CalculatorAn electronic calculator is typically a portable electronic device used to perform calculations, ranging from basic arithmetic to complex mathematics. The first solid-state electronic calculator was created in the early 1960s. Pocket-sized devices became available in the 1970s, especially after the Intel 4004, the first microprocessor, was developed by Intel for the Japanese calculator company Busicom. Modern electronic calculators vary from cheap, give-away, credit-card-sized models to sturdy desktop models with built-in printers.
Graphing calculatorA graphing calculator (also graphics calculator or graphic display calculator) is a handheld computer that is capable of plotting graphs, solving simultaneous equations, and performing other tasks with variables. Most popular graphing calculators are programmable calculators, allowing the user to create customized programs, typically for scientific, engineering or education applications. They have large screens that display several lines of text and calculations. An early graphing calculator was designed in 1921 by electrical engineer Edith Clarke.
Programmable calculatorProgrammable calculators are calculators that can automatically carry out a sequence of operations under control of a stored program. Most are Turing complete, and, as such, are theoretically general-purpose computers. However, their user interfaces and programming environments are specifically tailored to make performing small-scale numerical computations convenient, rather than general-purpose use. The first programmable calculators such as the IBM CPC used punched cards or other media for program storage.
Instruction set architectureIn computer science, an instruction set architecture (ISA), also called computer architecture, is an abstract model of a computer. A device that executes instructions described by that ISA, such as a central processing unit (CPU), is called an implementation. In general, an ISA defines the supported instructions, data types, registers, the hardware support for managing main memory, fundamental features (such as the memory consistency, addressing modes, virtual memory), and the input/output model of a family of implementations of the ISA.
Scientific calculatorA scientific calculator is an electronic calculator, either desktop or handheld, designed to perform calculations using basic (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division) and complex (trigonometric, hyperbolic, etc.) mathematical operations and functions. They have completely replaced slide rules and are used in both educational and professional settings. In some areas of study scientific calculators have been replaced by graphing calculators and financial calculators which have the capabilities of a scientific calculator along with the capability to graph input data and functions.
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