I have a browser extension that makes every website dark theme. I guess it may be interfering with my posts too? I'll see if I can fix that.
Those are good answers. If something will take so long to calculate that I have to leave the calculator running for a few minutes and then come back to it, I would probably run the calculation on my laptop, but that clearing RAM thing is good to know about. Also, thanks for pointing out that the serial cable is for communicating with other calculators. I still have a few questions about it though.
So people do not need to read the entire thread, here's what's been answered:
Power:
1. How's the battery life on Alkaline batteries? Casio claims 140 hours, but the backlit screen makes me skeptical of that claim. 4 AAA batteries only store about 6 watt-hours of energy. If the battery life is bad, I'll get Ni-MH batteries.
The battery life is good and it can be expected to last a few weeks of normal use. If I was paying for the batteries, I'd probably still buy NiMH because that still seems a little less than ideal and I prefer rechargeables anyways, but my parents buy alkalines so I'll just use those.
2. If I install Ni-MH batteries, can I charge them by plugging the calculator into a 5V source, or will I need a separate charger?
No, a separate charger is needed.
4. Can I extend the battery life on Alkaline by setting the calculator to think I'm using Ni-MH? I've seen digital cameras that would only drain Alkalines to 1.2V but would drain Ni-MH batteries to 1V.
That won't work
5. Is it possible to completely disable the backlight?
Not possible without modifications and the screen would be unreadable, so no.
6. If this calculator is overclockable, how much does overclocking impact the battery life? (Not applicable if I can't overclock)
The battery life will be somewhat negatively affected.
8. So basically, the CG50 is a faster nicer-looking (subjective) version of the CG10/20 with Python added?
Yes
9. Can I overclock?
Because I've been told that battery life will suffer if I do, I'm assuming that I can.
Software:
1. Can I run software meant for the CG10/CG20 on a CG50?
Yes I can.
7. I thought the point of RAM was that it stored information that the computer needs frequent access to because it is fast, and the point of flash is that it stores other information and anything that needs to be preserved while the machine is off because RAM is way more expensive than flash and it loses data when power is cut. Based on this, isn't clearing RAM after shutdown expected behavior? Why is that a disadvantage?
Clearing RAM after shutdown may be undesired because I may leave a long calculation running, have the calculator auto-off while I'm doing something else, and lose my result. This is a non-issue for me as I would run calculations like that on my laptop rather than my calculator, but I would still appreciate the ability to change that.
Hardware:
1.
https://www.cemetech.net/tools/prizm has some specifications listed, but they are for the CG10/CG20. Are they accurate for the CG50 too? If not, is there another page for the CG50? If there isn't, I'd like to at least know the CPU, clock speed, screen resolution, and the amounts of RAM and Flash.
They are the same, except the CPU is 118MHz on the CG50 vs 59MHz on the CG10/CG20.
And here's what's still not answered (I'm keeping the numbering from before to try to reduce confusion):
Power:
3. If I plug it into a 5V source, will the calculator run off of that instead of the batteries, even if it doesn't charge them? Based on the fact that it doesn't charge the batteries, I'm going to guess that it does not.
7. Is it practical to mod the calculator to use LiPo batteries? At this point, I'm going to guess no.
Software:
2. Can I run GNU/Linux on a CG50? If not, is there a technical reason for why I cannot or is it because nobody bothered to port it?
3. Is it possible to brick the CG50 by messing with the OS too much, or does it have USB recovery in ROM?
4. Am I required to use exam mode when taking AP tests or the SAT?
5. I heard about this calculator having a service mode and a few other special boot modes. How do I get into those, and what can I do with them?
6. I've heard that TIs use cryptography to restrict the software that runs on them and Casios don't. How true is this?
Hardware:
2. There appears to be a serial port on the top that the manual said uses an SB-62 cable, which was clarified to be for connecting to other calculators. I looked up that cable, and it looks like a normal 3.5mm audio cable. Can I use a normal 3.5mm cable? If not, what is preventing me from doing so?
New questions that I have (mostly about the serial port):
1. Is it just the prizms that have this serial port or do all casios have it?
2. Why would I want to connect my calculator to another one? Is it for sharing files, graphs, calculation results, programs, and stuff like that?
3. Can I connect it to an arduino or other non-calculator peripherals?
3. The manual said that the batteries in a powered-down calculator can be expected to last for a year. If the RAM is cleared after a while, what still runs when the calculator is turned off?