GCalctool 5.30 is now released. Gcalctool is the default GNOME calculator and this is also the default in Ubuntu.
Both GNOME and Ubuntu use a synchronised six month release cycle.
- The great thing about regular releases is... Predictability!
- The bad things is... You may not get all the features you wanted done in one cycle...
Here's my summary of what to expect in GCalctool 5.30.
The good:
- The display now acts like a standard text entry (no obscure shortcut keys)
- Equations look like correct mathematical syntax (π, |−4|, 6×10⁻², sin⁻¹ x, 2x²y, 3E₁₆)
- Polynomials can be solved (x²+2x−4, (x+1)(x−2))
- There is no limit on the number of variables (x=55, value=21)
- Bases can be mixed in the same calculation and any base between 2 and 16 can be used (120₃+3E₁₆)
- Units can be converted (3 feet in centimeters, 3.22 EUR in AUD)
- The help is now topic based (Mallard format)
- The UI has less visual clutter:
The bad:
- Hexadecimal numbers are harder to enter (you need to explicitly add the base 16 suffix (Ctrl+H) to them).
- Variables can't be removed (the workaround is to edit ~/.local/share/gcalctool/registers)
- There is no support for functions (you should be able to enter f(x)=6x+2, f(3))
- There is no GUI for non-currency conversions (use the keyboard)
- Complex numbers weren't working in time for release:
The ugly:
- Converting between number bases is unintuitive (enter number then press base buttons to change)
- Programming mode is a mess of buttons (needs complete redesign for GNOME 3.0):
- Financial mode is crying out for some graphs (it would be better to show financial models and adjust the values)
