For PC calculators you use * instead of x, or / instead of ÷. Why were these two symbols chosen over the other two?
In the standard Windows calculator, even the button uses "/" instead of "÷"
$\begingroup$
$\endgroup$
4
1 Answer
$\begingroup$
$\endgroup$
4
I don't know which came first in this case, but I'd have to believe it came from using $\cdot$ for multiplication in writing and $/$ came from the fraction symbol.
-
1
-
1$\begingroup$ @The Chaz: But I can't for lack of stupid rep! $\endgroup$– t.b.Commented May 23, 2011 at 21:40
-
$\begingroup$ @Theo: Do you have a website or links to any projects you've worked on? (I understand if you prefer privacy) $\endgroup$ Commented May 24, 2011 at 1:42
-
$\begingroup$ @The Chaz: I wouldn't use my real name if privacy was my concern here. Googling my name should bring up my old and neglected homepage in Göttingen with some texts I wrote some time ago. But be aware that I'm neither this guy nor that guy. Currently I'm at ETH Zürich. $\endgroup$– t.b.Commented May 24, 2011 at 8:09
xis often the name of a variable, so using*for multiplication prevents confusion, and we don't want to introduce new keys to have a new key, $\times$, when we already have*. Similar with/. $\endgroup$xwas a character, not a mathematical operator, and it's a character that is too easy to confuse with the mathematical symbol $\times$. You want a symbol which is easy to differentiate (for debugging purposes) and unambiguous, so the closely related*was chosen to denote multiplication. Neither $\times$ nor $\div$ were standard keys in standard typewriters, which made them difficult to add to early computing (typewriters usedx). It keeps going from there. Do you have a $\div$ key on your keyboard? I don't. $\endgroup$