Abstract: A conductive stylus is utilized in conjunction with conductive segments to rovide for data entry into extremely small calculators such as might be incorporated in an electronic digital watch case. Multi-bit codes, representing the segments contacted by the stylus, are generated and stored as the stylus moves over the segments. These codes are stored until a complete character has been scribed. The stored multi-bit codes are then analyzed in accordance with the segments contacted and the sequence in which they were contacted to determine what character was scribed.