Do you need a calculator: Five handy calculator apps for Windows

If the built-in Windows Calculator doesn't quite meet your needs, one of these alternatives might.

One of the built-in Windows apps I find myself using the most frequently is Calculator. As handy as it is, however, plenty of other calculator apps are available. These apps, many of which are freeware, often provide functionality that doesn't exist in the built-in Windows tool. Here are five choices that are worth a look.

1: Moffsoft FreeCalc

Moffsoft FreeCalc (Figure A) is a free calculator that's designed to act as an alternative to the built-in Windows Calculator. Although this app can't really do anything beyond basic arithmetic, it does have one feature I really like. The interface includes a side panel that the utility refers to as a tape. All calculations are written to the tape, and the tape can be saved to a text file for future reference.

Figure A

2: Calc98

Calc98 (Figure B) is another free calculator. Although its interface feels a bit cluttered, the application is lightweight and works well. It supports basic arithmetic as well as a few scientific functions, such as sin, cos, and tan.

Figure B

This calculator's best feature is the integration of copy and paste buttons.

3: Biromsoft Calculator

Biromsoft Calculator (Figure C) is a basic calculator for performing arithmetic, square roots, and percentages, but not a lot more. The good thing about this app is that it's designed to be accessible on demand. You can launch it from the system tray and once it's running, it occupies a minimal amount of desktop real estate. The interface fades and blends in with the desktop until you need it. With a simple click, the calculator becomes fully visible and ready to go.

Figure C

Biromsoft Calculator sells for $14.95, but a free trial version is available for download.

4: Graphing Calculator 3D

Graphing Calculator 3D (Figure D) is a great tool for anyone who has to graph functions. It can graph a wide variety of functions in either 2D or 3D. The graphs are colorful and can be rotated, customized, and even exported.

Figure D

It's worth noting that you must have Java installed on your computer to use Graphing Calculator 3D.

5: AllerCalc

The thing that sets AllerCalc (Figure E) apart from other calculators is its sheer number of built-in functions. There are more than 100.

Figure E

This awesome (and free) calculator also has a huge number of built-in constant values and a built-in conversion engine that can assist with common measurements.

Millennials, Here's What Your First Home Might Look Like

A homebuilder aims to entice young buyers with adaptable space and an outdoor kitchen.

The contemporary farmhouse, designed for buyers age 35 and younger, has an open plan design, an outdoor kitchen, and a suite of rooms accessible by a side entrance. That way, the owner can take on a lodger or, if she decides to start a family, give the tenant the boot and reincorporate the rental space into the home.

Is that what millennial homebuyers want?

It’s one idea. Pardee Homes, a subsidiary of Irvine, Calif.-based Tri Pointe Group, built the concept home1 to show off at the National Association of Home Builders trade show in Las Vegas this week. Its estimated price tag in the “mid-$300,000s” makes it more expensive than a traditional starter home in the Las Vegas market. In return for the higher price, Pardee is selling the idea of a home that can serve young buyers from one life stage to the next.

“Millennials are really interested in customizing their space,” said Klif Andrews, president of Pardee’s Las Vegas division. “We designed the house so that over time, it can be remodeled for minimal investment.”

Andrews said the Responsive Home, which is how Pardee is branding the farmhouse along with a second, upmarket concept called a "contemporary transitional," evolved based on years of research. In addition to incorporating spaces that are "preengineered" for easy adaptation, the houses are built for outdoor entertaining, Andrews said. They sacrifice closet and cabinet space for living areas because "research shows millennials are not big acquirers."

There was a time not so long ago when many in the real estate business worried that millennials—scarred by the housing crisis, drawn to apartment living in big cities—might never buy homes at the rate of earlier generations. Those fears seem to have dissipated, mostly because millennials keep telling pollsters that they want to buy homes and that actually, living in the suburbs wouldn't be so bad.

Still, the generation has been slower to enter the housing market than previous cohorts. That's probably because they're starting families later in life and because income growth hasn't kept up with rising home prices.

Can the idea of adaptable space persuade young buyers to take the jump? Pardee will get some feedback this summer, when it starts completing homes based on the Responsive Home concepts—about 80 of each in the Las Vegas area. 

The traditional starter home—smaller, cheaper, and further from the city center—is also making a comeback.