30 years ago, we had the option of the TI-82 Or (83?) and the 85. A bunch of the kids with the 85 were playing Tetris and some were writing little programs. I got the cheaper 82/83, and I don't actually remember using it for anything, even once, even though I did the IB track (stats, trig, algebra, calculus, etc).

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cj 3 hours ago | parent [-]

How is that possible?

I wouldn’t have been able to function without it in school (20 years ago). But we also didn’t have iPhones.

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billxreynolds 2 hours ago | parent | next [-]

Back in the mid-90's we had a TI version of sneakernet where you would copy programs from one student on to your TI-85 via a link cable; this is how I got Tetris back in the day. I assume OP did the same.

	▲	jasonfarnon an hour ago \| parent \| next [-]
		Was it that only the 85 could connect to a com port, but then you could connect the 85 to the 82/83? I seem to remember pleading with the one kid with an 85 (who didn't even care about games).
	▲	badc0ffee 2 hours ago \| parent \| prev [-]
		IIRC there was a way to connect the TI-85 to your serial port and use some Windows or DOS software to copy files onto it. (Everyone's PC still had at least one serial port on it back then).

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badc0ffee 2 hours ago | parent | prev [-]

(Edit: I am assuming you were asking how it's possible I didn't use it, not how it's possible that people were copying programs onto their calculators.)

I don't know. It's been too long. We must have done graphing on paper.

I don't remember a lot of coursework in math that required me to produce a decimal value. For example, we wanted √2 instead of 1.414.

In physics, I think we used regular calculators.

I used to be bewildered at my parents not remembering certain things from high school. But, now I'm living it :).