Turning your pocket calculator into a desk printing calculating machine was a big deal back in the late ’70s, early ’80s. Texas Instruments made it possible with its PC100 – and later 200 – series desktop printers. I dug up my TI-59 and it’s PC100C. After a quick run to the OfficeMax to grab few rolls of thermal paper – the original turned brown over the years so I needed something fresh.
Both devices turned up no problem what so ever. It is true that I removed all the batteries years ago, so no leaks or other bad surprises. The printer works like a charm! In addition to docking the calculator to the printer – and lock it in place (yeah, the key is not for ignition ;-)) – it is possible to charge/store the calculator’s battery pack in a compartment designed for this purpose.
Now, just to get a feel for the progress made in just three decades, I could not resist the temptation to show also the HP Prime – the latest Hewlett-Packard – CAS calculator with its color and touch display. By the way, if you plan to flash a Prime to the latest firmware, do it from a 32-bit Windows. Failing to do so, and using a 64-bit version will turn it into… well, a brick (but still recoverable with only a few hours of extra fun).