I have to agree becasue i feel that the graphing calculator should only relaly be used for math not games. I hae a ti-89 and i put a game on it. I don't use it during class but i took it out during lunch and a lot of people looked at me playing it. Next day a couple people bought the ti-89 ($136.00!) not for math but to play games. If ur gonna play games then buy a gameboy.

If they are only buying TI-89 to play games then they are hurting themselves not by wasting or spending time playing games but because the 89 is such a powerful calc that if you actually take the time to learn how to use it it can make the majority of any class below Calculus a joke. So hey, if they wanna play games they're just helping you by bringing the curve down.

[The text of this article has been removed by a news editor due to violation of the acceptable use policy.]

Is that a flame? It sounds a poor attempt at one to me. Please, if you must be so childish and immature to flame, do it with style and pizazz.

i dont agree with your article

but anyone who writes an article and has it put up gets props from me, and not lame flames

Only a nerd such as yourself would get offended by calculator talk. There is nothing wrong with playing games on a calculator in class or otherwise...

Being called a nerd is a compliment.
Being called a stupid nerd indicates that someone else is stupid.
Oximorons.
That's all I'm saying.

No one is ever going to win this arguement. It is pointless to keep posting this sort of topic because it generally leads to flame wars. This sort of topic never brings about friendly discussions. No more calc are evil articles!!!!

I totally agree with you. Instead of flaming about a subject that's not going to be settled, put your comments into other articles... for instance: the emulator release one. (My questions still haven't been answered yet)

I agree with all of the previous comments. All articles like this one do is lead to immature people putting flames on the message board. I would like to make the suggestion to Bryan Rabeler that he not post articles like this one. Nothing personal, just a suggestion. I'm sure there is plenty of better stuff to post. I am sick of people posting flames. I also think that people with 89s or 92+s should not insult people with 82s or 83s. Big deal. You have a better calculator. Everybody knows it. Now please shut up.

This has got to be the most obnoxiously patronizing article I have ever read on this site. It is a bunch of obvious generalities wrapped up in a self-rightsous tone, with no new thoughts to offer. Obviously if we play games and ignore lectures, you are not going to learn as much. Only a complete moron need to read an article to learn that.

It might just be me. . .no it isn't. The people who get these games and go to these sights are the SMART people, you would have better luck waving pamplets on the street than reaching our crowd here. The dumb people who play them in class and get bad grades get their games from US. . . and I for one am tired of every week seeing articles titled as such:

"Put the calculator away!"
"Are they necessary?"
"Stop playing around"
"Stop before they are banned"

And others like that (note: yes, I made some of those up, but they sound like the stereo-typical names.)
If you choose not to play them, I'm sure no one will care. But you should not tell other people what to do if they are sitting in a class that is nothing but review (and you already know it all). It is every persons right to pull out their calc and play. Besides, I don't think I have ever seen some one else disturbed by some one playing a game in class, unless they make verbal comments or whatever. In fact, if ones face is down looking at the calc, it is less a disturbance than a squeaky pencil.

All in all, I think that people should think a little more carefull when you try to put down what is going on in the TI-Community. Thanks.

~Dan C

From some of the comments I have had the misfortune of reading in this topic, I would have to argue with you. After reading many of the posts, the visitors to this website don't seem so smart to me.

I would also have to say that the maturity level of those involved in this "debate" is quite low. People who post on this site need to grow up before you screw everything up for the rest of us who happen to be handling this maturely.

Why the hell didn't put your name on this message?! Are you afraid that if you reveal your name, people will track you down and find out you're really a 9-year-old?! And if you are so "mature", why would you play games anyway?!

Thank you for the staunch lecture. Please keep spanking me until I learn the error of my wicked ways(I Loooove being spanked).

I play my 85 and 89 everyday in almost all of my classes. I am a junior in high school and am taking college algebra and computer science.

This year I had a 94% gpa. I may have had a couple points higher, but, class is soooo boring I don't think it is worth it. I have a 99% average (w/o curve) in World History and haven't listened to a lecture yet!

For people who are failing, playing games in class is a bad, bad idea. But some people can do just fine with games. If you aren't smart enough to pass, stay away from zshell. Otherwise -- ENJOY LIFE, IT'S TOO SHORT!

ok,
first off. wow you can play games and make good grades at the same time! stop bragging. Its not like you are special and all. anyone can play games and still make a good grade i.e A or higher. so stop thiking so highly of yourselves. Secondly, Ive noticed that people who play calcs do fail, but they are the same people who fail anyway. so hell if they are going to fail they might as well have fun doing it! of course this is only my opinion.
Cullen Logan

Here is an idea. Try reading the article thoroughly, once or twice and try to think of a logical response instead of toting back, "I have a blah blah high GPA," or "I did blah blah." Thats great, you are responsible enough and have enough common sense to handle graphing calculator games. But, being smart isn't the only thing. I graduated from highschool with a 3.97 GPA, a year early, and as valedictorian. And I'm in Phi Theta Kappa, and National Honors Society. What does that mean? Nothing other than it looks good on a resume. I'm not trying to get everyone to quit playing the games!! I just want people to be aware of what is going on. So, give me critical remarks, analayze the heck out of the article, but stay away from rude remarks. That is childish.

I totally agree with you about no flames. I disagree with the article in a number of ways. It is possible to play games in some classes without making a distraction. If the teacher does not want calculator games to be played or if the student cannot play games silently and without making a scene then it is disruptive. Other than that, it should be the job of the particular student to police themselves. It really annoys some teachers when a student is playing games and then it does become a distraction if the teacher has to interrupt their lesson to tell someone to put the calculator away. In general, I do not have a problem with students playing games in class. The calculators are becoming game machines with the added features of the TI-86, TI-89, and TI-92+. Part of the tool is its ability to execute the assembly language games. Apparently TI supports the game programming community. Playing games is not mususing the tool, it is using the tool to its full potential. How many math and science programs are written in assembly? Check the ticalc.org archives. There are few or none at all. TI added assembly language support for game programmers. I can think of many ways to misuse the tool and playing games is not one of them.

On your views of why TI added ASM support...

Well, they _might_ have had gaming in mind. One could say "yes, they did" by extracting (extrapol ating?) information from various sources: the TI guidebook for the 83 mentions gaming in 16-20; the TI newsgroup page mentions Calc-TI as a list for "progr amming and gaming", and I think that TI supplied a Games Module for a really old calculator model once. So, yes, one could say that.

But the lack of science and math programs in ASM could be simply due to the fact that most programmers don't know how to implement mathemat ical formulas/ algorithms in such a low-level language. (Ever try implementing the Lucas-Lehmer test--or some other mathematically intensive test--in assembly language? It's hard.)

Just my $.02,
--David