old article 1977 "Programming Handheld Calculators"

[Enoff]

I came across this article looking for information about the old Apple ][ computer on Google. The gentleman who wrote the article had an Apple ][ at one time. In the article he mentions a "Space flight" program he had made to run on one of the early programmable calculators. I thought it was pretty interesting especially since it was written in 1977.

http://www.arachnoid.com/programmable_calculators/index.html
article by Paul Lutus

scanned pictures of the space flight program published in Popular electronics magazine 1977. There is much more in depth information as well as the actual program instructions in the article link above.

 

[simonh]

So, an early ancestor of Kerbal Space Program!

The first computer program I ever typed in by hand was a 'moon lander' game. You were in command of a capsule stationery above the moon and each turn represented one second. The game told you your altitude, remaining fuel and vertical velocity (it was a one dimensional simulation), and you typed in how much thrust you wanted to use. Later on I wrote a version that was in real-time and you pressed a key to fire the thruster.

Since I discovered KSP about 18 months ago I've played almost nothing else on my computer.

Simon Hibbs

 

[whulorigan]

The first computer program I ever typed in by hand was a 'moon lander' game. You were in command of a capsule stationery above the moon and each turn represented one second. The game told you your altitude, remaining fuel and vertical velocity (it was a one dimensional simulation), and you typed in how much thrust you wanted to use. . .

I remember making some quite sizable craters on the moon with that program.

 

[JimMarn]

That site keeps timing out on me, but in 1976 I had a TI SR-52 card reading programmable calculator.

 

[Enoff]

That site keeps timing out on me, but in 1976 I had a TI SR-52 card reading programmable calculator.

You're right I couldn't get to it either.

 

[Shonner]

My dad had the TI-59 with printer. I'd played with it a bit. Very '70s looking. We both have TI-89s now. I write stuff in C for it. Never tried its BASIC yet.

 

[aramis]

My first programmable calculator was a hand-me-down TI - and with a single line...

I they went to an HP 42-G that someone abandoned in my place.
Now, I emulate the HP42 on my android tablet.

 

[Enoff]

I never had a programmable calculator actually. I started seventh grade in 1977. I remember the popularity of programmable calculators at that time though. I think I remember paging through a book on calculator games that looked interesting wishing I had one. We had a professor at our high school that wouldn't let students use them, they had to learn to use a slide ruler. Seemed like such an awkward and mystical device to me.

I wish that article was still up, it was pretty interesting.

 

[Enoff]

Bump: site is up

 

[JimMarn]

Loaded just fine for me this morning.

 

[dalthor]

I still have my HP-11C and owners handbook, circa 1984, with an OLD dice-rolling program loaded. Even worse, a working TI-55, circa 1977 (ish)

lmao

 

[Draconian]

I wasn't able to get the site about the 1977 article when I tried the link at this time. It just keeps spinning.

I just bought a Hewlett-Packard 35s which is a modern revamp of the classic Reverse Polish Notation programming language (instead of 2 + 2 = , you enter steps 2 ENTER 2 +, with the operation keyed in last.) but with scads more memory than the old days [up to 30,000 instructions or trade-off with 800 memory registers]. You can also get HP emulators a-plenty for your cellphone. Delightfully clunky assembler-style programming. But algebraic mode is ALSO available on it. They still give the Lunar Lander game as an example. I've been cratering the Moon for almost 40 years, heheh! And now they've added a kind of "Dungeon Crawl" game too!