Thread: Help finding old calculator...

Originally Posted by Quick Orange

This is kind of off topic, but I've been wondering this for a while now- what's so great about HP calculators? I really like my TI 83, but I'm not nearly as die-hard as some of the HP users I've seen.

Most of the HP fanatics are not tied to HP in and of itself, but to the RPN (reverse Polish notation) style of working with numbers on a "stack." It is elegant in its way and is nice when you need to deal with problems in "stages" and keep track of where you're at.

The stack can contain a bunch of working values vs. most algebraic calculators that only know about the current result or whatever you've explicitly stored in memory.

Prior to algebraic calculators including ( ) parentheses keys, complex problems were difficult to solve without doing it in parts and writing down the parts before assembling at the end. RPN solves that by maintaining intermediate values on the stack.

http://www.xnumber.com/xnumber/rpn_or_adl.htm

sorry, all I've got is a 20s that I haven't used in years.

used to drive all my friends nuts too. They had to take a calculator class freshman year in basic math I tested out of it, and so was able to use my HP while they had to pony up for TI's that personally just sucked.

Nowdays however all I calculate is my checkbook balance, and if I need a scientific calculator for that it means I have spent way to much or my accounting method might be considered questionable by the IRS.

Hmm,
got a few really nice slide rules I could lend you guys if you wanted to do REAL math

Tony

Tony I thought you were going to say you had one. I was pretty sure you didn't have any of these newfangled electronic calculating devices cluttering up your space

Actually I do have a Texas instruments SR-10, the first "slide rule" calculator. It had all of about 8 functions and originally sold for $175.

I'll stick with the slide rules. I actually have a collection of about 50-60 pieces. Nealry every model from all the big makers. I usually have a small one in my jacket pocket and another on my desk at my "real" job.

Tony (as a matter of fact I am a rocket scientist) Miller

I bought my HP-41CV in 1982 or 1983 for $200.00. I sold it in 1994 for $30 and bought it back in 1995 for $30. I still use it, as a matter of fact, I used it several times today. It is the only calculator I use at work (I'm an Electrical Engineer).

I have the Math 1 pack and Extended Functions pack. Although, I really don't use them too much anymore.

During the late 1980's I was doing synthetic programming on it. That is to say, I programmed it to do morse code simulations, elementary word processing, elementary spreadsheets and other things that one uses computers for nowdays. With synthetic programming, one could do real programming on it.

I too have been interested in picking up another HP-41CV or HP-41CX for home, but I have not been able to find one.


Bob

If memory serves, the only scientific calculator I have left is a TI, not an HP. I don't use it anymore because I don't need to. My every day business math is very straight forward anymore, and there are computer programs for everything else.
I think I also have a slide rule around here somewhere, Tony. Your not the only one with outdated technology, but after some 45 years it still works if I do my part. No battery needed. But I just have one, not a whole collection. But then, I'm hardly a rocket scientist!!