LibreOffice is listed as an educational software for math

users
#21

Of course. My favourite paper tape story. At AEE, Winfrith, we did
serious computing on the IBM704 at Risley in Lancashire. We would type
the program onto paper tape and run it though a teletype to send it by
phone to Risley. At their end they would punch it out and to check that
it was ok they would send it back. At the Winfrith end we then had the
original tape and a copy and we would hold these up to the light to
check for errors. If there were none we'd phone Risley and say yes ok
go ahead. This was a communication protocol, yes? Later we installed a
punched card system so we could put the program on cards and fly them
to Risley by plane.

Tony

#22

I had an IMSAI, too. Do you remember 4K RAM boards? Those weren't the smallest either. It was my introduction to Assembler.

Paul

#23

Paul Schwartz wrote:

I had an IMSAI, too. Do you remember 4K RAM boards? Those weren't the smallest either. It was my introduction to Assembler.

Yes, I remember those, but I started with a 16K board initially loaded with 4K. It was also my introduction to assembler. I used the assembler, editor and monitor from Scelbi. Of course, I had to write my own I/O routines and toggle the software into memory before saving to cassette.

#24

Try writing a complete general ledger accounting system - in COBOL - for a college. Now that was a project for me to do back in the mid '80s. I had to do it solo and it took about 2 months of typing and debugging 2 or 3 days a week for 1-3 hours a day. The rest of the time I was doing my regular work and handwriting the code on the "special" coding forms they required before I typed the code into the terminal/mainframe.

#25

webmaster-Kracked_P_P wrote:

and handwriting the code on the "special" coding forms they required before I typed the code into the terminal/mainframe.

Years ago, you could by BASIC coding forms at places like Radio Shack. Coding forms used to be quite common in the days before interactive terminals, especially with Fortran and it's column sensitive formats. I'd often use square ruled paper to keep the columns neat.

#26

I assume you never worked with the folded papertape used with the DEC PDP-8! coded in ASCII. Years before we used an Electrologica X-1 with papertape coded in EBSDIC!You could edit the tapes with a manual punch and nontransparent sellotape. We thought punched cards were old-fashioned!.
Joep

#27

I have on the Ubuntu 10.04LTS system, I will loan out to a Church's day care center, everything that is on the application list for Edubuntu, plus more. But all their other machines are Windows.

I was looking at what software I have on the Ubuntu/Edubuntu system that has Windows version out there for free. That is where I say LibreOffice.org listed in the Math software list. When I saw LibreOffice.org listed in the math package list, I was thinking about the Math module.

Marc listed GCompris is free on Linux, which is part of the Edubuntu education application list, but why would they require a fee for Windows. There is a software called Childsplay that is something like GCompris, since I looked at both on the Ubuntu system. Then there is Tuxmath, which is a bunch of math related games. Most of the Edubuntu applications are listed as KDE4 packages, according to the wiki page for Edubuntu. Kturtle is the Logo programming package.

What the day care center needs is a lot of good packages that help with math and reading scores, the way the director was talking. So I was looking at finding as many free math packages to include in a CD set for her to add to their Windows computers she already has. I was going to have LO 3.4.6 with all the extensions I use so she can install it on those computers.

I decided to loan out my IBM server from 2002 with a 17" CRT monitor [2nd space system that is taking up needed space] to that day care center for a year or so, till they can afford to get a Windows replacement, or I find a good Windows machine to replace it. The good part of Ubuntu is any major modifications/installs/etc. requires a SUDO password and the kids will not have that. Windows do not offer that "security" feature.

I really think getting LibreOffice.org into computer centers, whether it is in a day care center or some other community computer center, is something that can have a positive effect for LO. If the kids, in this care 13 years and under for the summer, get use to using LO on the systems they have access to during the summer, they might want to get their parents to install it on their home computer/laptop.

As for helping out a day care center with a long term loan of a computer filled with educational software, if I have a spare computer to loan, I would do so. If I get a better one donated to me by locals, well my policy is "if I get it free, I give it out to others for free". I am always looking out for free systems that can be fixed up and loaded, or given, to people who need them.

As for the IBM server having Ubuntu/Edubuntu on it instead of XP, well for some reason that server with XP installed wants me to install external drivers for it to use thumbdrives, external hard drives, or external optical drives, when my XP laptop installs the drivers from internal sources. Why, that system cannot find internal drivers for these USB devices when my XP laptop does, I have no idea. So it got Ubuntu/Edubuntu installed on it. It has everything they need, except for some reason when installing all the educational packages it caused problems for it to play video files with any video player I had installed. Well, they will not be playing DVDs on it since it has a SCSI connection CD reader. There is no PATA/IDE ports for a DVD drive or hard drive.

Well, keep on giving me any info you have for free educational packages that have free Windows versions. They could sure use as much free software as can be found.

I just liked that they had LibreOffice.org listed as a good educational package for math.

#28

Joep L. Blom wrote:

I assume you never worked with the folded papertape used with the DEC PDP-8!

Other than the folds, there was no difference between folded tape and the usual rolled stuff. Some punches and readers were designed to hold fan fold tape, but could work with the other just as well. Folded tape's main benefit was it was easier to keep in a neat pile. You could also get trays that could be used to store several fan fold tapes. One thing that punch tape, folded or not, was useful for was making Möbius strips. :wink:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Möbius_strip

#29

Hi :slight_smile:
I think free on Gnu&Linux and a suitable fee for Windows is a good way around.  They can easily have Ubuntu for free either as a dual-boot or inside Windows as a Wubi (although i prefer avoiding the Wubi but it's good to have the option and almost always works really well :)  ). 
Regards from
Tom :slight_smile:

#30

DEC PDP 11 and similar was most of my main-frame and mini-main-frame work back in the 80's and early 90's. I used IBM main-frames in the late 70's bunch cards and dumb terminals in then in late 90's with terminals dumb and smart. In the mid 70's I used a teletype style printer/terminal connected via phone to a computer 50+ miles way, for my first coding experience, then went to punch cards before I ever got to use a dumb terminal CRT display and text editor to type in and edit program code for COBOL, FORTRAN, BASIC, RPG-II/III, Assembly, and a few other languages. Now people use PCs with "smart" color coded editors to help them code, edit, and debug their programs.

I wrote an RPG-III coding editor so it would be easier to line up the cryptic codes in their proper columns. It was well received at that place that used RPG-II/III. It took half the time to type in the programs in the dumb terminals.

I started my computer work experience when most computers I had "terminal" access to, or had to load tapes for, were bigger than all my apartment rooms combined, and then some. I worked a terminal with one that used more floor space than a basketball court. I remember when a college put up a Bulletin Board System [via phone modems] that had a brand new 10 MEG of drive space and the people could not think of why it needed so much space to store files. 10 MEG was too large to imagine using. Those were the days when floppies were floppy.

#31

Hi Webmaster,

You are most generous!!!!! I gave the our church about a 4 year old computer with just Ubuntu on. It will do everything they need with just the software that is available for Ubuntu (Linux), plus running Quicken in wine. I always keep it updated to the latest Ubuntu version. Non-Linux folks seem to learn the Unity interface very easily. It is also attractive, which hopefully will get people to realize there are many doors which can be opened with respect to computing, and not just Windows.

Don

#32

I do long-term loaning of computers, so they will know that I would be the one who will pay for any needed repairs and such, instead of them having to do so out of their limited budgets. Also, I leave myself a windows to "upgrade" the loaned computer, when one comes available. I sometimes get computers donated to me for this loan/handout "cause".

The "problem" with this day care is that they seems to have bought some math helping software for their kids to use to help with increasing their skills. We have a lot of problems with the local schools and the issue of low math and reading scores on the State tests. So this day care center [and after school program] wants to have the computers be there to help the kids improve their skills. This summer, it will have kids 13 years old and younger there all day. Right now they have kids too young for schools during the day and school age kids come there after school is let out so they have a safe place till their parent[s] get off work. It seems that this area of the State will not allow kids 13 years or under go home after school if a parent or some adult is not there to be with them. So the after school programs are needed. Of course, the State has just cut funding to pay for sitters and after school programs for those low income people who cannot afford food and day care for their young children at the same time. So they now will have to quit work since they cannot afford to have someone watch their 4 year old kids while they are working or their older kids when school is not open during the days they have to work.

Well, I found out about this day care center run by a Church, from my aide who deal with the things I physically can no longer do after my debilitating injuries and strokes. She works there when she has an opening in she schedule as an home health care aide worker. SO, now I have donated some art supplies, and a computer. I have offered my support with their computer repair issues, etc., as well.

I want to help them with finding as many FREE educational packages that work on their Windows computers. Having games that also teach math, reading, and other language skills, tends to work for the young kids. SO I am hoping to find some good ones. There is one game that teaches little ones how to use the mouse in a game of "click on the moving fish".

.

#33

Hi :slight_smile:
First time i went up to Manchester the university had just completed building a huge building that had been designed to fit the latest best machine of the day.

Unfortunately by the time the building work was done a better machine was small enough to fit on one of the desks in one of the rooms.  I'm not quite sure if that says more about the speed of computer development or the slowness of English builders! 
Regards from
Tom :slight_smile:

#34

Hi :slight_smile:
First time i went up to Manchester the university had just completed building a huge building that had been designed to fit the latest best machine of the day.

Unfortunately by the time the building work was done a better machine was small enough to fit on one of the desks in one of the rooms. I'm not quite sure if that says more about the speed of computer development or the slowness of English builders!
Regards from
Tom :slight_smile:

Slowness of any government contractor, it is just as bad in the US