Calculator

A calculator is a device for performing numerical calculations. The type is considered distinct from both a calculating machine and a computer in that the calculator is a special-purpose device that may not qualify as a Turing machine. Although modern calculators often incorporate a general purpose computer, the device as a whole is designed for ease of use to perform specific operations, rather than for flexibility.

Personal computing

Personal computers and personal digital assistants can perform general calculations in a variety of ways:

Related Topics:
Personal computer - Personal digital assistant

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• computers often have a separate calculator program, varying from one that just emulates a simple calculator, such as Microsoft Calculator, to advanced spreadsheet programs such as Excel or OpenOffice.org Calc
• for more advanced calculations one can use a computer algebra program, such as Mathematica, Maple or Matlab.
• browsers can perform calculations using client-side scripting, e.g. using Client-side JavaScript by entering "javascript:alert(12*13)" in the address bar (the answer 156 appears in a separate alert window) or "document.write (12*13)" in a HTML file, preceded with "<script type="text/javascript">" and followed by "</script>".
• an interpreter or compiler for a general programming language can be used
• calculations can also be performed server-side, e.g. with the calculator feature of the Google search engine