Ahhh! Test Guard works for the Ti-89, OS 2.0 and up!!! Does anyone know if this includes the Titanium!?!

What is "Test Guard"?

Test guard is a foe that would be bad if you teacher has an 89. Basically, it erases...everything. Now, this is not a problem because your teacher most likely does not have an 89. And if she tells you to clear your memory, you tell her that you don't know how to put things on it. If that fails tell her that you did. If she asks, you have a little program that you made that looks like it is displaying an empty var-link menu. She will not know she is being fooled.

-W-

Oh, that sounds like a very EVIL program. Now whoever can write a program that can trick Test Guard will be my hero. :-D

Maybe a TSR that checks for that specific string and runs a program with the same display, but only mock-deleting the stuff. Or maybe just a TSR that contains everything :). I think TSR'ing would be possible because of what superstart does, but I'm not sure.

Revenge of the "student programmers!"

WHERE DO YOU GET IT??????????????????????????????

You have to be a teacher. See ti's site.

SO HOW THE HECK DID YOU GET IT???

I don't remember.

My teacher has an 83+SE, an 89, and a 92. I gave her Test Guard for 83+ and she forgot about it and accidentally deleted it. I'm not going to bother again.

YOU GAVE IT TO A TEACHER?!

You traitor!!! :-)

I'm a traitor?

No, the one who gave Test Guard to a teacher. :-D

See link.

Now, where do you get a disassembler (sarcasm, it's illegal, call off the lawyers)?

See link for documentation.

BTW, I am a strong believer in people being able to control their data, which is why I'm doing this. I am neither a fascist security freak nor a hacker, but I think that this is an issue of personal security of files, not cheating, and that this TI app violates people's right to maintain their data.

As do I. I keep a lot of personal stuff on my calculator. I know, people will say "Why don't you back up your stuff?" But don't you think it's absurd to have to back up your data every day before going to school, as a precaution, so that some anal teacher doesn't delete the programs and files that you may have been working on for months? It's unfair to have a teacher erase the data on your calculator just because they're afraid of you cheating. *mad*

"From certain e-mail posting we now know that a few students have now acquired the app, however we do not believe there is any risk that the student programmers will create a program that defeats the TI TestGuard App's memory clearing function."

LOL! That's just funny... somebody will make a program eventually, and they know it. Who will it be? *dun dun dunnnnnnn*

I'm currently working on a TSR that detects link activity. Does that count?

I heard from another post somewhere on the site that someone made a program that crashes the calculator running Test Guard when it's been ran. <- *knows there's prolly a grammar defect in "it's been ran" but is too lazy to look up how to fix it*

Maybe it won't be a student. Then we would have the program and TI would be right.

You beat minesweeper that fast!?!

Yeah, it's one of the few things I'm good at ;-) Though there are people who have done it in 50 seconds or so. It's crazy. Now if only minesweeper skills could help you stop Test Guard...

Test Guard is evillll!!!!!!!!

They underestimate our programming and hacking capabilities *evil grin*. It wouldn't be hard to write a program that saves the end-of-vat pointer in some safe place, then sets it to the beginning of the VAT. That way, there's nothing to delete-the OS thinks that the VAT, and consequently the memory, is empty!!!. Afterwards, a small assembly program could be typed in and run that would restore the pointer. If I had an 89, I would write one right now!!!!

Anyone who does program for the 89 want to try something like this?

Well, consider this:
(1) if your school or class has an established policy regarding calculator usage and/or the teachers' authority to clear the calc's memory; and
(2) you choose to use your calculator even after being made aware of the policy; and
(3) the time comes for a test, and your teacher comes around to erase your calculator, then:

(a) You knew that a test was coming, and that your calculator would be erased; you sould have been prepared for it, by backing up your personal stuff
(b) A calculator on a test is to be used as an aid, not an answer machine -- anybody who really needs a flipbook full of formulas to get through Algebra or Calculus really hasn't learned the material at all.
(c) It's YOUR frickin' fault if you lose any personal stuff.

Throughout high school, we only ever used TI 83s or 86s to make matrix calculations faster. We were given a class set of scientific calculators to use for tests. No calculators of any kind were allowed in our standardized tests or math competitions, or in 1st year University Calc classes -- and I survivied just fine. Of course, I used my TI 89 for homework and such, but usually only to check numeric answers after I'd done most of the work by hand -- it was really just acting as a high-priced adding machine.

It's still my data and I have a right to keep it. If a teacher deletes it, I consider that vandalism. If they want to put a program on there for the test only that would allow me only to use things that they deem acceptable for the test, I would accept that. What I consider unacceptable is the deletion, and only the deletion. It shows disrestect for personal property rights, which I consider wrong. I am not a proponent of cheating-I just want people to be able to put whatever information or programs they want on their calculator and keep it there until it begins to infringe others' rights (cheating). If it's hidden on their calculator but still there, that would be PERFECTLY ACCEPTABLE to prevent cheating but deleting that data is UNACCEPTABLE because it prevents use of that data in the future when the data is no longer an issue.

Clear?

I can't get it to send.

To the 83+?

Right-TI Connect won't send it.

The Mac version will.

TI-Connect v1.5 sends it to my 84+SE...

Version 1.5 works fine with my 89ti.

*Sob* No no no, you run it from a 83+ and it can clear a 89's or 92+'s memory. I'm not sure if a different memory map makes a diffrence either!

An incompatible memory map will make a difference, as will a different link protocol. It won't work on TI-84 Plus, TI-84 Plus SE, TI-89 Titanium, or anything with a different OS that doesn't support Apps, uses a different communications protocol, or has a different memory map. Even if it simulates every communications protocol used on every TI calculator up to 83+ and Voyage 200 (which it evidently does), the PedroM lack of support for Apps, memory map and communications protocol would certainly fool it. Programs that would fool it are security TSRs that block the link port when you don't want it used, or, maybe even HW2Patch/HW3Patch and V200ExePatch as they redirect addresses. However, I don't know precisely how it works-maybe it just copies the OS and reflashes it with the same OS or maybe it uses a version of the FLib reset command. If the latter, it should be fairly easy for someone to write a TSR to redirect the reset rom call or block it. If the former, it should be fairly easy for someone to write a TSR to block the link port from unauthorized use (a program that does that will be included in Morvlon 3.00).

Other Ideas:
Put PedroM on your 68K calculator just for the test and strike a deal with your math teacher to allow you to use it. Once you show them the advanced mathematical capabilities of PedroM, they will certainly be won over.
Remember that whatever it calls is at an address. If someone were to hypothetically find and change that address, the calculator couldn't be reset.
TSRs don't work (so far) on the newest calculators, but then again, neither probably does this App you're talking about. TI-Connect doesn't even work properly.

I still don't trust it.

Someone needs to get a hold of it. I could try, but I seriously doubt that I would be sucessful.

-W-

Whoever it was said it was hard to get lied. 'Nough said.

-W-

Some people...

I have it. Want a copy? Link.

Oops. Posted before I pasted the link.

This link is not always guaranteed to be up.

"...the advanced mathematical capabilities of PedroM..."

LOL!

I think the best would be a TSR that scans link port activity, and when it finds a transmission similar to one used by Test Guard, runs a program that looks like what would happen, but doesn't delete your data.

Or maybe just a program that emulates the calculator. Then only the emulated calculator would be reset, not the actual one. Although I have no idea how that would work.

The PedroM line was sarcastic.

I am currently working on a link activity TSR.

I think it would be easier just to run a program that saves the end-of-vat pointer, like I described before, then sets it to the beginning of the VAT so that the memory would appear to be empty (maybe except for the list vars) before the program clears it. Then, when the teacher is satisfied that the memory is clear, it would be easy to type in a simple assembly prog in hex to restore the pointer. Maybe the whole VAT itself could be saved...

I'll try writing a version for the 83+.

I wonder if it would be possible to send the reset command back to calc sending it.. muhahaha.

Man, that would be awesome!!!

I guess you can send keypresses through the linkport...if someone could analyze the link port activity when a calc is being cleared by Test Guard, there could be a link TSR that sends a reset command when it detects one...

I would love to see the teacher's face...show her/him that these "student programmers" are smarter than they think *another evil grin*...

Ohhh...i see....it runs from the teacher's calc and links to the student's calc...

It'll run but it won't delete anything because the memory map is different.

The easiest way is to take out the link port, and put in a different port. Maybe a 3.5mm jack ( of course you would need to make the hole bigger) or something. Then you would be set, and no teacher could fuck it up.

-W-

Tut tut. Such launguage.

Or I could just take the I/O port out completely. I would still have my USB port.

true that. And I swear it was an accident. You all know how I am with proof reading: I don't do it. Sweet Hesus, I hope nothing bad comes from this.

-W-

"Hesus"? Ha ha, that's funny!

-TrumpetMan

If my teachers found out about it and started using it I think I would install a tiny switch (from RadioShack) so you would have to use something special (such as put a home-made clip in the battery compartment) to complete the circuit and make the link work. That way no one but me would be able to make it work and you wouldn't know it was modified.

Obviously if I do this I will post directions somewhere on ticalc.org so everyone can get in on it. All you would need would be:
->1 foot thin wire
->something (like a paperclip) to make a "key" for the switch
->1 small switch
->glue
->wire cutters
->something to solder with

Like a sauddering iron? Because I think that might work, and I might have one of those lying around somewhere.

-W-

Horay! I doesn't work! (I know this from other people who have had it done to them of course.)

I doesn't work, either.