TI-Nspire for Dummies

by Steve Oullette, Jeff McCalla, Steve Ouellette

Book Overview

The updated guide to the newest graphing calculator from Texas Instruments The TI-Nspire graphing calculator is popular among high school and college students as a valuable tool for calculus, AP... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1118004663
• ISBN13: 9781118004661
• Release Date: June 2011
• Publisher: For Dummies
• Length: 384 Pages
• Weight: 1.33 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 7.3" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

Down to Earth

This is a great book to get you going with the Ti-Nspire. Instead of pages and pages of examples, it is down to Earth. You get what you need without the hand holding and fluff. I broke out the calculator and figured out what I could. The book filled the rest of my needs perfectly. I jumped around, looking up what I needed when I needed it. The instructions are clear and easy. The sections on graphing are particularly good. Yeah, I could have muddled around with PDF files, but the book is so much faster and more convenient. My one minor complaint is that it doesn't cover the touchpad. Not critical but I did make a fool of myself for a few minutes before my "D'oh" moment! If you need a book to teach you how to use the Nspire, this is it. If you need to learn what everything on the Nspire actually means, you need to take some classes in mathematics and physics.

Learning the NEW Technology

Excellent resource for learning the new calculator technology. Easy to read and understand. Would highly recommend this book for all teachers and students who need to learn to use this product.

Ready, Set, Go with your TI Inspire

Are you an experienced TI 84 user who is perplexed by the new TI Inspire? Here is the book for you. You will learn all about that big round button and other features of the mini computer for want of a better description. This is not your big Sibling's graphing calculator. Much better than the user manual that comes with the calculator. If the school where your kids attend are getting these buy a couple of copies for the math department and the library.

Making the TI-Nspire easy to use

My view is very different from Mr. Bookman's. This book deserves 5 stars or more for the detail on every page that makes the Nspire a simple tool. This year I bought this intricate piece of hardware, without the slightest clue of how to use it. I wanted to learn about the next revolutionary adavancement for calculators so I bought this book to clear my doubts and to show me the way. Buying this book has been the best idea ever, since each page goes through a detailed procedure of how to utilize the calculator. As of now, I know how to use derivatives, integrals, solve equations, make graphs, etc, and I am learning new things every day. I also use this calculator for my AP Calc BC class. So as a student, if I can understand the features on the calculator, then anyone can also with this book. It has made the class easier for me, and I feel very confident for my AP test in May. I don't think a book can be any clearer for dummies. Anyone that has a Nspire and would like to ace their AP Calc exam or learn all its features should get this book. This, in my opinion, is the first and should be the last book for the TI-Nspire since it covers everything about the calculator. No more shall we suffer trying to understand all the buttons on the Nspire.

Okay but needs more work

I've been waiting for this book to be released for many months (as the publication date has been repeatedly delayed). Sadly, it does not provide the much needed documentation to use the TI-Nspire adequately. While the TI-Nspire appears to be a well-designed piece of hardware, it also comes with some of the worst documentation I've seen in years. Admittedly, I've never been a fan of the "dummies" series but I've been eagerly awaiting this book's publication with the hope that it will help me to learn how to use the device. Unfortunately, this book begins by providing some very detailed (and, arguably unnecessary) information such as how to install the batteries. By the 3rd chapter things begin to fall apart. I've already re-read much of the material and, like the useless information one must hunt for all over the Internet in order to develop an even rudimentary understanding of the Nspire, this book simply does not contain enough information to help those of us who are not "dummies." Providing step-by-step guidance, while using the TI-Nspire, would have been far better approach than providing brief descriptions of actions that lack the ability to replicate them on the Nspire. It is really a shame that the Nspire seems to have so much potential but, due to the dearth of documentation for those who have never used graphic calculators before, it is little more than an expensive brick that requires batteries. The lack of good documentation remains a serious problem. I ended up giving this book 4 stars - not because it really deserves it but because it's the only book that has yet been published on the TI-Nspire. Prepare, however, to be frustrated with this book too. Hopefully, someone, somewhere, will eventually create decent book on the Nspire - at least before the Nspire disappears altogether due to the deplorable lack of documentation.