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HP re-releases classic computer science calculator: The HP-16C

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Re: HP re-releases classic computer science calculator: The HP-16C

#111

Post by cryo32 »

PeterStuer wrote: post #104

Who is the audience for this? I was a big fan of HP calculators at the time. Guilty of RPN snobbery and in posession of the passed by nth generation photocopy 'synthetic programming' document. I still have my 41CV even though it has not been turned on in 20 years. But a fake lookalike 'collectors edition' of a device that can have only nostalgic sentimental value? Why does this exist? Who falls for this?

Err me.

I have a few 42S though so probably don’t need it.

Edit: also three 15C and some slide rules. Think I have a problem.

Re: HP re-releases classic computer science calculator: The HP-16C

#112

Post by sneak »

PeterStuer wrote: post #104

Who is the audience for this? I was a big fan of HP calculators at the time. Guilty of RPN snobbery and in posession of the passed by nth generation photocopy 'synthetic programming' document. I still have my 41CV even though it has not been turned on in 20 years. But a fake lookalike 'collectors edition' of a device that can have only nostalgic sentimental value? Why does this exist? Who falls for this?

It’s not a fake, it is made by HP. Also, it has value as a calculator, not just nostalgic sentimental value. It works just as well as the original.

I own one because a while ago I bought, one by one, iconic world changing calculators to collect. I like having physical history. This re-release seems like a very nice bookend to that collection.

Re: HP re-releases classic computer science calculator: The HP-16C

#114

Post by bombcar »

mikestorrent wrote: post #69
vjvjvjvjghv wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The prices for all kinds of vintage electronics have shot out like crazy. Calculators, computers, cameras and other stuff are super expensive.

I wonder if anyone wants my old red LED HP calculator... it's got some nice chunky buttons. HP-35 or something, ehhh. Looks like maybe $100.

Those are cool - I’m sure it’d sell eventually.

Re: HP re-releases classic computer science calculator: The HP-16C

#116

Post by wolvoleo »

wolvoleo wrote: post #54
kstrauser wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

RPN felt so weird and alien to me, and then one day I felt my brain pivot, and now it's the only method I can bear. RPN isn't just more efficient for the calculator to process. I mean, it is , but that's not the selling point. It's way more efficient to use . It requires the least number of keystrokes necessary to enter a formula, and never requires parentheses for grouping. You can start at the innermost nested, hai…

Yeah I understand. For me I just never could get my head around it. My brain doesn't work that way, and I'm the kind of person that always needs to bend their tools to them rather than absorb a new way of working. For example, I deeply hate opinionated software where you have to learn the workflow the developer intended. It can be powerful but I don't work that way. I have my own ideas how something should work and I…

@cindyllm: Tbh I don't buy much stuff anymore because most of the things don't fulfill my needs.

I build my own stuff a lot, mostly software for now but I'm working on a special keyboard too.

Re: HP re-releases classic computer science calculator: The HP-16C

#117

Post by wolvoleo »

kstrauser wrote: post #81
wolvoleo wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah I understand. For me I just never could get my head around it. My brain doesn't work that way, and I'm the kind of person that always needs to bend their tools to them rather than absorb a new way of working. For example, I deeply hate opinionated software where you have to learn the workflow the developer intended. It can be powerful but I don't work that way. I have my own ideas how something should work and I…

Nah, I get it. I have a streak of stubbornness, too. Just saying, in this specific case, the odd way to do it has real, genuine advantages and isn't just odd for the sake of being odd. It's not so much an opinion as a philosophy. If the opportunity arises, I urge you to try making yourself use it for a few days and powering through it. If that a-ha moment comes to you, it changes how you look at arithmatic in general…

I did use it, back in the day. But the problem is, I use a calculator too few and far between so every time I had to go through this adaptation again.

Also I tend to avoid arithmetic, I hate maths :) What I would like mainly is a binary/hex converter and the ability to do some shifting and XORs etc.

Re: HP re-releases classic computer science calculator: The HP-16C

#118

Post by JensenTorp »

jamesgill wrote: post #34

I'm a lifelong fan of HP calculators. I have a 15c in front of me right now that I've had since the mid-ish 80s. Still works perfectly. But the 15c 'Collector's Edition' had some issues, and I wonder about the build quality and reliability of this new one, too. Plus: my guess is you can get an original working 16c on eBay for less than this is going to cost. Honestly, it pains me to say it but I'd recommend a SwissMi…

Originals definitely more expensive than this reissue (which seems reasonably priced). Still, I will always want the original made in USA.

Re: HP re-releases classic computer science calculator: The HP-16C

#119

Post by Uncle_Brumpus »

kqr wrote: post #105
PeterStuer wrote: post #104

Who is the audience for this? I was a big fan of HP calculators at the time. Guilty of RPN snobbery and in posession of the passed by nth generation photocopy 'synthetic programming' document. I still have my 41CV even though it has not been turned on in 20 years. But a fake lookalike 'collectors edition' of a device that can have only nostalgic sentimental value? Why does this exist? Who falls for this?

I can't answer your question regarding the 16c, but the 12c is still the most convenient tool I have for compounding maths. I can technically do the same thing with Emacs Calc, but there's something about the physical layout of the buttons that just makes sense. I suppose I could also use a software simulator of the 12c, though.

I have always preferred some kind of physical calculator for doing calculations. I never need to do excruciatingly complex math, but I have a cherished TI-34 from the early 90's that I have dragged through college and 3 jobs. Full scientific calculator function with 0 batteries, it runs just on its tiny solar panel and the soul-sucking fluorescent office lighting, which is the one feature that keeps me clung to this particular model.

Re: HP re-releases classic computer science calculator: The HP-16C

#120

Post by drob518 »

inejge wrote: post #106
jamesgill wrote: post #34

I'm a lifelong fan of HP calculators. I have a 15c in front of me right now that I've had since the mid-ish 80s. Still works perfectly. But the 15c 'Collector's Edition' had some issues, and I wonder about the build quality and reliability of this new one, too. Plus: my guess is you can get an original working 16c on eBay for less than this is going to cost. Honestly, it pains me to say it but I'd recommend a SwissMi…

> But the 15c 'Collector's Edition' had some issues, and I wonder about the build quality and reliability of this new one, too. Build quality deteriorated (from impressive heights) more than 25 years ago, when HP's calculator manufacturing moved to China. Not on account of China itself, but it was definitely a cost-cutting measure, and higher-end calculators were becoming an endangered species even then. For example,…

Yep. I showed this to my wife, also an engineer, and her first response was, “oh, the buttons were so satisfying!” We both had HP calculators. I had a 15C that got me through high school and college engineering. I was sad when it finally died (replaced the batteries after years of use and it never turned on again).
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