Think you're good at following directions? Give these step-by-step instructions a shot

[geezer77]

I used to collect old mechanical calculators and business machines just for fun. Some time back I came across this old 1930's Monroe business calculator, which believe it or not still worked fine. I no longer have it, but this typed sheet of instructions on how to find the square root of a number was with it. I'm pretty old myself and have seen a lot of hand-typed instruction manuals for old machines, but this one pretty much took the cake for outright jaw-dropping complexity. Of course I couldn't resist trying it. The procedure actually worked, assuming you have massive patience and an hour or so to devote to finding the square root of a number. Really makes me appreciate the early HP and Texas Instruments handheld calculators of the 60's.

 

[XYZ]

I remember having to learn to use a slide rule. Then we were ‘allowed’ to use a TI40. Wow felt like we were the Jetsons.

 

[turkeyrun]

Think about, 1969, Apollo 11, Mission Control, directive has been given to figure out how long the Astronauts have and how to get them home. Everybody in the room grabs their slide rule.

 

[aarondhgraham]

I was in the USAF, Tech School, when calculators first hit,,,
I paid $109.95 for a Texas Instruments SR-7,,,
Slide Rule - 7 function.

Then had to compete for one of the two electric outlets to plug it into.

Just last week I bought a calculator from Wal Mart,,,
It has all of the 7 functions of that TI-SR-7,,,
As well as memory Plus and Minus.

And it's solar powered.

It cost me 99-cents + tax.

Aarond

.

 

[HKP7M13]

I used to collect old mechanical calculators and business machines just for fun. Some time back I came across this old 1930's Monroe business calculator, which believe it or not still worked fine. I no longer have it, but this typed sheet of instructions on how to find the square root of a number was with it. I'm pretty old myself and have seen a lot of hand-typed instruction manuals for old machines, but this one pretty much took the cake for outright jaw-dropping complexity. Of course I couldn't resist trying it. The procedure actually worked, assuming you have massive patience and an hour or so to devote to finding the square root of a number. Really makes me appreciate the early HP and Texas Instruments handheld calculators of the 60's.

My high school business math teacher used one of those in class. It was interesting to watch him enter numbers, turn the crank, flip the top platen to change columns, then crank it some more to obtain the answer.

 

[turkeyrun]

I was in the USAF, Tech School, when calculators first hit,,,
I paid $109.95 for a Texas Instruments SR-7,,,
Slide Rule - 7 function.

Then had to compete for one of the two electric outlets to plug it into.

Just last week I bought a calculator from Wal Mart,,,
It has all of the 7 functions of that TI-SR-7,,,
As well as memory Plus and Minus.

And it's solar powered.

It cost me 99-cents + tax.

Aarond

.

So, basically same price?

My first TI was $125. Mom griped and griped, that I needed to learn how to work the problem , not just put it in calculator. Kept telling her, I know how, that looking up tangent, sine and cosine tables took to long and I couldn't get finished in time. Dad understood and bought it. I surpassed Mom in math in 3rd grade.