
When Slide Rules Ruled (2006) - dredmorbius
http://gen.lib.rus.ec/scimag/10.1038%2Fscientificamerican0506-80
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simonblack
I used to love my 'slip-stick' back as a uni student. However those long thin
slide-rules were not as convenient to use as the circular slide-rules I later
used as a pilot in training.

The biggest drawback to the use of a slide-rule was that you were working with
significant digits only, and you had to mentally keep track of what the units
and the order of magnitude were. Electronic calculators kept track of the
decimal point's position for you, at least.

"Let's see now. Is '4.62' equal to 4.62 amps, 46,200 yards, or 0.0462
millimeters?"

