Lunduke
News • Science & Tech
Make Computers Fun Again - Linux, UNIX, Alternative Operating Systems, Computer History, and Retro Computing. Also dad jokes.
Interested? Want to learn more about the community?
December 08, 2022

#PDAweek
TI - Graphing Calculators

If you went to school in the US during the 1990s, and in to the early 2000s, you probably owned, or at least used, a Texas Instruments 80s Series calculator.

The TI-81 was released in 1990 and immediately gained ground in schools across America. This z80 based hand-held computer was able to do anything a scientific calculator could do. It even included TI Basic, a Basic language which allowed users to write in programs to solve very complex problems. None of this was really new. Programmable calculators had been out for years. But the new trick up this calculator's sleeve, was the ability to draw graphics; specifically graphs.
This was obviously something that was typically reserved for more capable computers at the time.
For less than $150, you could own a hand held computer.
School districts across the country began purchasing class sets. TI made it easy by bundling sets with a teacher's edition of the calculator. The teacher's edition was specially modified so it could connect to an external lcd screen and be projected on the wall. (More on those another day.)

But the TI-81 had one fatal flaw. Something that really kept it from becoming the defacto standard.
Every single person had to manually enter in thier own programs. This meant that if you came up with something amazing, you couldn't share it. Worse, changing the batteries wiped the full memory.

This limitation didn't last long as Texas Imstruments released the TI-85 in 1992.
This new model used the same z80 processor, bit was somehow now many times faster.
This new calculator corrected many issues with the TI-81 including adding a backup/coin-cell battery (they added this to the TI-81 around the same time. But it wasn't there originally.) And the greatest improvement of all...
TI-Link
This new, little cable, meant that programs could be shared between students and teachers. The cable, which was simply a 3-wire cord with a 2.5mm jack on each end, changed the world for students.
Very soon after the release of the calculator, Texas Instruments released the TI-Graph Link cable, a serial cable allowing users to connect the TI-85 to a windows 3.11 or Mac OS computer, copy files and even write programs on the computer.

This new calculator came at a much higher price, preventing it from gaining mass adoption.

To be continued....

post photo preview
Interested? Want to learn more about the community?
What else you may like…
Videos
Podcasts
Posts
Articles
System76 Built Replacement of Ubuntu Infra in Response to Islamic Terrorist Attacks

Following the recent multi-day outage of Ubuntu servers, due to DDoS attacks from Islamic Terrorists, Linux hardware maker System76 has rolled their own infrastructure.

50% Off Yearly, & Massively Discounted Lifetime Subs Through May 31:
https://lunduke.substack.com/p/50-off-yearly-and-massively-discounted

More from The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.com/

00:14:21
Linux Kernel is Now Vibe Coded

Usage of AI (Claude, Codex, etc.) is exploding in the Linux world. At the current rate, the Linux Kernel will be predominantly developed using AI sometime this year.

50% Off Yearly, & Massively Discounted Lifetime Subs Through May 31:
https://lunduke.substack.com/p/50-off-yearly-and-massively-discounted

More from The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.com/

00:13:53
The Best Windows is Linux

XLibre + XCE + Chicago95 + Wine + Steam. Faster, lighter, and better compatibility with Windows software than Windows 11.

More from The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.com/

00:12:02
November 22, 2023
The futility of Ad-Blockers

Ads are filling the entirety of the Web -- websites, podcasts, YouTube videos, etc. -- at an increasing rate. Prices for those ad placements are plummeting. Consumers are desperate to use ad-blockers to make the web palatable. Google (and others) are desperate to break and block ad-blockers. All of which results in... more ads and lower pay for creators.

It's a fascinatingly annoying cycle. And there's only one viable way out of it.

Looking for the Podcast RSS feed or other links? Check here:
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4619051/lunduke-journal-link-central-tm

Give the gift of The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4898317/give-the-gift-of-the-lunduke-journal

The futility of Ad-Blockers
November 21, 2023
openSUSE says "No Lunduke allowed!"

Those in power with openSUSE make it clear they will not allow me anywhere near anything related to the openSUSE project. Ever. For any reason.

Well, that settles that, then! Guess I won't be contributing to openSUSE! 🤣

Looking for the Podcast RSS feed or other links?
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4619051/lunduke-journal-link-central-tm

Give the gift of The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4898317/give-the-gift-of-the-lunduke-journal

openSUSE says "No Lunduke allowed!"
September 13, 2023
"Andreas Kling creator of Serenity OS & Ladybird Web Browser" - Lunduke’s Big Tech Show - September 13th, 2023 - Ep 044

This episode is free for all to enjoy and share.

Be sure to subscribe here at Lunduke.Locals.com to get all shows & articles (including interviews with other amazing nerds).

"Andreas Kling creator of Serenity OS & Ladybird Web Browser" - Lunduke’s Big Tech Show - September 13th, 2023 - Ep 044
10 hours ago

Hmm....

9 hours ago

Now, that's a hero!

10 hours ago

Created my first children's book

https://nginx.leebasehome.com/squishy-adventure/

used this book to begin fleshing out the process. It has a nice pdf, and then I created a web app with simple navigation and show/hide the text for the story.

I intend to create a few of these using photos of the stuffed animals/toys of the children the books will be written for. Then create stories using their favorite toys.

Character consistency between illustrations is the most difficult challenge. It's what I'll tackle next

post photo preview
post photo preview
Lifetime "Solaris" Wall almost full!

Just a quick heads up that the 7th “Lunduke Journal Lifetime Subscriber Wall”, aka “The Solaris Wall”, is almost full!

The Solaris Wall has enough space for maybe 6 or 7 more names (depending on name length)… before we lock it down and move on to Wall Number 8 (which will be another retro computing platform).

Hard to say how long until the Solaris Wall is full… but no more than a few days. These things fill up fast.

First come, first served.

Huge thank you to every subscriber. The Lunduke Journal wouldn’t be possible without you. You rule.

-Lunduke

 
Read full Article
Last call for the "Amiga" Lifetime Subscriber Wall. It's almost full!

Holy smokes, that was fast.

The 6th Lunduke Journal Lifetime Subscriber Wall (aka the “Amiga OS 3.1” Wall) was introduced… what… a week ago?

I kid you not, the darn thing is already almost full! I was wildly unprepared for how popular this would be!

There’s enough space left for maybe 5 or 6 more names. Tops. Then I’ve gotta declare “Wall 6 (Amiga) is Full” and start Wall Number 7!

Here’s what all of the Lifetime Subscriber Walls look like (each shown at the end of every Lunduke Journal video):

 

If you want to get onto the Lifetime Subscriber Wall (and have any chance of making it onto the Amiga Wall before it’s full) here’s what you need to do (and do it quickly):

  1. Grab a Lifetime Subscription to The Lunduke Journal (if you don’t already have one).

    1. A Lifetime Sub includes all the standard perks (plus a few) and can be picked up via Locals, Substack, or Bitcoin (whichever you prefer).

  2. Email “bryan at lunduke.com” and let me know how you would like your name displayed (“Joe A.”, “Joseph Arnold”, “JoeyPants”, “SirJJMcManly”, etc.)

It’s first come, first served.

If you’ve already emailed me about being added to the wall, your spot is secured.

For the rest of you: Chop chop. At the current rate, I would be very surprised if the “Amiga Wall” wasn’t full by some time this weekend.

“Lifetime Wall 7” will be unveiled after the final name is added to the Amiga Wall. And, yes, it will be a different (awesome) retro computing platform.

As always, a huge thank you to every subscriber to The Lunduke Journal. Absolutely none of this would be possible without your support.

-Lunduke

Read full Article
post photo preview
Amiga Lifetime Wall & March Lunduke Journal Stats!

Hello all of you amazing Lunduke Journal subscribers!

With March now behind us, I wanted to give you crazy kids a quick “behind the scenes” look at the stats for The Lunduke Journal. Because Inside Baseball stuff is fun.

The Amiga Wall!

But before we dive into charts and numbers… behold! The brand new 6th Lifetime Subscriber Wall of Shame Awesomeness! The AmigaOS 3.1 Wall!

 

Every Lifetime Subscriber Wall (which I show at the end of each video) is a real screenshot from a different computing platform. Mostly retro. All awesome.

 

If you’d like to see your name listed on the new AmigaOS 3.1 wall, grab a Lifetime Subscription (if you don’t already have one) and toss me an email. I update the walls about once each week with new names.

The last few Lifetime Walls filled up incredibly quickly. So if the Amiga Wall interests you, I wouldn’t wait too long. Hint, hint.

March 2026 Stats

The big news: Total “views” were way, way up in March.

A fair bit beyond what was anticipated. A hair over 19 million during the month.

 

That’s in total, across all platforms. As usual, the audio podcast and X lead the way in terms of total views/listens for shows (by quite a lot).

Interestingly, we saw significant “views” growth on even the smallest platforms in March (Facebook and TikTok).

Free subscribers also took a major jump in March, with the largest one month gains ever (I’m pretty sure, certainly the largest this year or last). Up 7,623 over the month before.

 

Again, new subscribers grew across the board. The biggest gains were seen on X, but all platforms saw a significant bump.

Hard to complain about that!

The top 3 shows for March were all focused on the Age Verification laws:

While those were the top 3… it’s worth noting that the top 10 (and, really, the top 15 or so) shows for the month were all incredibly close in terms of viewership numbers.

As always, a huge thank you to all of The Lunduke Journal subscribers. You make all of this possible.

-Lunduke

Read full Article
See More
Available on mobile and TV devices
google store google store app store app store
google store google store app tv store app tv store amazon store amazon store roku store roku store
Powered by Locals