It used to be very basic, but Windows 7 saw Calculator evolve into a capable tool, with the addition of statistics, programmer, unit conversion and date calculation modes, amongst others.

The Calculator interface isn’t always the easiest to navigate, though, and if you’re more interested in speed and convenience then you might prefer Numculator.

The program is free, portable, and runs on any version of Windows from 2000 upwards. Once launched, it lives in your system tray, popping up whenever you press the Num Lock key.

Numculator has a very simple interface, just a single line text box, so there are no mouse movements required. Just tap Num Lock and start calculating: it’s very straightforward.

The interface is extremely simple – just press the hotkey and start calculating

You’re not restricted to simple “2+2*5” math, as Numculator supports various functions and math types: Abs, Sqrt, Exp, Factorials, Logarithms, trigonometry, Min/ Max, Binary/ Decimal/ Hex conversions, simple date math (date1 – date2 = time elapsed, date1 + time elapsed = date2, more). It’s not a huge list, but there’s more than enough to be useful.

Everything you enter is recorded in Numculator’s history. Stepping through this is as easy as tapping the up and down arrows, or you can save the entire history as a text file.

Once you’ve finished your calculations, pressing Ctrl+Enter immediately closes Numculator and pastes the final figure into the previous application, again saving you a few clicks. (Although you can also copy and paste any figure manually, if you prefer.)

And if you’re not happy with any aspect of the program, there’s a good chance it can be tweaked. Numeric formatting, rounding, alignment, font and transparency can all be adjusted, you can set a new hotkey if Num Lock isn’t convenient, and Numculator even has 20+ skins to choose from. Give it a try.