Survey posted 2000-12-11 02:03 by Andy Selle.

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Absolutely-- I used my TI-89 to introduce all kinds of 82, 83, 83+, 85, 86, and other 89 games to school! I even made a few bucks... =)

I bring all of the games into my school. Any new game usally comes in through me and goes around my school in about a week. The teachers don't care though, some people even play them during class.

I haven't participated in a poll at ticalc.org (besides simply voting) in months. I've gotten out of the calculator gaming stage of my life. However, I still visit the site regularly for two reasons. (1) I know so many people involved in the TI community. (2) I like to keep up-to-date on the spiffy math programs, and other big news from TI (and occasionally a good game or two, just for grins).

But anyway, I haven't played a calculator game in over a year. My sophomore year in high school, when I got my first graph-link cable, there were already a few TI games floating around my school - Black Jack, Poker, Tetris... the basics. Well, knowing ticalc.org fairly well, I got on here and downloaded ZTetris, Orzunoid, Frogguts, Penguins, and some other spiffy games (I had two TI-83s and two TI-82s at the time, so lots of space to carry them with) and started giving them to everyone with a calculator at school. I was immediately labeled a geek, but I was cool because I "had the stuff." Some teachers caught wind of it and began to hate me. My math teachers loved me because I knew all kinds of crazy stuff about their calculators. Either way, it all worked out, I programmed for a little while, and I got out. I'm currently an Information Technology major at Macon State College. I still use my TI-89 regularly, my TI-85 still has Usgard and is collecting dust, and my TI-83 and TI-82 are on the same shelf and are also collecting dust.

Any questions? If you're actually going to respond to this pointless post, send me an email to remind me to check it, because otherwise I'll never see your response.

I have introduced a few games to my dear old alma mater(CHS), but I have stopped. I paid good money for a graph link and other people should do the same. I am currently getting rid of all the games at my school by intoducing a couple of evil shell programs into the population of TI83+s. I think if people are not smart enough to program a simple BASIC game then they should not be allowed to play highly advanced ASM games.

Like most others here, i introduced ASM games, but not calc gaming in general. I'm the only one with a graphlink here. For the whole time, i was the calc guy who puts games in calculators. At first it was nice to have the title of "Calc Guy", but in the end, i got tired of doing it and started lending out my graphlink instead of putting the games in myself. By lending out my graphlink, others find out how much trouble it is to put games in calculators and have stopped asking me to do it.

That's a good idea. What I do is: if someone with a TI86 asks me for some games, I'll backup my calc onto his. If he has an 83+, I'll introduce him to someone with plenty of games that are ripe for the duplicating. If he has something else, I simply say that I can not give him any games. It works, and I never have to touch my graph-link! The only time I have to touch my computer is when someone asks for an 83+ port of one of my 86 games (can you say Sqrxz?).

Well, I was the ONLY person in my school that had a graph link. My friend came over, and I showed him my link. He borrowed it for a while (since I only had a 86 at the time and he only had an 83+), and he downloaded a TON of games for his calc. He then gave those games to a few friends, who each gave their games to a few friends, and so on and so on... Now, almost everybody with a TI83+ has Dodge Ball, Avalanche, and a few others. The funny thing is when a kid is playing a game on his 83+, and I look over his shoulder to see what he's playing, he tells me to mind my own business, as if I knew nothing about calc games :).

This is the question that I get asked most often. I'm one of the two people in my school with one. I'm very popular as far as games are concerned. however I can't help all people w/ games because I only have an 89 and 86 to give out games w/ and almost the whole school has 83's and 83+'s. I tell them That they have to trust me w/ their calc's for a night if they want me to get games. However to answer the question I'm the only person supplying the school w/ games since the other kid is to geeky(no offence to anyone) to use his calc for anything but math. Well goodbye for now everyone.
Steve
The Ti/ Band Geek

I like calculator games so much that I bought both a TI-89 and a TI-83 Plus. I take both to school! With my 83 Plus, I pioneered the use of ION and various ION games. I made three "gamepacks" which fit into the archive. Each "gamepack" was small enough that it would fit exactly on the calculator with ION. I distributed Lotus Turbo Challange, JezzBall, Pong, Galaxian, Plain Jump, Mars Patrol, and a lot more!

I had a TI-83 a year before anyone else in my school had a graphing calculator. I used Ion since like v1.2. People saw how good its games were and went out and bought a TI-83 Plus, because that's all they had at the stores and they thought they were the same thing. Then, they got pissed because my "cool" Ion (83 version) games wouldn't work on their TI-83 Pluses. So they were stuck with their own BASIC programs for a few months because I was (and still am) the only person in my school with a TI-Graph Link. Then I eventually bought a TI-83 Plus for the extra memory and FLASH capability. Then MirageOS came out so I stopped using Ion because my calculator kept crashing with both on at the same time. I only give stuff to a few people and keep everything hidden so I can show people my PRGM menu and say, "See! I don't have any games." Of course no one has figured out why I only have 10000 bytes of Archive left if I don't have anything on my calculator. Oh well.

--Darkfire

Completely responsible, I got my Ti-83+ in grade 10 when my older sister got hers and right away I wanted to get games so when I had a chance to get a link for a bit cheaper, I didn't have enough COM ports so I had to turn off my mouse to send stuff, fixed that now. I've seen grade twelve students with my games who I had never seen. They spread like wild fire. I put them on my sister's ti-85 and my cousins ti-86 and I plan to start putting them on people at our school with the ti-83.
I know a couple of people with the link at the school, but they're too stupid to come here to get the games and would probably have a hard time using the cord.
I love this site

Man, before, everybody had so much stupid idiotic games. The best game ever in my school was Space Invaders until I got my graph link and added ASM games onto my calc. All of a sudden then, the whole school now has ASM games.

I introed games at school, but on my friend's calc, he was a little clueless...

I was kinda. They were already there from older siblings, but I made it more poupular. I brought more advanced games. Plus I know more about the calculators than the people at my school. So I'm like the calculator god (Not geek)!

Oh god yes. It's kind of a complicated story but here goes.... During freshamn year, there wer approximatlety 4 people who played there ti-83 plus's. Basically it was I and 3 of my friends. Now here is the complicated part, our school district has 2 highschools because there are so many people, the schools are called "North" and "South ". Freshman year, every freshamn went to north. The next year, the class was split in half and i went to south and all my calc. buddies stayed at north. Well, when i started as a sophomore at the south campus, the upper class man had the calculators, but didn't know how to get the games. They new they existed, they just didnt know how to get them. Well, during the summer btween my freshamn year and sophomore year, Mirage came out for the 83+. I introduced Mirage to the South campus, and myh buddy over at north introduced it to his school. I also introduced many of the new games. I am basically the only person in the school who has the graph link, that may sound pretty pathetic, but its true. So whenever somebody needs a new game, they always come crying to me.

(Please excuse the many spelling errors)

Well, I wasn't responsible for starting calculator gaming at my school, but I was responsible for starting calculator gaming in the Middle School class of 2000. I was the only person who really had and knew how to use that Black Link. So I hand out games to one person, and the next day, I have people going up to me left and right, "Hey, do you have games?", or "How do you get those games on the calculator?". Eventually, people started passing the same games among themselves, and they spread all over the entire school to people that I never even knew...

I can't introduce games. I have a TI-92+.

Yes. when i came to this school in 94. the TI just did not exist (well, here anyhow). When starting my GCSE (important exams for those who are wondering) my maths teacher said TI 80's were for sale. Find the lessons boring I programmed countdown for the calc in lessons. People loved it and all wanted a copy.
in 2000 TI 82's came in. Yet again I introduced asm to school.
It scared and kinda impressed the teachers.

for those who don't know how to turn friends away when they want games, simple:-
-I don't have a cable.
-If self written add passwords and don't tell them, you've done your part of your deal.
-With ash just copy ash over. or better still just copy the games and not ash.
-Accidently lose a calc that u take home for doing ash, 'cos u deny all knowledge of backup between calcs.
-if above makes you feel guilty return the calc after a couple of weeks. People still won't trust u with them.
-Easiest of all just say 'I can't be bothered so make your own', or act mad.

-if these don't work then stop showing everyone your games.

And if this seems long and boring. it's cos it is.

Cool have just found my first post to this site. And guess what I have just uploaded CountDown for the 82.
It's a real shame that no one will ever read this - if you do please just send me an e-mail (check for latest one, who knows what it will be in 2006).