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Offline simplethinker

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How you started programming
« on: March 22, 2009, 08:22:38 pm »
How did everyone get started with programming for calculators?

For me, someone who sat near me in my geometry class was working on a tictacto game.  That's when I figured out that they could be programmed.  I proceeded to read the manual, figured out I could improve his game, then went from there.
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Offline {AP}

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #1 on: March 22, 2009, 08:34:14 pm »
Got bored in class.
Fiddled with the calculator and found out that they could be programmed.
Fiddled with the commands until I understood them. (helps that I knew some other languages at the time)
Made a real crappy game or two.
Found out that other people have made games too. (didn't know that there was any other games for the calculator)
Learned more programming skillz from miscellaneous sites.
???
Profit!
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Offline trevmeister66

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #2 on: March 22, 2009, 10:12:55 pm »
I was reading my algebra book in 10th grade and it showed a program you could make to do a certain equation, and thats when i learned you could program your calc. Then I proceeded to program amazing games. lol
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Offline DJ Omnimaga

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #3 on: March 22, 2009, 11:40:06 pm »
In 2000 when I was in grade 3 of hi school, I started hearing about graphing calcs from my bro (who was in grade 4) and he mentionned something about games being playable on them (unfortunately he didn't have a graphing calc, he simply borrowed one of the math teacher ones and couldn't take them out of the classroom), so one day I saw a friend in english class who was in grade 4 (but in 3rd grade english, having failed this class) playing Nibbles (homescreen snake for the TI-82 but played on TI-83+) and another day ZTetris. I asked him if he downloaded these games from gameboy sites or something and he told me somebody programmed them for the calculator. Altough I didn't realised ZTetris was programmed on the computer, I saw the PRGM editor and just the fact we could make games on calculators made me buy one the summer afterward, and this is where I started BASIC programming, learning from the huge 600-800(?) page manual that came with my first TI-83+. After a messing around for a while and getting pissed a few times, I finally discovered about getkey and other possibilities and started making Labyrinth of Illusions in August 2001, which would eventually evolve into the Illusiat game, which I finished on September 22th 2001. Then a few months later I discovered that there was an online TI calculator game community
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allynfolksjr

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #4 on: March 23, 2009, 01:23:27 pm »
I read the manual.
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Offline simplethinker

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #5 on: March 23, 2009, 03:03:59 pm »
Quote from: allynfolksjr on March 23, 2009, 01:23:27 pm
I read the manual.
What the hell kind of person rtfm?
« Last Edit: March 23, 2009, 07:33:01 pm by simplethinker »
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Offline Iambian

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #6 on: March 23, 2009, 03:42:26 pm »
I knew the calculators could be programmed but I didn't exactly know how. The "manual" for the calculator was on a CD and I wasn't really the kind of person that would stare at a computer screen for ages trying to figure out how a calculator worked.

When I got some of the BASIC games from someone in my 9th grade class, I found that I could go ahead and edit them. Poured over the source code and I slowly started figuring out what the thing could do. Not exactly the best way to do it, but after a while (taking about a year), I got halfway decent at the thing. I tried programming a version of Final Fantasy until I realized I needed to do ASM to make it. Got partway before I lost interest.

Half a decade passes and I'm posting right here. The whole story makes people do tl;dr.
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Offline Speler

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #7 on: March 23, 2009, 07:21:07 pm »
I learned from reading an rpg my friend made, then later through experience and reading the contents of UTI.

I read the manual at some point but by them I'd already known most of the contents.
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Offline skuller972

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #8 on: March 23, 2009, 08:00:20 pm »
How i was introduced to the TI-83+
----------------------------------
In 6th grade my older brother was required to get a graphing calculator for algebra I.
I thought it was some freakish overpriced piece of junk.
But i wanted to piss off my brother and always "borrowed" it.
I noticed this strange thing where when you pressed the little buttons at the top, a screen came up with Y and a number beside it.
I was screwing around and put the numbers shown in the calculator besides each Y.
Then, i pressed other buttons till a screen came that drew lines and it had to finish before you could press and other buttons.
Besides enter.
That is how i created the line game.
i stopped it at the axis and found out that xres changed speed, so i wrote some rules and instructions on how to get to the "game"

How i was introduced to PROGRAMMING on the TI-83+
----------------------------------------------------
While using my bro's calculator, i discovered the prgm button, and when i pressed it, a list of weird names came up under EXEC (he had games from a friend on his calc and crnchyOS)
I pressed right to EDIT and like two names came up. (basic games)
Then i pressed right and it said NEW and under it NEW
every time i had pressed enter on EDIT and err:archived came up and it did the same when i pressed it on EXEC then hit enter again.
I had no idea what that meant.
But to my amazement, when i pressed enter on NEW a prompt for a name came up.
I typed in random letters and then pressed enter.
Then a screen said:
PRGM:*random letters*
:
and i could type stuff in but had no idea what to do.

How i was introduced to ACTUAL PROGRAMMING on the TI-83+
------------------------------------------------------------
When i came to eighth grade i was in need of this special calculator.
I had no idea why but appartently it was amazing.
So i read the manual and all of my past confusion and questions about the calculator were answered
The Y= screen was to graph (i never linked the two in pre-algebra)
The PRGM menus were for PROGRAMS!!!!
The edit was for EDITING THEM and the NEW was for NEW ones!!!!!
and the err: came from them being archived in the memory!!!!!
so when the sample program came up, i decided to copy it, but i didnt know where anything was to enter for it, suchas the If Then = and so on were (except the catalog)
so i searched it on google and a yahooanswers came up and i was enlightened on programming.

to be continued....
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allynfolksjr

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #9 on: March 23, 2009, 08:55:02 pm »
Quote from: simplethinker on March 23, 2009, 03:03:59 pm
Quote from: allynfolksjr on March 23, 2009, 01:23:27 pm
I read the manual.
What the hell kind of person rtfm?
Yeah, seriously. He must be a loser.
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Offline bfr

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #10 on: March 24, 2009, 06:12:03 pm »
My friend had a TI-85 and showed me that he could program it (so then I got my first graphing calculator, the TI-86, because I wanted a calculator similar to the TI-85).
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Offline josephmarin

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #11 on: March 25, 2009, 12:32:52 am »
I found a TI-83+ outside school and took it home. While playing with it, I saw PRGM. Upon pressing it, went to NEW and figured it was going to let me make something nifty. typed in a name ("A"), and entered the editor. Clicked PRGM again and discovered commands. Went to Disp and hit enter, then typed in HI after it, exited, found the program to run it, but found it didnt work. So I got online and figured out why, and went from there.
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Offline nitacku

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #12 on: March 25, 2009, 03:07:29 am »
I was in 9th grade when I received a graphing calc. After reading the manual (the regular ti-83) I found the Sierpinski's triangle program and was instantly in awe at the capabilities of the calc. I began creating little programs, mostly from sourcecode I found online. However, it wasn't after a certain incident that I began seriously programming.

One day I was in my seminar when another kid who programmed for the calculator saw me programming. I showed him what I was working on and he told me my program was a piece of shit (which it might have been at the time). I think it was at that moment I decided that I was going to learn to program better than anyone I knew at school. Whether it was through revenge or dedication (I'm not really sure myself), I finally became the "calc guru" at my school. I adopted "disciples" and showed them the way of the calc :P. Although I have never held a grudge against kid who tried to deter me, I still have the mindset to continue growing, always reaching for the next level. It is sort of ironic though, in my last year of highschool near the end of the year, the kid approached me to ask about a problem he was having with a program he was working on. In the end, I guess we reconciled our differences, even if it was subconscious. I have to thank him though. Without his inadvertent inspiration, I would not be where I am today. I would not be able to reach as far without the inspiration to remain courageous and determined, steadfast in my goals.
« Last Edit: March 25, 2009, 03:11:12 am by nitacku »
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Offline Galandros

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #13 on: March 25, 2009, 12:09:02 pm »
Strange enough the calculator was given at my birthday exactly 2 years plus 1 day ago. :P
I looked not too much enthusiastic, found On button then pressed. Calculator On made some operations, a simple graph, stumbled in menus and shuttled off.

Months later...
First year using calculator, I started to search math programs and found ticalc.
While that I started to found all the menus with plot commands and I coded a program (without knowing that was coding) to draw rectangles and such in the screen. Also stored values into variables and made operations with it.

When I arrived at BASIC tutorials I wanted to learn functions to make good math programs. Eventually got interested and made crappy games. Yet I alone discovered the technique of tile mapping with a matrix!

And assembly was to understand how all works and make a BASIC lib like great CelticIII it is. I only knew of xLib and I though could be surpassed ^^

This is the quick story.

lol nitacku. Maybe I react something like that sometimes. But my angry passes quickly... And so 95% of my motivation.
« Last Edit: March 25, 2009, 12:52:34 pm by Galandros »
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Offline lordofthegeeks

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Re: How you started programming
« Reply #14 on: March 26, 2009, 03:12:14 pm »
I was about 12 and had a old laptop my dad gave me. I was always on it and was told by my dad that if I loved it that much I should learn how to program it.

I asked him how to do it and he told me to order some books about basic from the library. I ordered them and then Just before they came in was at my freinds hows and he had a book on html for dummies. He typed out the web page program and couldn't figure it out.  So he inlisted my to help... I got it working for him. (thus the first Time I actually programed.)

I got the books found qbasic on the laptop and played with it for until the books had to be returned. I then tought myself from the help.
I saw my first graphing caculator back in 2006 and well I started programing them once I got mine a few months later.
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Short and sweet. :)
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