
KD in CA Posted March 9, 2019 Posted March 9, 2019 (edited) On 3/9/2019 at 7:23 PM, ExiledInIllinois said: Expand Doesn’t seem that long ago I had one of these on my desk! It was still the fastest way to do quick math or sum a total offline. Edited March 9, 2019 by KD in CA 1
Greybeard Posted March 10, 2019 Posted March 10, 2019 On 3/9/2019 at 4:54 PM, Gray Beard said: My freshman year in college (‘75-‘76) we had to use slide rules because scientific calculators were too expensive to assume that everyone would have one. I had a TI-50 which cost $75. From my sophomore year on, we were allowed to use calculators. When programmable calculators came along, we weren’t allowed to use them during tests. Anybody here a diehard HP RPN fan? I never got used to RPN. I was exclusively a TI user. Expand Mid 70 dollars roughly makes that $300 in today's dollars. It's a tough comparison because of today's phones, but that was roughly a day's work. 1
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