alt Hacker NewsI don't, but I sometimes see them used here in Japan. Some small-shop operators use them to add up charges and show the total to the customer. I was recently in the office of a small company, and I noticed that the bookkeeper had a calculator next to a pile of paper (receipts?) on her desk. She also had a computer in front of her with a spreadsheet on the screen.
When I moved here forty-three years ago, it was common to see abacuses used in similar situations. There's still an abacus school [1] not far from where I live, but it's been a long time since I saw one in use.
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> There's still an abacus school
(I'm in the US) I remember being taught how to use an abacus when I was in grade school. Not kidding. I'm not so old that they were used anywhere in real life. I believe the whole point was to teach different ways that calculating can be done. A little horizon expansion.
Back in the (early 1960s?) Isaac Asimov wrote a book on how to do arithmetic calculations in your head. He pointed out that someone who developed that skill could solve problems faster in their head than by reaching for a slide rule, and they wouldn't necessarily be limited to slide rule approximations. Engineers, accountants, etc. would be more productive by being able to do calculations without having to reach for a slide rule or pencil and paper.
[pause for 'slide rule' chuckle]
The same applies to "open calculator app and key the figures in," though. I'm not sure that "user interface" was a thing back when he wrote that, but that's what he was talking about.