I've probably seen all movies about time travel.

Good to meet you all!

As for current projects, I'm using my TI-83 in conjunction with an Arduino to essentially put Discord on it, and if the Arduino can't store enough, I do have an extra Raspberry Pi I can use instead.

I'm glad to be here, and wish me luck!

Thanks,

CalcNerd

My first experience with programmable calculators was with a TI-58C and TI-59 back in 1980. My first experience with programming a computer goes back before that when my High School offered a course in programming FORTRAN. I wrote these programs using punch cards (anyone know what those are?) and they ran on a main frame. My next experience with programming came when I got to write programs for an Apple ][+ and Apple //e. I originally started programming in BASIC but then learned to program the Apple in assembly (6502 and 65C02). Around 1988 my laboratory bought an Apple ][GS so I used what I learned programming the Apple //e to integrate the Apple ][GS with the laboratory balances by writing a program in assembly. This was the beginning of computers being integrated in a chemistry laboratory. So when I began my career every analysis was done by hand and there were no computers and when I retired almost everything is done using a computer. There are very few instruments that are not hooked up to a computer now.

I liked the Apple ][GS enough that I bought one in 1988. Right at this time the company whose assembler I was using offered a C compiler. So I started my journey learning to program in C. Over the following decades I have written programs in C for Macs, PCs and even a little bit for Linux. Sometime in early 2000, again for work I started using a TI-83+ and learned to write utility programs in TI-Basic. Sometimes it was just a lot easier and faster to do that then write a program on the computer.

Computers have gotten so complex now that I don't particularly enjoy writing programs for them. Looking for simpler times in my retirement I decided that I would return to my roots so I bought a TI-84+CE and am attempting to learn the ins and outs of programming it in C and in ez80 assembly. And that, folks, is why I am here! I am hopeful that I can use this sites resources to learn this stuff.
The Saint

What do you do? Any hobbies?
Just learning things and working for eventual certification in Business IT. My main hobbies at the moment are developing programs, collecting calculators, reading/writing, and creating a personal brand online (which I started about a month ago).

How long have you been programming? What languages?
I have been programming as a hobby on and off for about six years as a hobby. "AppleScript", Axe, "Batch", C, JavaScript, Java, Python, QBasic, "Scratch/Snap", TI-Basic, Visual Basic Script, and Z80 Assembly (note all the quotes) are ones I have picked up at one point or another. Some I know more than others. I like esoteric languages, too!

What projects are you working on?
For my calculators, I am making joke applications. That's as far as I am going to say in this post. Besides that, I want to develop a website and post all my programs and ideas on it, plus publish an e-book or two in the coming years.

First of all, I am a 14 year old boy. From the moment I got my first calculator two years ago (a beautiful Ti-83 Plus), I knew I wanted to use it for more than just math. I was only in 7th grade at the time, but I already knew - and still know - a fair amount of HTML and CSS. I longed to learn JavaScript after seeing it's potential for making games and interactive programs. Sadly, when I realized that everyone wants you to pay exorbitant amounts to learn the basics, I gave up. I was kind of heart-broken. I knew I wanted to develop and create my own games and practical, helpful apps, but that seemed little more than wishful thinking at the time. I tried seeing if I was able to make a game on my calculator, but I thought graphing was the only thing that might work. The y1 through y10 functions left me feeling even more depressed than anything else.

About a fourth of the way into the school year, one of my best friends, (and fellow nerd) showed me a simple guessing game she had found online for her Ti calculator. She showed me how it worked through a program, and how to play it, and even though I had no idea what I was looking at, I copied the code into my own Ti-83. I played it over and over and over again, fascinated with it and mystified by the "puzzling" coding language behind it. A few days later, that same friend found the code online for a basic snake game and I copied it too. I still remember that day clearly. She had to show me where the store function was and tell me what it did. Copying code from the internet was the extent of my friend's learning.

But I was even more fascinated by the new program. I started to dissect the code bit by bit to figure it out. I was very ambitious about it, especially after having my pc coding dreams crushed. I learned more and more, creating my own mini-programs that did simple things like storing numbers and displaying text. I knew they weren't practical, and nothing could really come from them, but the more of those programs I made, the more I learned, and the more I loved my Ti-83.

At the end of my 7th grade year, I made my very first "program app". It was nothing fancy, just a Pythagorean Theorem calculator that could find a, b, or c by using the other two variables. It used the graph to display a triangle, label the sides, show the values of a, b, and c, and show how the Theorem worked. It worked every time without fail. It wasn't something worthy of an award or anything, but it was a grand achievement for me. It was something practical that people could use, it was something I came up with by myself, and it was something I could put my name on and be proud of. That one "app" changed everything for me and led me to create several other much better and much more amazing apps and games.

Now, it's been two years - almost to the day - and I have a Ti-83 Plus, a Ti-84 Plus, and a Ti-84 Plus Silver Edition, which I program on almost every single day. Recently, I realized I would need a name if I were to be making things for others. There's nothing wrong with my real name, but I don't want everyone to know me, and what if a stranger wants to buy a game from me? That's when I came up with the name Pixel Physics. On my games it's Pixel Physics Games and on my apps it is Pixel Physics Apps. I made the first version of my logo that is now my avatar on this site. :)

I have seen this site before, and even used it once when I was making a hangman game. I never decided to become a member until now, and I'm not sure why that is. I just want to say that this is an amazing site and it is well laid-out. I also wanted to thank everyone here for their contribution to this site through their ideas and questions.

Please remember that although I consider myself extremely good at programming on a calculator, I'm self-taught. Meaning I don't know everything and I probably have a long ways to go before I know "enough". That doesn't mean I am not ambitious about learning more and working hard to achieve my goals. Coding is something I have a deep passion for and am considering a career in. ,, No, I don't mean I am going to make a living programming calculators, but it's a start… ,,

In short, I'm human. I like to get down-to-earth and be friends with anyone I meet. I love sharing ideas and being taught by people instead of boring online courses and instruction videos. I ask questions. I strive to find answers and ways to make my wildest ideas come true. I don't want to be a know-it-all, but instead want to help other people respectfully and listen respectfully to those who are more skilled and experienced than I am. I'm not afraid of failure. I laugh at my mistakes and work hard to fix them. I give up occasionally when I can't figure something out, but I always come back to it. I make apps and games to help others and bring a smile to their face, not to be "famous" and get rich. I give the credit to God because He created me and gave me the talents that I have. Some say I have a wild imagination, but that's what gives me my best ideas.
I'm a young, ambitious, naive Christian coder, and if you don't like me after reading this, that's okay.

But give me a chance. Who knows? We might be able to help each other and/or become friends.

Until we meet,

Pixel Physics

I've messed around with Ti-basic a little bit, but I know nothing about optimization and other basic things. I however am NOT new to assembly programming. I learned the fundamentals of z80 assembly through learning how to write assembly for the gameboy, which uses a ‎Sharp LR35902 core @ 4.19 MHz. This is a stripped down z80 (no IX or IY registers, or LDIR for that matter) with some extra instructions (such as the SWAP instruction which swaps the high and low nybble of the accumulator).

It seems nice here, and I hope to be a semi-active member of this community. In addition to that, I'm new to how forums work, so please don't blast me for dumb n00b level mistakes. Other than that, I'm excited to be part of the community and look forward to chatting with all of you!