What's New on the Orion TI-84 Plus Talking Graphing Calculator ™

American Printing House for the Blind, Inc.

2017/11/1

Revision History

Orion TI-84 Update Utility Version 1.1.10

November 2017

This update affects the following Update Utilities files:

If you are using the update utility Version 1.1.6, please download the new corresponding Update Package for the release your trying to install and use Upgrade Utility Version 1.1.10 instead.

New Features, Improvements, and Enhancements

  1. Signed the update Utility for security reasons
  2. Added Orbit Research Logo
  3. Made the Utility file browser select the Bin file in the same folder of the utility as the default to make finding the binary easier.
  4. Added better screen reader support for upgrade percentage while firmware upgrade is in progress.
  5. Fixed an issue where some computers failed to upgrade a device do to a multiple device connected error.
  6. Fixed an issue where canceling file selection caused an open file error message.
  7. Fixed the problem where update would be canceled if another USB device was connected or disconnected.
  8. Removed requirement of pre-installed VC++ redistributables

Version 2.00.41

August 2016

Improvements

  1. Improved speech output at High speeds.
  2. Improved help announcements to better match keys.
  3. Improved the announcements of some calculations that did not speak correctly.

Resources

October 2015

On October 20, 21, and 28 additional tutorial documents and videos from Susan Osterhaus were posted to the Resources page.

Version 2.00.38

August 2015

New Features, Improvements, and Enhancements

  1. Adds Nemeth and UEB Braille support.
  2. Adds support for reviewing Statistic graphs with a new mode called Sonograph.
  3. Adds Graph Intersection notification.
  4. Adds support for Inequalities and Shaded Regions.
  5. Adds Playback mode that only plays back indicators without graph sounds.
  6. Adds curser location indication sound.
  7. Adds Max and Min indicator sounds.
  8. Adds navigation method for long lists of random data screen.
  9. Improves Preference menu layout (consolidates certain options into categories; moves battery and firmware to first level).
  10. Improves spoken output of symbols.

Version 1.1.0

March 2014

New Features, Improvements, and Enhancements

  1. Adds Axis Tick and Axis Cross indication tones for complete equation playback and point navigation in the Trace screen.
  2. Adds a Silent Startup Mode setting in the Preferences menu.
  3. Adds a Turn Off Speech setting in the Preferences menu.
  4. Adds a Reset option for the volume and speech rate in the Speech option menu.
  5. Adds support for setting the clock using the screen reader.
  6. Adds the busy tone indication to functions and expressions that take long amounts of time (i.e., using randomize to create a list of 1000 numbers).
  7. Adds a system error indication in case a TI-84 Plus system error occurs requiring a calculator restart.
  8. Improves the screen reader feature to maintain the review cursor location.
  9. Improves support for the Catalog Help screen announcement.
  10. Improves the navigation region limit tone for displayed Stat Plots for point navigation performed in the Trace screen.
  11. Improves accessibility to the Memory Management menu.
  12. Improves the vibration duration (from 2 seconds to 300 milliseconds).
  13. Improves the firmware version announcement (reads as "#").
  14. Improves the announcement of incomplete words preceding or succeeding with ellipsis. For example, in the Statistical Function screen, if the row displays as: "x value: ...cdf," it announces as "x value ellipsis c d f open paren."
  15. Improves the navigation region limit tone in the Y= screen once no further vertical navigation is possible using the [DOWN] key.
  16. Improves the screen reader review of tokens. For example, the operation "Sin" is a single token. Using the review level character, the token is announced one character at a time.

Battery

  1. Improves the battery voltage monitoring accuracy.
  2. Adds a vibration indication for the low battery lockout mode, when the user performs the power cycle sequence of TI-84.
  3. Improves the battery indication announcement (reads as "# %").
  4. Improves the low battery warning announcements when the charger is connected to the Orion unit.

Fixed Issues

  1. Resolves several language parsing issues (including ones in the Draw menu and Distribution-Draw menu).
  2. Correctly announces the time (even when the format is set to other than the default in the Clock Editor screen).
  3. Correctly announces for the Trace/Graph screen in a Horizontal Split screen scenario.
  4. Correctly announces the date displayed in the Mode screen, when the Clock settings are changed from TurnClockOff to TurnClockOn.
  5. Correctly announces in the Matrix Editor and List Editor screens when the screen switches back from the Error screen (due to an incorrect expression editor in the previous screen).
  6. Correctly announces the Home screen displayed text for the Horizontal Split screen mode.
  7. Adds a missing announcement of the items displayed in the Alpha menu screen when the TI-84 Plus is turned on after an Automatic Power Down event occurs.
  8. Correctly announces when the zoom size is adjusted while in Speech mode on the Trace screen.
  9. Correctly announces when the navigation is finished for the List Editor, Statistical Editor, Statistical Result, and Memory Management screens even though the navigation region limit tone is played.
  10. Correctly announces the statistical equation displayed on the Graph screen when the Vertical Split mode is selected.
  11. Adds a missing announcement of the top row, using the screen reader feature in the Statistical Result screen.
  12. Adds a missing announcement of the "Home screen" when the screen switches from the Menu screen to the Home screen by pressing the [CLEAR] key on the TI-84 Plus.
  13. Corrects playback of the equation when the CALC menu functions are executed.
  14. Correctly announces the menu names when the TI-84 Plus is turned on after an Automatic Power Down event.
  15. Adds a missing announcement in the ZOOM Factor Editor screen by pressing the [ENTER] key.
  16. Resolves battery charging failure issues due to the slow insertion of the charger.
  17. Removes an incorrect announcement of "battery full" indication.
  18. Adds a missing announcement of the Preference menu items when the unit is turned on after an Automatic Power Down event.
  19. Adds a pause between items announced using the review level line for the last line displayed in the Catalog Help application screen.
  20. Correctly announces the information related to a matrix operation performed on the Home screen in the Horizontal Split mode.
  21. Correctly announces the information displayed in the Table Editor screen when Stat plots are enabled in the Vertical Split mode.
  22. Adds an announcement when the user presses the [UP/DOWN] cursor keys on the TI-84 Plus once the Catalog Help application use announcement is completed. The announcement is repeated, rather than the operation not supported, when the screen is enabled and the user presses the [Up/Down] key.
  23. Correctly announces the information displayed on page 2 of the Mode screen (when navigating briskly in this screen using the TI-84 Plus [UP/DOWN] keys).
  24. Correctly announces the navigation region limit tone in the Graph or Trace screens, for any equation plotted with the settings of Xmin = 0, Xmax = 1, Ymin = 0 and Ymax = 1 in the Window Editor screen, while using point navigation.
  25. Correctly announces information displayed on the TI-84 Plus display screen when the screen scrolls in the Inferential Result screen feature.
  26. Adds an announcement of the RAM clear screen message when the TI-84 Plus is turned on after an Automatic Power Down sequence.
  27. Resolves the issue of the unit remaining on even after it has been turned off (occurs when the unit automatically turns on when connected for first time with the TI-84 Plus).
  28. Correctly announces the punctuation mark in the Catalog Help application screen for the "Else" information.
  29. Resolves the issue of an incorrect playback of a complete equation, if the equation plotting was continuously paused and resumed.

Operating System 2.55/ORl or Higher

  1. Correctly announces when scrolling in the Home screen, after switching from the Menu or Error screens has occurred.
  2. Correctly announces when the cursor right or left keys of the TI-84 Plus are pressed in the Clock Editor screen.
  3. Correctly announces "Invalid key" for the valid scenario, when the screen is switched from the Catalog menu to the Catalog Help screen by pressing the [+] key.
  4. Correctly announces the highlighted item in the Catalog menu screen when switched back from the Catalog Help application screen by selecting the [ESC] option.
  5. Adds an announcement of the information displayed on the TI-84 Plus screen after the unit is turned on after a RAM clear scenario.
  6. Correctly announces the date displayed on page 2 of the Mode screen for a format other than M/D/Y, when using the review level word.
  7. Adds an announcement for vertical navigation performed in the Startup screen after a RAM clear scenario.
  8. Corrects automatic playback of complete equation in the Horizontal Split screen mode.

Known Issues and Limitations

  1. Inaccurate equation playback after Trace screen panning may occur after an Automatic Power Down event.
  2. To execute programs from the Program menu press the [CLEAR] key twice. This ensures that the screen reader announces correctly in the Home screen.
  3. When navigating using review level character, the leading blank spaces on the review row are skipped and the first character is announced for most screens. The exceptions are the Table Editor, List Editor, and Matrix Editor screens. For these three screens, the leading blank spaces are announced as a single space followed by the first character.
  4. The tone for navigation region limit for Stat Plots is only announced for Histograms, Box plots, and Mod Box plots.
  5. If two or more consecutive punctuation marks appear, the latter one is announced.
  6. A valid value for the month must be entered in the Clock Editor screen for continued navigation or execution. Otherwise, any key pressed (Up/Down/Enter) announces the value of the month with a tone, indicating no navigation is possible.

Catalog Help Screen

  1. Review level word is not supported for the Catalog Help application screen.
  2. When automatic TI-84 RAM clear events occur while the Catalog Help application is enabled and running, the unit announces a "system error" message. The user should perform a power cycle.
  3. While the Catalog Help application is enabled and running, editing of certain Menu screens becomes active automatically, which results in an automatic TI-84 Plus RAM clear event. The user should perform a power cycle.
  4. While the Catalog Help application is enabled and running, the Mode screen occasionally switches to the Home screen when [+] key is pressed and does not announce "invalid key pressed."
  5. If the user is in the Catalog Help screen and enters the Matrix Editor screen from the Matrix menu or the List Editor screen using the Stat menu, a unit reset is required.

Version 1.0.4 August 18 2013

New Features, Improvements, and Enhancements

  1. Adds Quiet mode - selecting this choice from the Help menu puts the Orion in Quiet mode, which allows you to boot up without any audible sounds or haptic feedback so it is not a distraction in class.
  2. Adds Mode wherein if the unit battery is between 0 to 5%, on start up the unit won't respond to any key press on the TI-84 Plus.

Fixed Issues

  1. Correctly announces the context displayed on the Home screen in the Screen reader, after the screen scrolls on the TI-84 Plus.
  2. Correctly announces the context displayed on the Y= menu screen in the Screen reader, after the screen scrolls on the TI-84 Plus.
  3. Adds a missing announcement of Automatic Power Down while in the Help mode.

Version 1.0.2

Additions include:
  1. Spell function - press and hold the Repeat key to hear the last announced item, letter by letter
  2. More voice selections
  3. Orion Self Test Mode in the Preferences Menu, which allows you to test the Orion unit if needed
  4. Battery, Version, and Serial Number options in the Orion Help Menu
  5. Menu Item Number announcement function (only in menus that support number navigation) - found in the Speech Options; when enabled, the number that corresponds to the menu choice is announced. This function is used to quickly return to a menu choice. For example, the number 3 key in the Math Menu is the function for cube. Pressing the 3 key, followed by Enter, runs the cube function (because it is the third menu choice in the Math Menu).
  6. New Upgrade utility

Notice: Accessibility of APH Websites