Spotlight is my calculator
Me too!
I rarely need to calculate anything mathematically complex, but I often reach for the computer to do the sort of calculation you run into when doing layout design: split 760 pixels into 3 columns with even gutters; or, figure out what the left margin of a 215-px-wide element should be to center it inside a 490 px container.
Now, I’ll be the first to agree that you don’t need a calculator to crunch three integers. I know John Allen Paulos would wag his finger if he saw me typing “143/3” instead of quickly dividing it in my head (and if he were here, and if he knew who I was). But my problem is not a lack of mathematical ability; I’m not great at arithmetic, but I’m solid. My problem is that I don’t trust my brain’s math without double-checking it: “Ok so 143/3 is… 47 and 2/3 which is 47.666. Now let’s double-check: 48 * 3 is 40 * 3 + 8 * 3…” and so on. I don’t do this often enough to be sure of my results, so I spend too long reversing everything to see if it fits.
Using a calculator solves this; I trust the calculator. Here’s the part that doesn’t make sense to my brain, however: every calculator I’ve ever used puts my input in a sort of one-dimensional, single-number-at-a-time box. I type “143”, I hit ÷, and the 143 is gone. The insecurity kicks in again: “Wait, did I type 143? Did I really hit ÷, not ×?” I need to see my whole line at once, parentheses and all.
The first calculator that does this for me is not a calculator at all; it’s Mac OS X’s Spotlight. It’s probably not news to you, but there: you can type math into the Spotlight menu-item box (not in the Finder-window box). Programmer-y notation like “sqrt(35)*sin(4^3)” is totally acceptable.
(Brief digression: ok, Spotlight wasn’t the first calculator I used like this; Google was. But Spotlight is far faster and more accessible, so I actually use it daily.)
Somehow this combination of instant availability, guaranteed results, and visible syntax clicks for me. It’s all the calculator I need. Perhaps best of all is that if I decide half way through my typing that I really needed another “(” at the start of the whole thing, I can just jump back and type it in. Maybe this is possible with standard calculators, but I honestly have no idea how.
I’ve used many physical calculators in my school years, and while I can’t say I’ve played with too many scientific-calculator apps, I haven’t seen this kind of representation of input. Maybe I’m looking in the wrong place; maybe no one else needs this. Either way, I’m sure I’ll hear from PCalc fans. (I never bought PCalc, but the screenshots I saw didn’t show what I’m looking for. Paper tape ain’t it.)
But right now, I have my accidental calculator right in the menu bar, a two-key chord away, and I love it.