My HP12C died.
- Thread starter afm199
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afm199
Well-known member
I’m an older gent so I used the slide rule in school before the calculator was invented.
Nice.
When I was in East Germany before the wall came down, back in the communist days, they made the sweetest slide rules, absolutely the best in the world! Come to think of it, they were probably the ONLY manufacturer in the world when you could get a calculator for the same price. :laughing
lizard
Well-known member
I was in Berlin in summer ‘90. Very fascinating contrast between West and East Berlin at that time. Walking freely thru checkpoint charlie and see the differences between east and west.
East Berlin’s architecture was classic commie style. The stores were dimly lit to save money. The store shelves were mostly empty. The local east Berliners (not the donut, haha) were not as good looking as the west Berliners. And their facial expressions were that of lifelessness.
And the Trabant was ubiquitous.
A few years later I became friends with an East German couple. When they came to visit in 1999(?), one evening the BF said to the GF, let’s go to the grocery store before they close. It was mid afternoon, 9+ years after Gorbachov tore down the wall and the BF was still thinking stores closed early. I also learned from the couple that after the wall came down, west German men went to East Germany and grabbed all the good looking girls.
afm199
Well-known member
O god yeah, I remember that. Right after the wall came down, almost immediately, there were suddenly used car lots all over East Germany, and piles of Trabants that people literally threw away when they got a "new" car.
The only thing I liked about East Germany was that the biggest advertisement signs on the autobah was about two meters by two meters. And the toll free shops on the closed freeway from West Germany to East Berlin, where only Westies could travel. The coffee was the cheapest and best in Europe.
I did meet some cool Easties, but they were differently of a different spirit.
I was there when the wall was going up, just 13 or 14. That was really scary.
lizard
Well-known member
Fascinating that you lived during construction of the wall.
...
“I am a donut!” :laughing
PS - As I recall, during Reunification there was a problem with the east and west rail tracks as they were different widths(?).
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wazzuFreddo
WuTang is 4 the children
My first thought when I read the thread title was that Afm199’s MP4-12C died and that was no surprise because those are known for eating transmissions. But kudos to Afm199 for balling out in a McLaren anyway. :laughing
HP41 app for phone? Hmmm.
I remember using HP41CV (or X) in college.
Later when I took my PE exam I was using an HP28S that was more awesome, and easier to program. I remember writing a program on it to solve one of the problems during the exam. I think in advance I had programmed in the function to solve 5th-order polynomial equations. Which may also have been useful on the exam. Wouldn't care to try that on an HP41.
Later someone dropped it and broke the battery cover, and I think I e-wasted it.
These days I use a TI-84+ that my daughter had in high school. Don't have a clue how to program it. Never had a need.
I remember using HP41CV (or X) in college.
Later when I took my PE exam I was using an HP28S that was more awesome, and easier to program. I remember writing a program on it to solve one of the problems during the exam. I think in advance I had programmed in the function to solve 5th-order polynomial equations. Which may also have been useful on the exam. Wouldn't care to try that on an HP41.
Later someone dropped it and broke the battery cover, and I think I e-wasted it.
These days I use a TI-84+ that my daughter had in high school. Don't have a clue how to program it. Never had a need.
berth
Well-known member
Yea, it was. You basically enter the formula and it will solve to 0 through an iterative algorithm.
That's why I was able to pull it off ad hoc on the fly during a physics exam. I typed it all in, let it fly, and moved on to the next problem while it churned.
Elder programmable calculators fit squarely in the "be glad they work at all" category. Raw performance was never their strong point. (Which, again, made the 48G series amazing. 4Mhz 4 bit CPU doing symbolic algebra...)
That's why I was able to pull it off ad hoc on the fly during a physics exam. I typed it all in, let it fly, and moved on to the next problem while it churned.
Elder programmable calculators fit squarely in the "be glad they work at all" category. Raw performance was never their strong point. (Which, again, made the 48G series amazing. 4Mhz 4 bit CPU doing symbolic algebra...)
wazzuFreddo
WuTang is 4 the children
I need to find my 48GX, it is in a box in here somewhere in the garage.
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alien
I had a 48SX which was ruined by getting just a little bit of water on it. I was using it in a skiff so maybe more water had gotten to it than I was aware of. I replaced it with a GX but fortunately already had the manuals for the SX which were two books each as large as the GX one manual. Therefore a lot more programming detail in the SX manual. The GX obviously had a lot more built in functions but the manual smaller and barely touched on programming. I still have the manuals for each.
berth
Well-known member
For the GX you want the Advanced Users Reference manual.
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alien
Now that you mention it I might actually have that manual also. I vaguely remember looking into it.
I actually was never a big fan of the 48 series. It was too big for a pocket calculator and I’d likely turn to a pc program to solve the GX’s built in functions.
If I have to carry something I simply much prefer the lightweight compact feel of the 32 or the 35 for quick calculations
I actually was never a big fan of the 48 series. It was too big for a pocket calculator and I’d likely turn to a pc program to solve the GX’s built in functions.
If I have to carry something I simply much prefer the lightweight compact feel of the 32 or the 35 for quick calculations