RPN Calculators

Just got this from my kid:

"Also, a cool birthday present would be an RPN calculator with a three-stack display, stack switch, and variable base log. Or even any (non-graphing) calculator with variable base log function (realcalc is nice, but only has log base 10 and log base e, and I don't like my graphing calculator. Also I can't use realcalc for tests)."

Does anyone even _make_ RPN calculators any more?

Or any variable base log non-graphing calculator?

And yes, I am going to tell him to suck it up and accept that

log_x y = (ln y)/(ln x)

is so easy that a variable-base log function is probably not in the cards.

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Reply to
Tim Wescott
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Yup. Hewlett-Packard :-)

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But ... but ... we also "need" at least 2GB of RAM to write an email on the computation machine.

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Regards, Joerg 

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Reply to
Joerg

Sure. HP, who else?

That's the way the HP folks had it pegged forty years ago. Tell him to program a function key if he's that lazy. ;-)

Reply to
krw

I'm so used to doing it that way that I don't even care if a calculator has a log to base 10 on it. I just want ln() and that's all. It's a waste of good key real estate, otherwise, which I'd rather see repurposed to something more useful.

Jon

Reply to
Jon Kirwan

Get him a programmable one (at least that supports user defined functions assigned to keys) and you're there.

The HP-35s is still available. Only a two line display though.

Once you get enough display real estate for three lines of stack, they are all pretty much graphic calculators.

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Paul Hovnanian     mailto:Paul@Hovnanian.com 
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Paul Hovnanian P.E.

Yeah, sorta: He's probably better off getting a Netbook or pad computah, and running an HP calculator emulator. I have about 6 assorted HP calculator emulators on my Droid X.

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Jeff Liebermann     jeffl@cruzio.com 
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Reply to
Jeff Liebermann

Well, then there are Excalibur and Xcalc. ...and several for smart phones. ;-)

Reply to
krw

He's an engineering student; apparently smart phones are verboten in exams.

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Reply to
Tim Wescott

Too big to always have with you. They're probably not allowed in many classes/tests, either.

I have two on my Droid Razr, but have settled on the HP11C look-alike. I loved the 11C but some nimrod walked off with it. The problem with smart phone calculators is the touch and feel. Nothing comes close to an old HP, though my 35s isn't terrible.

Reply to
krw

Ahh, I was going to ask how old he was. If he's in college then a fancy 'legal' calculator won't help. He's just got to skip some beer and study more. The basics's are more important than the details.

George H.

ttdesign.com

Reply to
George Herold

calculator with a three-stack display, stack switch, and variable base log . Or even any (non-graphing) calculator with variable base log function (re alcalc is nice, but only has log base 10 and log base e, and I don't like m y graphing calculator. Also I can't use realcalc for tests)." Does anyone e ven _make_ RPN calculators any more? Or any variable base log non-graphing calculator? And yes, I am going to tell him to suck it up and accept that l og_x y = (ln y)/(ln x) is so easy that a variable-base log function is pr obably not in the cards. -- My liberal friends think I'm a conservative koo k. My conservative friends think I'm a liberal kook. Why am I not happy tha t they have found common ground? Tim Wescott, Communications, Control, Circ uits & Software

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A couple options:

  1. Of course the HP35s is a reasonably good RPN machine - over 100 data me mories and hundreds of programs steps. About .
  2. HP recently produced a HP15C Limited Edition - it is a nice hardware pa ckage, but internally is an ARM running/emulating the original 15C code. N ot in production anymore, but on ebay for about 0.

Good luck, TomC

Reply to
tomcees_pc

Not variable base but...

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Cheers

Reply to
Martin Riddle

Bummer. I guess times have changed. When I went to college (late

1960's), I built my own portable analog computer. There was some resistance to my using it on exams, but the administration relented when I mumbled something about the college appearing to be anti-technology if the story leaked. I also offered to dress up as Galileo and act persecuted. Some hardware details from an old posting with additional anecdotes on using a briefcase for packaging:

I have about 40+ assorted HP calculators, including an HP11c in disgusting condition. Old photos: Looking around, I use an HP35s next to the computah, an HP41c for RF design at home, and an HP15c on the office desk for financial calcs. On the road it's various emulators on the Droid Razr. No problem with touch or feel on the Droid because I use a rubber tipped "stylus".

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Jeff Liebermann     jeffl@cruzio.com 
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Reply to
Jeff Liebermann

I would NOT recommend HP50g.

Vladimir Vassilevsky DSP and Mixed Signal Consultant

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Reply to
Vladimir Vassilevsky

When I was in school there wasn't a thing called "zero tolerance", either. People, even the administration, had to think.

Neat. I only have two; a 35s and a forty year old 45 (still works, sorta).

You have no problem with the feel because you can't. ;-)

Hmm, I just tried one of the calculators on my laptop's touch screen. It didn't work. I wonder if it objects to being docked?

Reply to
krw

Back when I took my amateur radio exams in 2002, I was allowed to bring a calculator, but only if it was one which had no pre-programmed formulas. Programmable calculators were allowed, if and only if all of the memory was cleared before the exam started.

The only working electronic calculator I had around was a big HP beast, programmable in a BASIC dialect. I couldn't even convince

*myself* that I knew how to completely clear its memory and rule out the presence of any ROM formulas, so I left it at home.

Instead, I brought a Pickett slide rule :-)

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Dave Platt                                    AE6EO 
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Reply to
Dave Platt

The 35S is pretty terrible, a mockery of the wonderful HP35. I mostly use ebay

32SII's.
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John Larkin                  Highland Technology Inc 
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Reply to
John Larkin

The 32SII has log10 and ln.

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John Larkin                  Highland Technology Inc 
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Reply to
John Larkin

So did the 45 but they don't have log(pi). ;-)

Reply to
krw

Hi Tim, The HP35s of course, but it is in my opinion far from the usual HP calculator quality standard. In particular a couple of annoying bugs makes life difficult (in particular the strange way of hiding the exponent on the rightmost part of the display with large numbers, a good way to get erroneous results except if you are clever enough to shoft left the display...) A far better choice : get your hands on one of the "HP15C limited edition" series that HP sold last year. Very close to the original ! Friendly, Robert

Reply to
Robert Lacoste

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