Type Programmable Graphing Entry mode V.P.A.M. Display size 160×240 dots | Manufacturer Casio Display type LCD Dot-matrix Processor SuperH 3 | |
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The Casio ClassPad 300, ClassPad 330 and fx-CP400 are stylus based touch-screen graphing calculators. The ClassPad comes with a collection of applications that support self-study, like 3D Graph, Geometry, eActivity, Spreadsheet, etc. A large 160x240 pixel LCD touch screen enables stylus-based operation. The ClassPad resembles Casio's earlier Pocket Viewer line. HP and Texas Instruments attempted to release similar pen based calculators (the HP Xpander and PET Project (see TI PLT SHH1), but both were cancelled before release to the market.
Contents
The ClassPad 300 allows input of expressions, and displays them as they appear in a textbook. Factorization of expressions, calculation of limit values of functions, and other operations can be performed while viewing the results on a large LCD screen. The ClassPad 300 comes with graphing tools for 3D graphing and drawing of geometric figures.
The user interface of the ClassPad 300 uses a pull-down menu format. Solutions, expressions, and other items can be selected with the tap of the stylus. The ClassPad 300 also supports drag and drop, copy and paste, and other pen-based operations. An eActivity application allows the creation of eActivities that can include figures, expressions, and explanations.
In the United States the ClassPad series is banned from standardized tests including the SAT, the ACT, and the AP Calculus test.
History
During 1996, CASIO worked on the CAS (Computer Algebra System) and studying Geometry. The CAS was first used in the Casio CFX-9970G then the Casio Algebra FX 2.0, and later formed the core math system for the ClassPad.
In 1999, with the help of many teachers and friends, the idea of the eActivity emerged. It would allow all applications to interact from within one application, and display information in a textbook style.
In 2000 CASIO opened a new office, the CASIO Education Technology M.R.D. Center in Portland, Oregon, USA. They hired engineers familiar with programming PCs and specialists from the education field. Ideas from around the world were now being implemented into the ClassPad by Tokyo R&D and Portland MRD Team.
In 2002 CASIO completed a prototype for the ClassPad. Before the prototype was complete, an emulator was used for testing. The emulator was so good that CASIO decided to include the emulator in the software that was being developed for data transfer. The data transfer and emulator software merged into one product called the ClassPad Manager.
In 2003 CASIO released their first product: the ClassPad 300, with 4.5 MB of flash memory.
In 2005 CASIO released the ClassPad 300 Plus featuring 5.4 MB of flash memory, a higher-contrast display and standardized Mini-USB port.
ClassPad OS 3.0
In 2006 CASIO released OS 3.0 for the ClassPad. OS 3.0 featured Laplace and Fourier transform, differential equation graphs, financial functions, AP statistics and parameterized 3D graphs. Subsequent releases were only available for users with OS 3.0 or later.
Later in 2006 & 2007 CASIO released OS 3.01 and 3.02, concentrating solely on bug fixing. The 2007 ClassPad was called the 330 series, but was distinguished from the 300 plus only by its having OS 3.02 pre-installed.
In 2008 CASIO released OS 3.03 for the ClassPad. OS 3.03 featured new probability distribution functions, an extended numeric solver and several user interface improvements. The corresponding hardware with this OS installed was the 330-A series
In 2009 CASIO released OS 3.04 for the ClassPad. OS 3.04 featured an updated spreadsheet application, stat function enhancements and several user interface improvements. Also, there were two hotfix releases for OS 3.04.3000 - namely: OS 3.04.4000 and OS 3.04.5000
In 2010 CASIO released OS 3.05 for the ClassPad. OS 3.05 featured new financial functions and an 'on data' option for quartile calculation.
In 2011 CASIO released OS 3.06 for the ClassPad. OS 3.06 featured new imaginary calculation functions and an improved numeric solver. So far, one hotfix release followed: OS 3.06.1000
In 2012 CASIO released the ClassPad 330 Plus featuring a faster CPU and the calculator is now treated as a regular USB mass storage device.
fx-CP400
The fx-CP400, released in 2013, is a color version, which can switch the screen between portrait and landscape views.
Programming
The calculators can be programmed in two ways. The Classpad comes with Casio BASIC, a built-in BASIC-like interpreted language, allowing the user to create programs using built-in functionality.
The other method is to create an add-in. Add-ins are binary programs, executing directly on the calculator's CPU. Casio/Saltire has released an SDK, allowing users to create their own add-ins, though no support is provided for this by Casio. The SDK is available for registered users at Casio's website. Currently there is no SDK version compatible with the new Classpad 330 Plus.
After the release of the SDK, a Lua interpreter plugin (CPlua) was created. This add-in allows users to develop programs and games in Lua.