Wlodek's HP Calculator Articles
This file contains a series of articles by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
and published in DATAFILE, the jounal of the HPCC.
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COLLECTING CALCULATORS
What do you do with your old calculator if you want to buy a new one,
such as the HP48GX? Some people sell the old one to help pay for the
new one. Others keep it; as a spare, to use while they learn the new
one, or out of nostalgia.
A few HPCC members do more than keep their old calculators - they
actually collect them. Even if you do not collect old HP calculators
yourself, it is worth knowing about them - if you come across one it
might be worth buying; it is a shame to see it thrown away, and you
could sell it to someone who does collect them - though it will not
get you 7 million pounds at Christie's!
If you do find an old HP calculator - in your office, maybe, or in a
second-hand shop, or offered to you by someone who no longer needs it,
you will have three questions. "Is it worth getting it?" "How much is
it worth?" "How can I sell it if I don't want it?" I shall give
general answers here to all three questions, but Les says a series of
short articles about old HP calculators and their history would be
useful for future issues of DATAFILE, so I shall write some such
articles as well as this one; if you have a favourite old HP
calculator and can write a article about it for DATAFILE then please
do so!
The first question was "Is it worth getting it?" and the answer is
nearly always "Yes". If you see an old HP calculator in a second-hand
shop, try to buy it - for yourself or another HPCC member! Naturally,
the price demanded will affect your decision, but at a low price, say
about #10 for a working calculator, or #5 for a broken one, it is
definitely worth getting. Even the HP28C and HP18C which were both
soon followed by improved versions, are worth getting if cheap enough;
I am looking for a spare HP28C just now! Old manuals and accessories
are worth getting too, though some HP-41 modules such as the Games
module or normal memory modules are not worth much.
"How much is it worth?" is the most difficult question. No-one
publishes a catalogue of prices, as is done for stamp or coin
collectors! Too much depends on the condition, the rarity, how much
the vendor wants, and how badly a potential customer wants it. If you
have no idea of the value, try talking to one of the people named in
the next paragraph. Some models particularly worth looking out for
are as follows. The HP-01 calculator/watch is especially interesting,
whether in a steel case or in a gold-plated one, because of the model
number, and because it is a watch as well as a calculator. All the
desktop and handheld models with a built-in printer are worth looking
for, in particular the HP-97S which is a rare version of the HP-97,
and the HP-95 of which some prototypes were made, but which never went
into mass production. If you find any of these, buy first and ask
questions afterwards! Other models which seem to be hard to get
include the HP-70 and the HP-22 (both are financial models), the HP-94
(any version) and the HP-10C.
Thirdly, "How can I sell it if I don't want it?" Colin Crowther who
runs our library of books and old equipment can often help. So can I,
because I write books about HP calculators, and therefore collect old
ones. Colin and I also know other HPCC members who collect old HP
calculators. You can also advertise in DATAFILE, or on The No Zone, or
other electronic bulletin boards. So, check out that old HP calculator
in your local junk shop and get in touch!
___________________
P.S. To article on COLLECTING CALCULATORS
Just after I had written this article, I received a letter with the
first issue of a small journal called "The International Calculator
Collector". This is aimed at people who collect, or are interested in
the history of, early handheld electronic calculators. By "early",
they mean calculators with displays of types earlier than the current
LCDs (liquid crystal displays). They invite subscriptions (US$12 for
airmail delivery of the journal outside the USA, $8 in the USA). They
also invite articles about calculators. The address is: International
Association of Calculator Collectors, 1212 South Parton St., Santa
Ana, CA 92707, USA. Maybe a collectors' catalogue will soon become
available, contrary to the statement in my article!
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HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-35
Introduced on July 1 1972, this was the first handheld electronic
calculator sold by HP, and the first ever to perform logarithmic and
trigonometric functions with one keystroke. As opposed to later HP
calculators, it has an x^y function, not y^x, and the trigonometric
functions work in degrees only. The story goes that it was made after
William Hewlett was shown a new scientific desktop calculator by his
engineers, and asked for a version to fit in his shirt-pocket. At
first, HP thought they would only make a few HP-35s for their own
engineers, as no-one else would be interested. Then they decided to
try selling it - and sold hundreds of thousands. This means that the
HP-35 is not particularly rare, but collectors will pay a good price
for one because the HP-35 was the first HP handheld. We celebrated its
twentieth anniversary last year, and articles about it were published
in the proceedings of our 1992 conference and in DATAFILE V12N2. The
latter article includes details of the three different types of HP-35
made.
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HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-80
Introduced on February 1 1973, this was the second handheld electronic
calculator sold by HP, and the first business model. The HP-80 was
introduced for financial users following the success of the HP-35
among scientific and technical users. It has the same physical design
as the HP-35, and, like early HP-35s, early HP-80s do not have a model
number on their label, only the words "HEWLETT-PACKARD". The HP-80 was
the first HP calculator with business functions including the command
row "n i PMT PV FV" below the display. It also had date arithmetic,
bond and depreciation calculations, statistics functions including E+
and E-, and control of the display mode. It had a shift key to allow
11 extra functions to be placed on shifted keys. The ENTER key was
labelled SAVE - to avoid confusing business users! It had registers
designed for use for specific business and statistics functions, but
it also had STO and RCL buttons which allowed the user to store and
recall numbers directly to and from a separate register. The x^y
function of the HP-35 was replaced by y^x. Thus the HP-80 introduced
many of the features which have since become standard on both
scientific and business handheld calculators made by HP. The HP-80 is
not particularly rare, but is of interest to collectors because it is
HP's first business handheld.
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HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-45
Introduced on May 1 1973, this was the third handheld electronic
calculator sold by HP, and the second scientific model. It built on
the success of the HP-35, adding many new features. Some were taken
from the HP-80, others were completely new, including the LAST X
command, numbered data registers, store and recall register
arithmetic, built-in conversion constants, and selection of
trigonometric modes (DEG, RAD, GRAD). It is the first handheld known
to have had a code name - "Wizard". Early models had a built-in timer
mode which could be accessed by bouncing the HP-45 on a springy
mattress (!) or by pressing the RCL key and then pressing CHS, 7 and 8
all at once. This would start the timer, using the contents of
register X as the initial time value. If your HP-45 has this mode,
then while the timer mode is selected, you can press CHS to start or
stop the timer, ENTER to quit the timer and clear the display, and .
to quit and leave the time in the display. Keys 1-9 store the current
time in the numbered register if the timer is running, or recall the
time from that register if the timer is stopped. CLX resets the timer
to zero, EEX turns the display of hundredths of a second on or off,
and E+ stops the timer. This timer was originally designed for use in
the HP-45, but needed a crystal oscillator to provide sufficient
accuracy. In the end, the crystal was left out of the HP-45, but early
models still had the software built in, though it was not very
accurate. The timer was later built into the HP-55. The HP-45 is a
favourite among collectors; especially HP-45s with the timer. There
was a large desktop version of the HP-45, with a built-in printer,
called the HP-46.
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HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-65
Introduced on January 19 1974, this was the fourth handheld electronic
calculator sold by HP, and the third scientific model. "Superstar" was
its code name, and the HP-65 lived up to this name; it was the first
programmable model, which led to its being dubbed "the world's first
handheld computer". It had many new functions - not just the
functions needed for programming. It also had a built-in device for
reading and writing magnetic cards; this allowed the user to save
programs (but not data) on cards for future use, and to get programs
on cards from HP, from other users, or from the HP User Library. HP
sold sets of programs on particular topics, bundled together as
"program pacs". The name "pac" lasted right through to the HP-41, for
which a "program pac" usually meant a plug-in module. The arrival of
the HP-65 prompted Richard Nelson to set up PPC, the first club for
users of HP handhelds; indeed it is possible that this was the world's
first club for users of computers, as opposed to the few clubs which
already existed for people who were building their own micros at the
time. Despite its many new features, the HP-65 was still very similar
to the HP-35; obvious differences were the card reader, the slot to
hold a card below the display (this allowed the user to write labels,
on the card, for the row of keys directly below the card and the
display - the row of menu keys below the HP48 screen is a modern
version of the same thing), and the second slider switch; to select
program or run modes.
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HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-70
Introduced on August 1 1973, this was the fifth handheld electronic
calculator sold by HP, and the second business model. To be specific,
the first one - the HP-80 - was called a "financial" calculator
whereas the HP-70 was called a "business" calculator. In practice this
meant that the HP-70 had fewer functions than the HP-80, and was $120
cheaper than the HP-80 had been when introduced. The HP-70 does have
some innovations - for example there is a key for display setting
control - the display settings could be controlled on the HP-80 too,
but there was no key specially for this purpose. The double-width key
is now called ENTER, not SAVE as on the HP-80. There is a memory
register for accumulating values - this is the first (and only?) HP
handheld with an M+ button. There is a second register, which
contains the number 12 when the HP-70 is turned on - for use in
calculations for a fixed number of intervals - usually 12 months in a
year. These changes, and the manual which contains lots of example
calculations, and even the codename "Scrooge" suggest that the HP-70
was introduced as a cheaper business model to fight competitors. It is
not clear how successful this was - the HP-70 is somewhat rare!
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HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE CALCULATOR DATABASE
A lot of the information in these short articles about HP calculator
history comes from an extensive database set up by Craig Finseth.
Craig allowed us to include this database on the Goodies disk which we
produced for the Anniversary Conference - it is also available by
anonymous ftp from various computer archive sites. The database
contains an introduction, a list of HP's handheld electronic
calculators sorted by the date they were introduced, an evolution
chart, a summary of various features, a few other files, and finally a
file for every HPnn calculator, where nn is any number from 01 to 99
for which at least one HP handheld or desktop model exists. (What
about the HP100LX - should that be added to the list since the HP95LX
is already there?) I would strongly urge anyone who is remotely
interested in the history of HP handhelds to get a copy of this
database - copies of the conference disk are still available. I am
very grateful to Craig for all the work he put into collecting all
these data, and to all the people who gave him information. My thanks
to Craig as well for letting me use information from the database for
this set of historical articles!
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HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - CALCULATOR FAMILIES
The first few HP handheld calculators (HP-35, HP-80, HP-45) were all
known simply by a model number; they all had the same size and shape.
But then HP introduced the smaller handhelds - HP-21, HP-25 and so on.
Soon after came the small desktop models with a built-in printer; the
HP-91, the HP- 97, and later the HP-92. (They are "small" compared to
HP's older desktop calculators.) It became convenient to give each
"family" of calculators its own name. The original family, or series,
came to be known as the "Classic" series. The smaller models were
called the series 20 or the "Woodstock" series. The small desktop
printer models are the series 90 or "Topcat" series. The next series
after that were the two handheld printer models, known as the "Sting"
series, then came the series 30, or "Spice/Spike" series. As you can
see, some series are known by both a number and a name - one more
series like this is the series 10 or "Voyager" series; the HP-10C,
HP-11C, HP-12C, HP-15C and HP-16C. Model numbers are not always a
good guide to which series a calculator belongs to, though, so in
these "history" articles series are usually referred to by their name,
not by a number.
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HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - MODEL NUMBERS AND LETTERS
I have tried to keep these "history" articles short, but some will be
a bit longer - and this is one of them! It concerns those sometimes
mysterious letters which we find after the model number of our HP
handheld calculators and computers. The early HP handheld calculators
were all known simply by a model number; HP-35, HP-80, HP-45, HP-65,
HP-90, HP-25 and so on. At first, the model number was not even put on
the calculator - the early HP-35 and HP-80 calculators had only
"Hewlett.Packard" on the label, later ones had "Hewlett.Packard 35"
and so on. The first HP calculator with a letter as well as a number
was the HP-25C - this was a version of the HP-25 with "Continuous
Memory", in other words the contents of memory were not lost when the
calculator was turned off. The "C" obviously stood for "Continuous",
in fact the HP-25C, its successor the HP-29C, and the HP-19C which was
an HP-29C with a built-in printer, all had the words "Continuous
Memory" written along the bottom of the keyboard.
The next model with a letter was the HP-97S - this was a special
version of the HP-97, with a serial interface added on - you can guess
what the S stood for! The first series of HP calculators which had a
letter after the model number were the so-called "Spice/Spike" series,
or series 30. The first four did not have continuous memory and all
had the letter E after their model numbers, for example HP-31E or
HP-38E. The next four did have continuous memory, and had a C after
the model numbers, for example the HP-33C and the HP-38C. I assume
that the E was there to distinguish the models without continuous
memory from those with, but if anyone knows what the E stood for,
please let me know! The next series of models were the HP-41C, the
HP41CV, and then the HP-41CX. The "V" was a Roman five, to show that
the HP-41CV had five times as many data registers as the HP-41C, and
the "X" stood for "EXtended", because the HP-41CX was an HP-41CV with
many extensions built in, especially Extended functions and Extended
memory. This was the first time a model had two letters after the
number. The HP-41CV was followed by the HP-11C and HP-12C, and soon
after by the HP-15C, HP-16C and HP-10C.
The HP-10C was the first model which reused a model number - there had
already been an HP-10 - a handheld with a printer built in - a simpler
version of the HP-19C. People therefore began to put the letter A
after the names of models which had not had a letter, for example the
HP-10 began to be called the HP-10A to distinguish it from the HP-10C
(and later the HP-10B, the only case so far where the same number has
been used for three different models.) Even the HP-35 came to be
called the HP-35A. The next handheld model after the HP-10C was the
HP-75C handheld computer, but this was soon followed by the HP-71B
computer, and the HP-75D, a version of the HP-75C with a port for a
barcode reader. I have read reports that the HP-75C had originally
been planned to be called the HP-75D, presumably the D was to make it
one better than a C. Then the original HP-75 became the HP-75C, but
they already had HP-75D labels, and presumably used them for the later
version. Once again, I would welcome details! The "B" of the HP-71B is
to signify that it was a Basic language computer - but then so were
the 75C and 75D! The HP-94 handheld computer followed this pattern,
with three models called the HP-94D, HP-94E and HP-94F, the D, E and F
showing how much memory the three models had (64k, 128k and 256k).
The desktop series 80 computers had just a model number - HP-85, HP-81
and HP-83, but then an HP-85F was introduced; an HP-85 with extras, a
bit like the HP-94F.
After the HP-94 series, HP went back to just a "C", with the HP-18C
and the HP-28C, but these were replaced by the HP-19B and the HP-28S,
where the "B" and "S" stood for Business and Scientific. After that,
HP stuck to B and S for business models, such as the HP-10B, the
HP-14B, the HP-20S, the HP42S and so on. (I have always thought that
"Scientific" is a misnomer - these are really "Technical" calculators,
since they are used by mathematicians and engineers, not just
scientists.) There seem to be two exceptions - the HP-16C Computer
Science calculator, where the C could stand for "Computer", and the
HP21S Statistics / Maths calculator, where the S could stand for
"Statistics". At this point, HP introduced a new twist - the
HP-19BII, the HP-17BII, and then the HP-32SII, all three were improved
versions of earlier models without a II in the name. (In all three
cases the version II could work with both RPN and algebraic notation.)
The HP48SX went back to two letters after the name; they stand for
Scientific EXpandable. The cut-down version of the HP48SX, without
expansion ports, was therefore called the HP48S. Next in line came the
HP95LX; the letters stand for Lotus EXpandable, since the 95LX has
Lotus 1-2-3 built in. The later version, with 1 Megabyte of RAM
memory, is called the HP95LX1MB - the most complicated name so far.
(Those readers who are keen photographers might ponder the fact that
camera manufacturers seem to go for the same business of adding ever
more letters to new model names - though cameras are not the only
other product identified by a number and a letter.) Finally, as I
write this, HP have just introduced the HP100LX - no change there -
and the HP48G and HP48GX - these are new versions of the HP48S and
HP48SX, redesigned to emphasise that they are Graphical calculators.
Now, have you remembered all that? Then you'll be able to explain
exactly what the name means if HP introduce an HP42XLII. Answers on a
postcard, please!
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TRANSCENDENTAL COMPUTATION
The December 1992 meeting was our club's last chance to celebrate the
20th anniversary of the HP-35. I was sure HPCC members would like to
have a close look at some HP-35s, and to push some keys on them, so I
brought four to exhibit.
The HP-35 was the first handheld electronic calculator which could
calculate transcendental functions automatically. Transcendental
functions are those whose values cannot in general be expressed as
solutions to an algebraic equation. (Isn't that why we use RPN
instead? Sorry, silly joke.) If you want to know more about
transcendental functions, look at the appendix to this article.
Several changes were made in the HP-35 design during the time it was
made, before it was replaced by the HP-45. The HP-35s I brought showed
these changes.
* The earliest 35s had a small hole to the right of the on/off switch.
When the HP-35 was turned on, a red spot showed through this hole.
This was soon removed - you could see the HP-35 was on anyway, because
the display lit up! Even if the batteries were low, you could see the
switch was at the side marked ON.
* So long as the HP-35 was the only handheld calculator made by HP,
there was no need to put the model number on it; the label below the
keyboard just said "HEWLETT.PACKARD". The success of the HP-35 led HP
to introduce the HP-80, the first business model, and a model number
on the label became necessary. By the way, the HP-80 was a combined
calculator and set of financial tables, in the same way as the HP-35
was really a combined calculator and set of log tables - see the
appendix for more about this. That is not at all surprising - the
first mechanical calculators, such as Babbage's machines, were
designed specifically to print actuarial tables. Mind you, the HP-80
already had more features to exploit the availability of built-in
functions, and even had sigma+ and sigma- keys.
* All HP-35s have the numeric digits, pi, and the operations + - * /
and ENTER printed on the keys, but at first the other operations were
printed above their keys, on the keyboard. Later models have the other
functions on the keys as well. These later models also have the words
OFF and ON moulded into the keyboard, not printed on it next to the
on/off key. True HP-35 zealots will point out that these later models
also had one silver-painted line below the display, not two.
* Early HP-35s had some bugs! (So, what's new? Or old?) I included an
HP leaflet describing these bugs with my exhibits. One bug meant that
typing:
x
2.02 ln e
gives the result 2. instead of 2.02 but this bug was soon removed.
Another bug is that the sine of some small angles comes out completely
wrong - this was dealt with later than the other bug, but newer models
have neither bug.
* At first the HP-35 was made only in the USA (at the Advanced
Products Department in Cupertino - the calculator division moved
subsequently to Corvallis). Later on, the HP-35 was made in Singapore
too, which is what HP do with all the handheld calculators they make.
* The electronics inside the HP-35 was updated as well during the
lifetime of the product. I did not take any of these HP-35s apart to
show this though!
All this should be very clear then - a really early HP-35 have the red
dot, will have the 2.02 bug, have key function captions above the
keys, have a label which says "HEWLETT.PACKARD", and will have been
made in the USA. This was not the case with the HP-35s on show,
though! The one with the red dot did not have the bugs, and had a
label saying "HEWLETT.PACKARD 35". The only one with the 2.02 bug was
the latest model, with the new-style keyboard!
There are two explanations for this confusing state of affairs. First
of all, some people sent their HP-35s to HP to be fixed. The ROM chips
in these will have been updated, so the bugs are no longer there. At
the same time, if the label was coming loose, it will have been
replaced with a new one. (HP did the same to me once - I sent in an
HP-25 to be fixed - it was returned with a note saying that they no
longer had the required spare parts - but the label had been overlaid
with one which says HP-25C.) Secondly, the calculators were assembled
from parts held in large bins - it is quite possible that some older
parts were used in the assembly of newer calculators.
Anyway, the four HP-35s exhibited had all these features between them
- a red dot and none, labels above keys and on them, bugs and no bugs,
made in the USA and in Singapore. What's more, they all work - 20
years later! That's HP quality for you!
I included some other items. Unlike modern HP calculators, the old
models came in a plastic case, containing the calculator, a charger
cable, the manual with a list of corrections, and even some "PROPERTY
OF" labels so you could identify your calculator. You could buy spare
battery packs and chargers. If you really wanted to secure your HP-35,
you could buy a security cradle, which could be screwed down to a
surface, or held in place with a security cable.
Well, that's all! I hope people had fun looking at them - fortunately
I got all four back at the end of the day - not all of them were mine!
(Many thanks to Dr Bob Speer of the Spectroscopy group in the Physics
Department at Imperial College, where our club meets, who introduced
me to the HP-35 more than 20 years ago, and who loaned me some of his
35 collection to show.)
- - -
APPENDIX - TRANSCENDENTAL NUMBERS
Transcendental numbers are numbers which are the solutions of
transcendental equations - equations which transcend algebraic methods
- they cannot be solved purely by algebraic manipulation.
For example, SQRT(2) is not a transcendental number, because it is a
solution to the algebraic expression:
2
x - 2 = 0
SQRT(2) is an irrational number, because it cannot be expressed as the
ratio of any two integers. The discovery that this is so caused
ancient Greek mathematicians great grief, but that is another story.
On the other hand, pi is a transcendental number, because no
expression can be written of the type:
n n-1
a x + a x + ... + a x + a = 0
n n-1 1 0
to which x=pi is a solution, so long as a finite number n of terms is
used. Pi can only be expressed exactly if n is allowed to be infinite.
Pi is the solution to the equation:
C = 2*pi*r
where C is the circumference of a circle and r is the radius, but
getting pi exactly from this equation again requires an infinite
number of steps. In this case, this is because measuring C exactly
with a straight ruler requires that an infinite number of
infinitesimally small pieces of the circumference be measured.
Why a straight ruler? A practical reason is that straight edges are
comparatively easy to make - and a straight edge can be converted into
a ruler just by laying it next to another straight edge which has
already been marked out, and copying the marks. The insistence on a
straight ruler comes from the ancient Greek foundations of geometry,
based on their philosophical notions, but in this case, the philosophy
was based very sensibly on the practical limitations of their
technology. Indeed the whole business of treating transcendental
numbers as special in some way comes largely from philosophical
notions.
In practice, calculating any irrational number, whether transcendental
or not, is done by means of a series of repeated approximations. If
you have only a simple four-function calculator then you can calculate
SQRT(2) or pi by making a set of approximations. The earliest handheld
electronic calculators could be used to calculate square roots and so
on only this way. In fact, it was simpler to carry round a set of
printed mathematical tables with your calculator, look up a square
root, log, sine, or whatever, and type it into the calculator to use
it. In effect the calculator had to be used with a book of tables.
(These books were commonly called "log tables", though they usually
contained tables of trigonometric functions and square roots as well.)
Then a few calculators were designed which could calculate percentages
as well as carrying out the four basic operations + - * / . The step
after came with calculators which automatically calculated square
roots. This could be done because a short program was built into the
calculator to make the required set of approximations. A program to do
this can be very short, involving repeatedly halving the difference
between the square of the current approximation and the number whose
square root is to be found.
The HP-35 took the next step, providing keys to calculate not only
square roots, but also transcendental functions - trigonometric
functions, and inverse trigonometric functions, exponentials and
logarithms. Packing all this into a handheld calculator required far
more programming! HP managed to fit their programs in a small, low-
power, handheld unit by using an exceptionally clever and fast method
of calculating these functions - the Cordic technique. All HP
calculators since the HP-35 have used this same technique to provide
compact and fast (and therefore low-power) calculation. If you want to
know more about the method, see the article from the HP journal which
introduced the HP-35. [ Note from Craig: see the bibliography for
another reference to an article on Cordic techniques. ]
It was this ability to calculate transcendental functions
automatically and rapidly which made it a huge success, and led to
HP's further advances in calculators. One thing to note is that the
HP-35 was designed to work for the users who previously carried a
table of functions with their four-function calculators. Instead of
looking up a function and typing it on the calculator, the user could
now type in a number and press a button to get the function value. The
HP-35 was really a combined calculator and set of log tables - it was
only later models which began to go beyond this to a fuller
exploitation of the things this made possible. But it was the HP-35
which began it all. Meditate transcendentally on that if you will!
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CALCULATOR HISTORY - STARTING A COLLECTION
by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
After reading some of these articles about calculator history, you
might decide to start your own collection. This article deals with two
questions. 1. Why collect calculators? 2. How to start a collection?
Why, indeed, collect calculators? A few people who collect them run a
museum, or a club library, or write books about them, and NEED such a
collection. Some people collect them as an investment - but collecting
ANYTHING as an investment is dangerous - once the investors outnumber
the collectors, the market usually collapses, as has happened with
stamps and antique paintings, for example. Most people collect things
because they have inherited the collecting bug, or instinct. But then,
why calculators? Well, to compare them with some other things people
collect, they smell better than cheese labels, they take up less space
than lawnmowers, and they are more exotic than stamps! Besides, if you
are a member of HPCC then you already have an interest in HP
calculators, and are well placed to collect them. In the long run,
though, collecting calculators is likely to be just a hobby, and it
might become an expensive one, so think carefully before you decide to
collect them.
How do you start a collection? DATAFILE readers might well have a
collection already - many of us have older HP calculators which we
have replaced with newer ones, but which we have never sold or given
away. If you have a bunch of old calculators at home, this can form
the basis of your collection, and it can determine the sort of
collection you decide to set up. Deciding what sort of collection you
want is important - you should not begin with the aim of getting every
single HP calculator ever made - you would be unlikely to succeed, and
the effort might bankrupt you! You could for example decide to
specialise, collecting items related to one particular model, or one
family of calculators. My suggestion is that a budding collector
should begin with handheld calculators only, and try to get one
calculator from each family.
This means you would ignore the computers, the printing calculators,
and the watches. That cuts things down to a manageable level. Now, try
to get just one model from the Classic family (HP-35, 45, 55, 65, 67,
70, 80). Similarly, try to get one model from the Woodstock family
(HP-21, 22, 25, 25C, 27, 29C). The same goes for the Spice/Spike
family (31E, 32E, 33E, 33C, 34C, 37E, 38E, 38C), the Woodstock family
(HP-10C, 11C, 12C, 15C, 16C), the Champion family (HP-18B, 19B, 19BII,
28C, 28S) and the Pioneer family (HP10B, 14B, 17B, 17BII, 20S, 21S,
22S, 27S, 32S, 32SII, 42S). The three HP-41 models (HP-41C, 41CV,
41CX) also make up a family, as do the four HP-48 models (HP48S, 48SX,
48G, 48GX). You might like to add an HP-71B, since it is both a
computer and a calculator, and you can get one for less than #20 from
Tuscan Consultants at the moment.
That's a minimum of nine! If this is too many, you could choose to
collect only older models, say ones with LED displays (the ones with
shining red numbers). If even this seems a bit much, you might decide
the whole thing is a bad idea. Don't give up at once though; you might
be able to swap calculators you already have for others, or pick up
some old ones from friends or local secondhand dealers. I'll make more
suggestions on collecting in future articles.
------------------------------------------------------------
HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-55
Introduced on January 1 1975, this was the sixth handheld electronic
calculator sold by HP, and the fourth scientific model. Its code name
was "Merlin" - something to do with wizardry, no doubt. It was
introduced a few days less than a year after the HP-65, as an
alternative, and cheaper, programmable calculator. It did not have the
card reader of the HP-65, had fewer program steps, and fewer
mathematical functions than the HP-65 - no ABS function for example.
Instead it had more data registers, a range of conversion functions -
to and from metric measure, temperature conversions, and so on - and
also statistics functions. It also had, for the first time in an HP
handheld calculator, a real built-in stopwatch - an "official" version
of the stopwatch earlier found on some HP-45 models. The HP-55 is an
interesting step in the development of the HP handheld range,
especially the stopwatch, but it seems to have generated less
excitement among the HP fans than the HP-65. Nevertheless, it is
eagerly sought after by collectors.
------------------------------------------------------------
HP48G/GX RULES OK!
The new HP48G and HP48GX models provide ample territory for people
looking for features that are little documented or completely
undocumented. One such feature has been mentioned on electronic
bulletin boards and I described it during the 1993 HPCC one-day
conference. Since the conference, Daniel Legendre has written to me
about the same feature, which reminds me that it has not yet been seen
in DATAFILE - my thanks to Daniel for reminding me of it.
To see this trick, just type the command RULES on an HP48G or HP48GX
and press ENTER. You will see a crossword-style layout of the names of
the team members who worked on the HP48G/GX project! The first name
across the top is DIANA - Diana Byrne, who led the team, and who
visited HPCC earlier this year. HPCC members might recognise some of
the other names too - BILL is Dr Bill Wickes, JIM is Jim Donnelly,
DENNIS is Dennis York - all have visited HPCC. As for the other names,
and the mysterious ALCUIN, well that's for another short article!
- - -
Now for an article which I wrote tonight - it's one I have been
planning for a long time, and your expression of regret at not getting
the ones I had not yet writen encouraged me to write it down!
- - -
CALCULATOR HISTORY - SPECIALISING
If you collect HP calculators actively, not be the sheer force of the
fact that you buy a new one every so often, then you should think
about the sort of collection you plan to build up. I have already
written in an earlier article that trying to get one of everything is
likely to be futile. I suggested that one alternative is to
specialise. How could you do this?
One way is to choose a particular model and try to collect different
types. For example the HP-35 had three different keyboards, it was
made in the USA and in Singapore, and early models had just the words
Hewlett Packard on the front whereas later ones had the model number
too. Furthermore, early ones had several bugs, later ones had some of
these bugs removed, and still later ones had all the bugs removed. It
could be very interesting to try getting several HP-35 calculators,
showing all these varieties.
Another model that is interesting to specialise in is the HP-41. There
are three basic versions - the HP-41C, HP-41CV and HP-41CX. Each can
be found in the original style, and also in the "halfnut" style - with
a rounded black mask around the display and with a much simpler
internal layout. There are many different versions of the internal
electronics and programs. There are models made in the USA and in
Singapore. There is even the "blanknut" - an HP-41 with no function
names on the keyboard. Beyond all this, there is a range of
accessories made by HP, such as plug-in modules, printers, card
readers, most of which come in several versions themselves. Then there
are the various manuals and solution books published by HP, and after
that there is the enormous range of publications and accessories made
by companies other than HP.
If you really want to study a model in detail you might find ways to
get early prototypes, mock-ups, and production plans from HP. These
are VERY difficult to get, but some items, such as detailed
documentation, repair manuals, or diagnostic modules, were available
from HP if you knew who to ask.
If you decide to specialise, do choose something which interests you,
and something you can reasonably expect to collect. There is no point
trying to collect many HP-35s if you live in a country where no-one
ever used an HP-35, nor in trying to build up a comprehensive
collection of HP-01 models if you are not willing to pay more than $5
each! Try to treat your collecting as fun!
___________________
CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE RARITIES
by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
Some collectors collect things out of interest - others like to treat
collecting as a challenge! (Most, of course, are somewhere in
between.) Those who want to make it a challenge will want to get the
rarest items - the rarest stamp, the most perfect El Greco, the
largest diamond ... or maybe the rarest HP calculator. Of course if
you want to get the rarest, then you first need to know what is
rarest, and that is the subject of this article. Well, there is a
second subject, but I'll come to that later.
The rarest HP calculators are one-off items, such as mock-ups of
proposed new models, or test versions made to help at the design
stage, or handsets which look like the planned calculator but have to
be plugged into a box of electronics which contains the actual
programming being tested. None of these are real calculators, though,
so most collectors leave them alone. They do not really count! (Or
should I say they really do not count? My thanks to Frank Wales for
pointing this out to me!) Still, some people would give an arm and a
leg for one - for example HP thought of following the HP-01 LED watch
with an LCD version to be called the HP-02. I don't know if any HP-02
mock-ups were ever made, but I know there are people who would try to
get one the same way as the man in the parable who sold all his
worldly possessions to get the pearl of great price.
The next rarest are working prototypes. HP sometimes design a product,
make a preliminary batch, then decide not to put it into commercial
production. In the case of calculators, the HP-95C is the only example
I know where this happened, and, again, there are collectors who would
(nearly) kill to get one. Still, if the product was never sold to the
public then most collectors - sensibly - see no reason to try getting
one for their collection.
Next come some very rare models which were sold to the public, but did
not sell well. The HP-01 calculator watch is one of the rarest - HP
treated it as a luxury product and sold it through selected jewellers
and watch sellers, not through calculator dealers. It was very
expensive for a watch - particularly the gold model - you could get a
Rolex for the same sort of price - and it was introduced shortly
before red LED (Light Emitting Diode) displays were replaced by the
much more efficient, less battery-hungry, and permanently visible LCDs
(Liquid Crystal Displays). So, it did not sell at all well. If you can
get one, well done, but many calculator collectors do not bother with
it, since even HP treated it as a watch, not a calculator.
The three different HP-94 handheld computers are very rare too. They
were designed for companies to buy in bulk, to be programmed for
special purposes such as stock-keeping. There was significant interest
in this model, but each interested company initially bought only a
few, to write and test their programs, before buying in bulk. By the
time the companies had their programs ready and were ready to buy in
bulk, HP had decided the HP-94 was not selling well enough, and
withdrawn the product! Actually, the HP-94 was not made by HP - it was
made for HP by Fujitsu, and only had an HP label. So, it was not
really an HP product, and is ignored by most collectors, except those
lucky enough to have got one.
Another class of rare model is the "special". For example the HP-97S
was an HP-97 slightly redesigned and with an add-on box which made it
possible to connect it to electronic equipment to take readings or
control that equipment. Many collectors would treat this as a
"special" version of the HP-97, and would not bother to try to get
one. A different example is provided by special versions of
calculators which just have an extra logo on the case. A batch of
HP14B and of HP32S calculators like this was made for the 50th
anniversary of HP. Similarly, a special run of HP28S calculators was
made at the introduction of the HP28S, with a logo commemorating the
100th anniversary of the American Mathematical Society - these were
presented to mathematicians at a conference organised on this
centenary. (See the separate article in a recent DATAFILE by Bill
Wickes about the introduction of this model.) There is nothing special
about these calculators apart from the wording or pattern of the case,
and some collectors want these for their collections, but most are not
bothered.
With some models, HP make a few calculators which work as normal but
are in a transparent plastic case, not the normal HP black (or dark
green or dark blue) plastic case. These are designed to let people see
the insides of the calculator - maybe to let them see how well it is
made, and how much gold plating goes into an HP calculator - no doubt
justifying its high price. It is nice to have one of these, but they
really are a "special", not a different model, so most collectors do
not feel a vital need to have one.
Well, that about covers the rarest HP calculators - and at the same
time gives you an excuse you can give in each case for not having one!
That was the other subject of this article - why you need not feel
deprived if you can not get these rarities. In a future article I
shall look at some other HP calculators which are hard to get, but
definitely are worth trying to find.
___________________
HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-21
by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
Introduced on February 1 1975, just a month after the HP-55, this was
the seventh handheld electronic calculator sold by HP, and the first
to look different from the original HP-35 shape. The model number
showed that it was to be the first of a new family - the "series 20"
or "Woodstock" series. Its code name was "Pumpkin" - it was a small,
non-programmable handheld calculator with lots of scientific
functions. Its main attractions were its small size - which made it
easier to fit in a pocket than the "Classic" models, and easier to use
with one hand - and its low price, for those days, of $125.
___________________
CALCULATOR HISTORY - HARD TO GET
by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
In my article about calculator rarities I described those HP
calculators which are so rare that collectors are entitled to ignore
them! Beyond those, there are some other models which you should be
able to find, but which can be hard to get. This is not to say that
they are rare - some are fairly common, but are mostly in the hands of
people who refuse to sell them, or of people who do not know that
anyone might want them. What counts is how easy or hard it is to get a
particular model - and that can be a question of personal experience -
so be warned that this article is based largely on my own experiences
and those of a few friends. If I write that model x is very hard to
get, and you happen to have access to 10 model x calculators, then
please get one for me, and write to me - I'll buy it off you and shall
be happy to write another article saying that perhaps model x is not
so rare after all.
In my experience so far, it is especially difficult to get hold of HP
calculators with built-in printers, and it is moderately difficult to
get most financial models. The ones with built-in printers are easy to
explain - they are always more expensive, so fewer are sold. What is
more, those which are sold tend to stay in use for a very long time,
since the investment in them was high. Eventually they break down and
get thrown away. So, the desktop models HP-91, HP-92 and HP-97 are all
difficult to find. The HP-97 is probably the easiest to find of the
three - it was a partner to the HP-67 and it would seem that a lot
were sold - HP found it difficult to cancel this model because
customers kept wanting more. The handheld printing models, the HP-10
and HP-19C had an extra problem - the printers tended to break down -
perhaps because they were just too small - so fewer were sold, and
more were thrown away.
I have difficulty getting financial models probably because I have
access mostly to users of technical models - HPCC members, university
staff, maths teachers, and such people. Relatively few of my friends
and acquaintances are financial wizards who would have old unwanted HP
financial calculators! In those cases where I have managed to find
financial models, there seems to be a rule which goes as follows. If
there are two similar models, one at a higher price than the other,
then it is the cheaper one that is rarer. Presumably financiers are
willing to pay the extra to get the better model! Thus, the HP-70 was
released a year after the HP-80, as a cheaper financial model - the
HP-80 is still fairly common, whereas the HP-70 is very hard to find.
Similarly, the HP-27 was a powerful financial model, with technical
functions too, and the cheaper HP-22 which had fewer functions is much
rarer. Even quite recently, the HP14B sold much less well than the
HP17B, its closest rival, and was discontinued. In this case, though,
the even cheaper HP10B is still on sale.
One thing which puzzles me is the relative scarcity of series 30
models. I have found it easier to locate older models, of the Classic
series or series 20, and newer models such as HP-41s or series 10
models. At the time when they were on sale, the series 30 models were
criticised for being less classy and less robust than their
predecessors. Maybe fewer were sold as a result, or maybe more broke
and got thrown away. But they might still be in use, or in their
owner's desk drawers - anyway, most are still missing from my
collection.
The handheld computers - HP-75C, HP-75D, HP-71B are not that difficult
to find, even though relatively few were sold. They were expensive and
even now most owners prefer to sell an old one rather than throw it
away. Besides, second-hand stocks of the HP-75D and the HP-71B are
being sold by EduCALC and the HP-71B is being sold both second-hand
and unused by Tuscan Consultants. The HP-75C is probably harder to
find, and the HP-94D, 94E and 94F are extremely rare, as I mentioned
in the previous article.
One surprise is that I have not been able to find an HP-10C yet. This
was the cheapest model of the Voyager series (series 10) - it was a
student model designed to undercut even the HP-11C. I would have
thought it should have sold well - but I have only ever come across
one - and that was owned by a colleague who uses it all the time and
refuses to part with it! I wonder - perhaps most owners are equally
attached to their HP10Cs.
I have not yet mentioned the more recently discontinued models, except
the HP14B. The HP17B, HP18C and HP19B - predecessors of the HP17BII
and HP19BII are fairly easy to find. The HP27S is more difficult, and
the HP22S seems to be particularly rare - I wish I had got one while
they were on sale - it is a very interesting attempt by HP to break
into Casio's market of calculators with built-in formulae. The HP-16C
- a specialist computer science model - seems to be fairly common, but
is in great demand and fetches a very good price if you can get one.
Many computer science people have bought a second one so as to have a
spare - I have a few spares myself! I wonder if the rapidly
discontinued HP21S Statistician will become a desirable item in the
same way. The HP-32S, predecessor of the HP32SII, came in two
varieties - the earlier models had a glass cover over the display
whereas the later models have a bigger display without a second piece
of glass above it. I am still looking for one of the latter - they
seem to be rare, but that might be because most are still in use.
Finally, there are the models which are still on sale - none can be
said to be hard to get, except that you naturally have to pay the full
price for them, unless you are lucky enough to find someone selling a
second-hand one. Anybody got an old HP-10B they would sell me?
___________________
HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-25
by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
Introduced on August 1 1975, six months after the HP-21, this was the
eighth equal (with the HP-22) handheld electronic calculator sold by
HP, and the first really powerful yet small technical model - the same
size as the HP-21 but with more functions, and programmable to boot.
Its 49 step program memory and 8 data registers allowed a surprising
amount of work to be done - for example a 42-step integration program
left 7 steps to define a quite complicated equation to be integrated
numerically. The combination of small size and programmability made it
an especially useful tool in cases where one-handed operation was
needed. You could write a program to do a calculation, then hold the
HP-25 in the palm of the hand, type in a number, and press the R/S key
to run the program and get the answer, all with your thumb, leaving
your other hand free. Only the Series 30 models will also let you work
the same way - just - not even the later Voyager or current Pioneer
models are small enough to allow this! It became very popular - many
people who could not afford an HP-65 or HP-67 used an HP-25 instead,
and then moved to the HP-41 when that was introduced. Its codename,
"Squash", might be an allusion to the amount of functionality squashed
into such a small package; in any case it naturally follows the HP-21
name "Pumpkin".
___________________
HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-22
by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
Introduced on August 1 1975, six months after the HP-21, this was the
eighth equal (with the HP-25) handheld electronic calculator sold by
HP - the business counterpart of the HP-21, and the same size. It was
not programmable but provided a useful range of business functions,
including statistics. Like other HP business models it had the
n i PMT PV FV functions along the top row, but it also had an ACC
command to compute accumulated interest and a BAL command to compute
remaining balance. Its small size, 10 data registers and the fairly
low price of $165 probably made it appeal to business users, but the
HP27 introduced 5 months later at only $35 more, and with far more
functions quickly reduced its sales, so it is rather difficult to find
now. Its codename of "Turnip" carried on the tradition of calling
these models after vegetables.
___________________
HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-91
by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
Introduced on March 1 1976, this was the tenth small electronic
calculator sold by HP - but the first one too big to be considered a
"handheld". HP called it a "Scientific Portable Printing Calculator"
to distinguish it from the smaller models and from their much bigger
desktop models. It introduced HP's third family of calculators after
the original Classic family and the small Woodstock models, the Topcat
family. It was not programmable, had 16 storage registers, a standard
set of scientific and RPN functions, statistical functions, and of
course the printing functions - print the X register, the stack, the
statistics registers, and all registers. It had linear regression and
H.MS arithmetic but no functions to convert between units. The printer
was a thermal model - using temperature sensitive paper, more
expensive than ordinary paper but saving the trouble of fiddling about
to change a ribbon. Since the HP-91 could not be called a "handheld
calculator" the question arises whether it should be included in this
series of articles about the history of handheld HP calculators - see
the article "HP Calculator History - What Are We Talking About?". As
befits a top cat, the HP-91 codename was "Felix".
___________________
HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - WHAT ARE WE TALKING ABOUT?
by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
In these short history articles we have come as far as the HP-91.
This is too big to be described as a "handheld calculator", which
leads to the question - what exactly are we talking about in these
articles? I began with the HP-35 - the first handheld electronic
calculator from HP; before that, HP made only electronic calculators
nearly as big as a desktop computer. From the 35 to the HP-91 any HP
calculator with a model number of two digits is a handheld calculator.
The HP-91 was still a calculator, and much smaller than the big
desktop models, but it can not really be called handheld. It is
related to the handhelds, though, and worth studying with them, so
instead of talking about "handheld" calculators, I shall use a
different adjective: "small" calculators. A further ambiguity arises
when we begin to ask if a particular model is a programmable
calculator or a handheld computer - we could call the HP-65 and HP-67
either, and we can certainly call the HP-41 both - but that means we
can include them in a history of small calculators. The HP-01 is both
a wristwatch and a calculator, so it too can be included. The HP-75C
causes more trouble - it is a handheld computer, programmed in Basic,
and the designers went to some trouble to distinguish it from a
calculator - for instance its display does not show the current angle
mode nor the status of any flags. People who want to make a point of
studying or collecting only calculators would not include it in their
list, but those interested in the development of HP handhelds overall
do include it. In any case, the HP-75C was closely related to HP
handheld calculators, and led directly to the HP-71B which was a
smaller handheld computer, but with a calculator mode. On the basis of
taking an interest in any handheld related to HP calculators, the HP-
75D, HP-71B, all three HP-94 models, and even the HP-95LX and HP-100LX
should be included too. I shall even make a brief mention of the
desktop series 80 models, which led to the HP-75C, and of the HP-81
and HP-46 - desktop versions of the HP-80 and the HP-45. In fact, I
plan to include in these articles any handheld or easily portable
calculator or computer with a model number less than or equal to 100.
The next size up, the HP-110 and HP Portable Plus, do not really fit.
I am still not sure about the OmniBooks - they are bigger but are in
many ways enlarged versions of the HP95LX. What would happen if HP
were to introduce an HP100LX successor called the HP105LX or the
HP200WP? I suppose I would include them in this series if they proved
to be of interest to enough HPCC members!
___________________
HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-27
by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
Introduced on May 1 1976, this was the eleventh small electronic
calculator sold by HP and the fourth member of the Woodstock family.
It was not programmable but provided a wide range of business,
scientific and statistical functions. (In fact the nearest model to
its concept since then has been the HP-27S!) One way to distinguish it
from the HP-25 is to see that its two shift keys are gold and black,
not gold and blue. To distinguish it from the HP-22, you can note that
the standard business functions n i PMT PV FV are gold-shifted
functions on the second row of keys. The statistics include
computation of variance and normal distribution parameters in addition
to the usual functions. It was only the second handheld, after the
HP-45, to provide recall arithmetic. (See the separate article about
this.) This was an ideal model for anyone who did not need
programmability - business users who sometimes needed technical
functions and technical users who wanted to do business calculations,
and the HP-27 apparently cut into sales of the HP-22. Its codename
"Salad" seems to acknowledge that it was a mixture of various good
things!
___________________
HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - STO AND RCL ARITHMETIC
by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
The HP-27 was only the second calculator to provide an unusual but
useful feature called "recall arithmetic". Much more common on HP
calculators is "storage arithmetic". Early calculators, especially
those which did not have a stack like HP models, often provided an
extra register, usually called M (for Memory), to let the user store
information which would not be needed until later. Sometimes this
register could be used to "accumulate" values, in other words add up a
set of results - this was done with a key marked M+ - add to the
Memory register. HP, in their usual thorough manner, expanded on this
idea. First of all, they gave the user more than one M register -
usually 4 or more "storage registers". Secondly, they let the user not
only add to these registers, but also subtract from them, and multiply
and divide them. All these operations on storage registers are called
"storage arithmetic" - the number in register X is used to do
arithmetic on a storage register. A simple example of the use of
storage arithmetic might be the calculation of compound interest - you
store the original amount in a storage register, then use the stack to
calculate the interest rate separately for each month in a year, and
multiply the register by one plus that month's interest rate. I hasten
to add that this idea is not restricted to old-style RPN calculators,
exactly the same works in RPL, except that the number to use is stored
in level 1 instead of stack register X, and works on a named variable
instead of a numbered storage register. It even works on HP's
algebraic calculators.
Extensions are possible to this idea. One is to increase the number of
operations which can be carried out on a storage register - must we be
limited to + - * and / ? If division is written STO/ nn to mean
"divide the contents of register nn by the contents of X" then it
should be possible to write STO^ nn to mean "set the contents of
register nn to the power given in X". I made this suggestion in
DATAFILE V3N3p22, the Summer 1984 issue (gosh, 10 years ago!), and I
was delighted to find that HP did add this function when they brought
out the HP-18C in June 1986. (It was kept in models derived from the
HP-18C, the 17B, 17BII, 19B, 19BII and 27S, but was not put in other
models.)
A second possible extension is to work in reverse, just as RCL nn is
the opposite of STO nn - it recalls the contents of register nn to X
instead of storing X in nn - so RCL+ nn could be used to recall the
contents of register nn and add them to the contents of X, instead of
adding X to the contents of register nn. This might seem less useful
than storage arithmetic, but look again at the example of following a
compound interest over a year. You could calculate the growth rate for
each of 12 months, and store it in registers 01, 02 and so on up to
12. Then to see how your capital grows (or falls!) through the year,
you would put the original sum in X, do RCL* 01 to see the growth in
month 1, then RCL* 02, and so on up to RCL* 12. At each step, the
compounded sum would be seen in the display, not hidden in some
register as was the case when storage arithmetic was used. Recall
arithmetic was introduced along with storage arithmetic on HP's third
handheld calculator, the HP-45, but then someone lost enthusiasm for
it - it was next seen only on the HP-27, the eleventh model. The
following model with recall arithmetic was the HP-15C, HP's 32nd model
and the first programmable with RCL arithmetic - which is very useful
on programmable RPN calculators because it lets you do arithmetic on
the stack without changing registers X, Y, Z, T or L. Since then only
the HP-32S (HP's model 49), the HP-42S (model 51) and most recently
the HP32SII (model 58) have recall arithmetic. Recall arithmetic is
not vital on calculators which have the general "register exchange"
command X<> nn, since for example RCL+ nn can be replaced with X<> nn
STO+ nn X<> nn, but RCL+ nn is faster and more compact. It is an
interesting feature, but clearly HP have not put much emphasis on it,
probably because few users exploited it. Pity - but at least we can
say that two current models have recall arithmetic!
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CALCULATOR HISTORY - A SPECIAL DAY?
by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
Following the HP-27, HP's 11th calculator, introduced on May 1 1976,
HP announced three calculators all on the same day - July 1 1976.
These were the HP-25C, HP-67A, and HP-97A - that's equal 12th position
for 3 models, so they are really 12th to 14th. What's more, there was
the HP-95C which would probably have been announced at the same time
too, but was cancelled.
Three models introduced on the same day is not a record - exactly a
year later HP introduced another three models, exactly two years later
they introduced two models, and then on the same day in 1979, three
years later, they announced five models! What's more, another two
models were announced on the same day in 1982. I wonder what it is
about the first of July that made HP like it as a day for introducing
new models. The Fourth of July might seem more appropriate for a
company from the United States!
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CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-25C
by Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
The HP-25C was introduced with the HP-67A and the HP-97A on the first
of July 1976. It was the fifth member of the Woodstock family of small
handheld calculators. Apart from one significant difference it was
exactly the same as its predecessor, the HP-25A. Even its codename
"Squish" and its $200 price were similar to the codename "Squash" and
the $195 price of the HP25A. If the codename Squash suggested that a
lot of features had been squashed into such a small package then the
name Squish correctly implied that yet another feature had been
squeezed in. This feature - the significant difference - was that the
HP-25C was the first calculator with "Continuous Memory", as denoted
by the letter C after its model number. This was very important - for
the first time users could turn their handheld calculator off without
losing the contents of its memory. Naturally, as soon as you had this
advantage you would want to write longer programs, since you would not
have to retype them every time you turned on the calculator. The
desire to store longer programs was dealt with in two ways - the use
of cards instead of continuous memory, as already provided by the HP-
65A and extended by the HP-67A and HP-97A - or the provision of more
memory, as on the HP-25C successor, the HP-29C. The HP-25C also
introduced the idea of an upgrade to a model instead of its
replacement by a different model - something we are familiar with
nowadays, as in the case of the HP48 family.
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HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-67
Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
Introduced on July 1 1976 with the codename "Hawkeye", together with
the HP-25C and the HP-97, this was essentially an upgraded HP-65. The
competition were catching up and HP had to overtake them (did the
codename mean that HP were keeping a sharp lookout for the
opposition?), so the HP-67 improved on the HP-65 with new functions,
more memory, and the ability to store data as well as programs on
magnetic cards. One interesting extra was a second set of ten
registers, called the "secondary storage registers". The "primary" and
"secondary" registers could be swapped so the secondary ones could be
used to hide a set of values while some other calculation was carried
out using a new primary set. These secondary registers were used by
the statistics functions, avoiding the problem common on HP
calculators that statistics operations destroy data in some of the
numbered registers. Another interesting extra was "rapid reverse
branching" - in addition to going directly to program labels, the
calculator allowed indirect GOTO commands, via an intermediate
register "I", and if "I" contained a negative number then the program
would jump backwards by that number of program steps. Since the
negative number could be as large as you wished, it could be used to
jump backwards past the first program step, and past the last program
step, so this technique could even be used to jump forwards in a
program without the need for a label. It also allowed execution of
subroutines. The HP-67 had so many functions that the designers added
a third shift key, in black marked h to the yellow and blue f and g
shift keys already used by the HP-65. (The HP-65 had only a partial
third shift key, [f-1], to give the inverse of some functions.) To
allow the HP-67 to be fully compatible with its printing version, the
HP-97, it had four special commands. The command [-x-] paused a
program for 5 seconds and displayed the contents of x, whereas on the
HP-97 this was [PRINTx] which printed the contents of register x.
(Note that this developed into the VIEW function on the HP-41.) The
command [STK] displayed the stack registers T, Z, Y and X sequentially
whereas on the HP-97 this became PRINT:[STACK]. The command [REG]
displayed the contents of each primary register (0 to 9) whereas
PRINT:[REG] printed all the primary registers. (On the HP-41 PRSTK and
PRREG were functions built into the printer, not the HP-41 itself.)
[SPACE] did nothing on the HP-67 whereas on the HP-97 it became
PRINT:[SPACE] which (obviously) printed a space (a blank line). (The
HP-41 had a similar do-nothing function called ADV, which advanced the
paper by a blank line if a printer was attached.) The HP-67 was one of
the first calculators to allow the creation of "non-standard"
instructions - ones which were not mentioned in the manuals and could
not be entered from the keyboard. One way they were entered was by
very briefly interrupting the power supply - in fact special "phase"
boxes were made by keen users, these would introduce a switch between
the battery and one of its contacts, and the box would be used to
interrupt power for a selected (short) time to generate a particular
instruction. This allowed specialists to study the way instructions
were stored inside the HP-67. One useful tool was the saving of such
non-standard HP-67 instructions on magnetic cards, which could then be
used to add non-programmable steps to programs (the HP-67 had a
program MERGE command) without the need to create the instructions
again. These special cards, and tables of HP-67 instructions, were
among the tools used to develop "Synthetic Programming" on the later
HP-41 calculators. The HP-67 was the last calculator of the "Classic"
family, and as the notes in brackets show, it was a precursor to the
HP-41 family.
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HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-97
Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
Introduced on July 1 1976, together with the HP-25C and the HP-67,
this was a printing version of the HP-67, in the same shape and size
as the earlier HP-91. The code name "Kitty Hawk" combines "Kitty" to
show this is a member of the "Topcat" family of calculators with
"Hawk" to show the relationship with the HP-67 whose codename was
"Hawkeye". Programs written for the HP-67 and the HP-97 are fully
interchangeable - a magnetic card written on one model can be read by
the other. To make this possible, four printing commands on the HP-97
had non-printing equivalents on the HP-67, as mentioned in the history
article describing the HP-67. A fifth command, PRINT:[PRGM] had no
equivalent on the HP-67, but it was not programmable so this did not
affect the compatibility of programs saved on magnetic cards. Like the
HP-67, the HP-97 could be made to store "non-standard" instructions -
this led to some interesting displays and printouts, but the printer
could be made to overheat and burn out its printhead if such
instructions were applied carelessly. As on the HP-91, the printer
could be set to one of three modes; MANual, TRACE and NORMal - the
HP-95C (see separate history article) and later the HP-41 printers had
the same modes. The availability of a larger keyboard and more keys
meant that the HP-97 had only one shift key, as opposed to three on
the HP-67. (This use of just one yellow shift key was carried over to
the HP-41; the ALPHA key could be treated as another shift key, but
really it was a mode change key.) The large keys used for common
functions, the large and bright LED display, and the ease of saving
programs and data on magnetic cards, made this a popular calculator -
so much so that HP kept it in production for several years after the
HP-41 had replaced the HP-67.
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HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-95C
Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
The HP-95C was developed at the same time as the HP-25C, the HP-67 and
the HP-97, but was never sold to the public. This makes it extremely
interesting to collectors and historians of HP calculators, so I
include it in this set of HP history articles. I believe that fewer
than 20 exist; most readers will never have the chance to see one, so
I have put a photograph of it on the cover of this issue of DATAFILE.
It was apparently meant to be a printing version of the HP-25C, much
as the HP-97 was a printing version of the HP-67. Unlike the HP-97 it
did not have exactly the same functions as its non-printing version -
some functions were unusual, and I shall mention them below. The HP-
95C was probably not released because it would have competed with the
HP-97 and would have required an extra production line, in addition to
those set up for the HP-91 and HP-97. (This is not unusual; HP develop
many new products which are then never sold - it is a concern to some
HP engineers that many of the most interesting and time-consuming
projects they work on cannot be mentioned in their CV.) The units
which were made were "pre-production" models, for testing at HP; one
sign of this is that they do not have serial numbers stamped on them.
Manuals and solution books for the HP-95C had already been printed
before the decision not to manufacture it, so they exist in larger
numbers than the calculators, but they too are rare - I do not have
either myself (and would be happy to hear from anyone who has any
spares or could make photocopies for me!)
If you study the photograph you will see keys marked A B C D
below the display. These were used to create labels, to execute and go
to programs with these labels, and even to clear programs marked by
these labels. No such keys were available on the HP-91 and HP-97,
though the top row of HP-67 and HP-97 keys could be used to execute
program sections beginning with labels A, B, C, D and E (and a, b, c,
d, e). The idea of such keys below the display and used for a special
purpose may have developed from the top row of keys used on HP's
financial calculators. On the HP-95C, though, these keys were used
differently - a Label A, B, C or D started a new program whose steps
were labelled A000, A001, A002 and so on, then B000, B001, and so on.
(The same scheme is used on the HP-32S and HP32SII but I do not think
it has been used on any other HP calculator.) Numbered labels could be
used separately in each program - label 1 in program A would be found
by a GTO 1 step in program A, and label 1 in program B would be found
by a GTO 1 in program B. This separated programs very neatly but meant
that GTO (go to label) and GSB (go to a subroutine at a label) steps
would not allow program A (for example) to use some program steps
inside program B. To allow this, a separate JUMP instruction was
provided on the HP-95C. (You might have noticed this in the
photograph, below the GTO key next to the yellow and blue f and g keys
in the bottom row.) This let you jump into a specified program to a
chosen label in that program; for example the program step JPB1 meant
"jump into the program B at label 1 in that program. I do not believe
this has been used in any other HP calculator, and I even wonder
whether some marketing people at HP considered it too confusing, which
might have contributed to the decision not to sell the HP-95C.
One more feature of the HP-95C can be inferred from the "C" in its
name - unlike the HP-91, the HP-92 or the HP-97, it had continuous
memory. This would have been a very useful feature, but the card
reader on the HP-97 probably won out as a preferred alternative. A
fascinating calculator, and in a way it is a pity it was never sold to
customers.
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HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-29C
Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
A year after the introduction of three new models on July 1 1976, HP
introduced three more models on July 1 1977. These models (equal 15th
in the count of small calculator models made by HP) were the HP-10,
HP-29C and HP-92 - three very different calculators. The HP-29C,
codenamed "Bonnie", was the last model in the Woodstock family or
"Series 20". The codename bears no relation to the previous names of
Series 20 models, which were all named after vegetables. In contrast,
the HP-29C was followed by a printing version, the HP-19C, and these
two were called Bonnie and Clyde. Or does someone know of a vegetable
called Bonnie? The HP-29C was introduced as an improved version of the
HP-25C, with more memory, more program steps (98) and a few extra
functions. In fact it inherited many of the features of the HP-67,
such as a second set of registers and even reverse branching when a
negative number was put in the "indirect" register and used by an
indirect GTO command. Though a considerable improvement on the HP-25
and HP-25C, it did not quite achieve the same popularity, perhaps
because the HP-67 provided keen competition.
___________________
HP CALCULATOR HISTORY - THE HP-10
Wlodek Mier-Jedrzejowicz
Of the three models introduced by HP on July 1 1977, the HP-29C was
described in the previous issue of Datafile. I have just managed to
get an HP-10, so I shall describe that this time - to describe the
HP-92 properly I still need to beg, borrow or buy one! (Does any
reader have a spare?) The HP-10 was a complete departure from previous
HP calculators - neither a financial model nor a technical one, but
instead an "adding machine". It was the smallest HP calculator so far
to have a built-in printer - easily held in one hand, it did not use
RPN, it had only + - x - and % keys; not even a square root, though it
had an automatic constant feature and a single memory register. No
wonder the calculator's codename was KISS - "Keep It Simple, Stupid".
A fairly small label on the back describes all the HP-10 operations -
there was no need for a pocket guide, and the manual was not that big.
Next to the ON/OFF switch it had a mode switch to select how results
were to be displayed - in the LED display, on the printer, or on both.
Using only the printer or only the LED was a useful option as it saved
power - even so, the battery pack is larger than that used on earlier
handheld models. The option to use both is called ALL, and is
equivalent to the TRACE mode on other printing HP calculators. Oddly
enough, the HP-10 looks very much like the original HP-35 - white keys
for digits, blue keys for simple maths functions, and black keys for
the more advanced functions - though on the HP-10 even x and - are
treated as advanced functions! There is also a yellow shift key, used
for the automatic constant, for selecting display modes, and for a few
printing operations, including printing a row of ###### symbols to
separate one calculation from another. There are so few functions that
the calculator has only 22 keys (zero occupies the double-width key)
which means that the keys are larger than those on other HP handheld
models - making it easier to use this as a simple printing model. It
seems clear that this was an attempt by HP to enter the small business
printing calculator market, but judging by its rarity, not many can
have been sold. Apart from HP's usual reluctance to advertise, further
reasons for the low sales may be that the target market was not aware
of HP calculators, and that the tiny printer was reputed to be
unreliable. Despite its unusual format, I must say that I very much
like the HP-10!
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