my calc crashed the first time i did the f5 dimond clear deal.....and then crashed on several of the tests the first time.....does that mean i have faulty hardware? it hasnt done it again....only the first time.....

Don't worry about it. The tests were never really meant to be accessed by users, and weren't tested by TI as much as the rest of the AMS. Anyway, if your calculator still works, there can't be anything wrong with it, right? :-)

Many of the test are meant to "crash" your calc - in reality, they clear your RAM when completed.

Mmmm, this Eegg is not like those in HP calcs, there you'll find many grayscale photographs of the HP team, etc

At least we don't have grayscale pics of people we don't know taking up space in our Flash ROM! :-)

how can you be so sure?

anyone else notice that if you have a long piece (you know, the straight piece) it goes through the bottom of the screen if there isn't a piece there? It was fine a couple times, then my calc crashed. But I'm still thrilled to have tetris for my calc now, been waiting so long

never mind that, it must have been random, cause it hasn't happened since then. It was weird though

I would like to have modem for TI89 and other calcs.
Although, currently is possible to connect TI+graphlink+Null modem+Gender changer+modem+telephone line, this is quite clumsy and not suitable for portable machine.

Ideal combination would be
TI+special modem+telephone line.

I have opinion that it is possible to build it using
chip ST75C540 from ST electronics (www.st.com).

This chip contains DSP processor, analog frontend and memory, required for V.32Bis (14400 bps).

On telephone side it is necessary to add some operational amplifiers and transformer, while on TI side some circuit with shift registers to collect bits.

I confess, I am bad in electronics, so maybe I was wrong in this assumption.

This chip seems to be hard to find in electronics shops, but price for quantities above 25 is $22 at www.marshall.com (unfortunantelly, this is minimal purchasable quantity). So, total modem price will be about $50.

Is my idea correct? If yes, how to purchase this chip? (I do not live in USA) How exactly TI sends/recieves bit/byte through link cable?

i would recommend modifying your existing modem by connecting the link port directly (or probly thru a level adapter chip, std cmos, i forget the number), then program the calc to use the modem's protocol.

I might just be "trapped inside the box", but what would be the use of a modem connected to my calc? I mean, It's not like I could kick it on the net or anything. I guess there might be something Unix related, but what are you thinking?

Well, I ve ported TCP/IP protocol to TI89.
I will soon release it as open source.
It is 8K long (so AMS 2.03 compatible) and contains SLIP, IP, TCP, FTP, SMTP, POP3, Telnet and HTTP, although quite rudimentar.

Of course, do not expect fancy user interface of
such small program. But, in 24 K (new limit) we can add DNS, UDP, ICMP, better user interface and improve current protocoles.

With one pocket, probabbly battery powered, modem TI89 can be as useful machine as Palmpilot, Psion series 3 etc.

The only really useful Palm Pilot is the Palm VII, that has a built in wireless modem. If you have to be somewhere where you have phone line, ISP, etc., then you might as well just use a laptop. The usefulness of something like a calculator or Palm Pilot (I'm not going to tell which of mine I like better :) is that it is small enough to fit in your hand/pocket and is not tied down (as with needed a phone line).

time for a nice flame.

"The only really useful Palm Pilot is the Palm VII, that has a built in wireless modem."

OK, sure, if you're willing to pay $45 per month to get unlimited access on a GREYSCALE, LIMITED-HTML-COMPATIBLE PALM PILOT, be my guest. Plus, pay for internet service on your computer. Sounds like a good idea. Fool.

"If you have to be somewhere where you have phone line, ISP, etc., then you might as well just use a laptop."

Yes, let's pay $1,800+ for a laptop when we can pay $100 for two RadioLincs... and do a $10 wiring job on your computer modem to hook it up to a Linc... and get on the internet, using an existing payment plan.

"The usefulness of something like a calculator or Palm Pilot (I'm not going to tell which of mine I like better :) is that it is small enough to fit in your hand/pocket and is not tied down (as with needed a phone line)."

I like my Palm Pilot better. It has a much larger memory supply, can be expanded into an MP3 player, game system, GPS console, cellular phone, digital camera, etc. etc. There's no comparison. Don't use something simply because it's portable. Use it for a good purpose.

Personally, I think that the radio links are pretty cool, but they seem pretty expensive unless they work really good, and and get very good range.

They work great, and the range is approx. 600' in an average structure.

I read your web page and it says that if you install it internaley you connect 3 wires to your link port on your calc. If i install a radio link will I still be able to use the link port?

Wow!!! If the range really is that good, this would be the perfect radio system for any electronics project I build! For example, I could attach a transmitter to my PC, having it automatically downloading news off of the internet or something and sending it to my calc (avoid boredom in class!). It sounds like the perfect remote control system too. My question is, what other devices use this freq. and what would the FCC think about it?

Hello,

Yes, you can still use your link port...if you would put a switch inline, it would disable the radio transmission and therefore save battery power while using your link cable. Other than that it works just fine.

These are FCC approved, and on the science band of 433mhz at a fixed frequency. 433 Mhz license-free band.

Do these come with software? If i baught one, would the instructions be thorough enouph for someone with no experience to soder in and install everything?

We include step-by-step illustrated instructions, you don't need to be a solder-wiz to connect these, they are simple. They do not come with software, as no special software is needed.

So does this mean that you just plug it into your calculator and start it without fooling around with a program? Or would someone have to make a program for this to run? If the former is true, then this radio thing is wonderful.

from what i gather, it functions the same way a link cable would. But what i don't understand is how the calc knows where to send the program, i.e. if 2 calcs are sending programs to 2 other calcs in the same room. I'm sure fission labs has figured it out though.

I just can't wait till my set of radiolincs come in the mail; it'll be so cool!!

Now I hate to be a scheptic and all, but what other proof do you have other then this written text. Me and a Group of about 5 other people are planning on each getting one of these set, and that is a lot of money which comes from us very painfully. I live in PA within Driving Distance of East Petersburg. Would I be able to personally come out and get a live demonstration of this device in work?

Does it have a voice quality comparable to a portable phone?

i have yet another question for you fission, is there a chat program so whole sentences can be sent and received? Also, how fast would it be compared to a regular wire link to send programs and stuff? And finally, you said that the device is the size of a quarter, is that the Tx and Rx in a combo pack or each are the size of a quarter? I am definitely getting a set regardless, but i wanted to ask anyway. thanks in advance

I'm not a programming guru myself, so I'm not aware if there is, but I'm sure if there isn't a program like that, it wouldn't be hard to make. If I can remember well enough, I think there are some chat programs out there.

Each , the transmitter and receiver are both about the size of a quarter. The version II's are slightly bigger, because they contain the encoder/decoder IC's on them.

There are zillions of chat programs for wire links, which would also work with a radio link. Many of them are called "AOL Instant Messager" or some other stupid name, so look around :)

But if you have a Palm Pilot, then there really is AOL Instant Messenger available :)

If someone were to build a wireless modem for a calc, or an easy way to connect a cell phone (i.e. one device), that would be a neat project.

I'm pretty sure it would be easy to hook up one of the wireless transmitters to a modem and the other to your calculator if you have the grey graph link and a null modem cable. Now we can have wireless telnet on our calcs!