One of the major adjustments I had to make when I switched to Windows 8 (and later, Windows 8.1) was the missing start menu. While I normally pinned my most-used items to the taskbar, I did use the start menu to access programs I used less often. One of those programs was the calculator. I used the calculator just often enough that it appeared on the first portion of the start menu, but not often enough that I wanted to have it cluttering up my taskbar.
When I switched to Windows 8, I no longer had a start menu to quickly access my calculator. And while I could create an icon for it on the start screen, I would still have to search for it each time. I mentioned this problem to a friend, and he told me, "Just use the Google calculator."
Initially, I dismissed this idea as not much better than my current situation because I thought I would have to navigate to a specific Google Calculator page. However, he told me that you can simply enter the equation into the search bar and it will calculate it for you automatically. If you have a search bar for Google or you have your omnibar in Chrome set for Google, you can enter it there, and the answer appears at the top of your Google results.
Even better, this tip also applies to Bing! If you enter a math problem in the Bing search box, or in a search bar or omnibox set to Bing, you will also see the results. Unfortunately, Yahoo has yet to add this feature to its search.
The Google calculator can interpret many types of mathematical equations. However, some of the symbols might not be what you are used to. + and - are also the same, but * is the symbol for multiplication, / is the symbol for division, and ^ is the symbol for an exponent. The calculator can also figure more complex math problems, like trigonometry and logarithms.
For me, this was the solution to my problem. Since I usually have a browser window open (and when I don't, I have my browser icon on my taskbar), I can quickly access the calculator anytime I need it by opening a new browser tab and typing in the problem. It may not be the perfect solution for your life, but it is handy to know that you can always have a calculator anytime you're online.
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