Why no HP calculator jokes?
Moderators: phlip, Moderators General, Prelates
-
- Posts: 2
- Joined: Tue Dec 16, 2008 6:01 pm UTC
Why no HP calculator jokes?
I saw this comic: http://xkcd.com/347/ and though, "Hey, what's with all of this TI calculator bias..." I went through school having to translate all of the calculator programs from the crazy-moon-language of TI to something sane (like RPN for the HP48gx). And now in comics too?
Well, to start a proper holy war (and thumb my nose at you TI folks...), while you all were playing Breakout, I had built a transfer cable to load stuff I had downloaded from various usenet groups and install it on my calculator, and thus was able to play Civilization instead of being stuck with breakout. Muhahahahaha! (yes, somebody with _WAY_ too much time on their hands ported Civilization to the 48GX).
The civilization game can be downloaded here: http://www.holgerweihe.net/hp48/hp48.htm It is in French, but if you know Civ (or French) well enough it hardly matters.
-lars
Well, to start a proper holy war (and thumb my nose at you TI folks...), while you all were playing Breakout, I had built a transfer cable to load stuff I had downloaded from various usenet groups and install it on my calculator, and thus was able to play Civilization instead of being stuck with breakout. Muhahahahaha! (yes, somebody with _WAY_ too much time on their hands ported Civilization to the 48GX).
The civilization game can be downloaded here: http://www.holgerweihe.net/hp48/hp48.htm It is in French, but if you know Civ (or French) well enough it hardly matters.
-lars
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
Most school courses which have to do with graphing revolve around the TI, thus its popularity. Once you learn how to use the TI, in and out, why would you switch to a new format?
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
HP makes calculators?
</sarcasm>
</sarcasm>
- roc314
- Is dead, and you have killed him
- Posts: 1356
- Joined: Thu Jul 24, 2008 12:48 am UTC
- Location: A bunker, here behind my wall
- Contact:
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
Are HP calculators still using Reverse Polish Notation?
As long as they do that, I don't think they'll ever catch on to the extent of TIs. Most people don't have the time or inclination to learn a new format for their calculator.
As long as they do that, I don't think they'll ever catch on to the extent of TIs. Most people don't have the time or inclination to learn a new format for their calculator.
Hippo: roc is the good little communist that lurks in us all
Richard Stallman: Geeks like to think that they can ignore politics, you can leave politics alone, but politics won't leave you alone.
suffer-cait: roc's a pretty cool dude
Richard Stallman: Geeks like to think that they can ignore politics, you can leave politics alone, but politics won't leave you alone.
suffer-cait: roc's a pretty cool dude
- Berengal
- Superabacus Mystic of the First Rank
- Posts: 2707
- Joined: Thu May 24, 2007 5:51 am UTC
- Location: Bergen, Norway
- Contact:
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
I personally always found postfix (and prefix) superior to infix, for the minute I first learned of them. I parse infix better than postfix, but I do prefix better than I do infix now (thanks to programming, where everything is prefix... mostly)
It is practically impossible to teach good programming to students who are motivated by money: As potential programmers they are mentally mutilated beyond hope of regeneration.
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
roc314 wrote:Are HP calculators still using Reverse Polish Notation?
As long as they do that, I don't think they'll ever catch on to the extent of TIs. Most people don't have the time or inclination to learn a new format for their calculator.
My HP50-g has the option of RPN, but by default isn't set to it. That said lots of the more esoteric functions just seem designed with RPN mode in mind.
Also, the HP50-G is way cooler than an equivalently priced TI calculator. I mean come on! It has an SD-card slot (No more worrying about kilobytes, I have a gig on my calculator), and a beeper, and the only reason it has a stupid infrared port instead of an awesome one is people were worried about cheating. And you can set it to RPN and watch people squirm when they borrow it

That said, the documentation is totally inadequate.
@drenehtsral, Civilisation is indeed impressive, but let's not be so fast as to discount the TI-86's Dragon Warrior!
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
drenehtsral wrote:Well, to start a proper holy war (and thumb my nose at you TI folks...), while you all were playing Breakout, I had built a transfer cable to load stuff I had downloaded from various usenet groups and install it on my calculator, and thus was able to play Civilization instead of being stuck with breakout.
and while you were playing games, i was running CP/M on my TI-83+.
Code: Select all
factorial = product . enumFromTo 1
isPrime n = factorial (n - 1) `mod` n == n - 1
- yohanleafheart
- Posts: 349
- Joined: Fri Dec 05, 2008 12:37 pm UTC
- Location: São Paulo, Brazil
- Contact:
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
Berengal wrote:I personally always found postfix (and prefix) superior to infix, for the minute I first learned of them. I parse infix better than postfix, but I do prefix better than I do infix now (thanks to programming, where everything is prefix... mostly)
Indeed, same for me. I learned postfix basically for the HP 48 I was using at college. In fact, I don't know about US and other countries, but here in Brazil it is rare to see anything except an HP.
"When you gotta do something wrong, you gotta do it right." - Fighter - 8-bit Theatre
"Life is a bitch. But it is my bitch." - Slick - Sinfest
Avatars courtesy of Sinfest
"Life is a bitch. But it is my bitch." - Slick - Sinfest
Avatars courtesy of Sinfest
- headprogrammingczar
- Posts: 3072
- Joined: Mon Oct 22, 2007 5:28 pm UTC
- Location: Beaming you up
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
hotaru wrote:drenehtsral wrote:Well, to start a proper holy war (and thumb my nose at you TI folks...), while you all were playing Breakout, I had built a transfer cable to load stuff I had downloaded from various usenet groups and install it on my calculator, and thus was able to play Civilization instead of being stuck with breakout.
and while you were playing games, i wasrunning CP/Mhardcoding 3D graphics on my TI-83+.
True story.
<quintopia> You're not crazy. you're the goddamn headprogrammingspock!
<Weeks> You're the goddamn headprogrammingspock!
<Cheese> I love you
<Weeks> You're the goddamn headprogrammingspock!
<Cheese> I love you
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
I've got you beat. I was living the glory days with my good ol' palm m130. Could do all sorts of cool stuff with that thing. Plus more importantly it had risk.
Too bad it doesn't seem to want to charge anymore.
maybe one of these days I'll take it apart again.


They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety. - Benjamin Franklin
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
I have an m130 too!
hi-five!
hi-five!
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
MrFrothy wrote:I have an m130 too!
hi-five!
woot! *internet hi five*
They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety. - Benjamin Franklin
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
Had a V, cracked the screen. Then bought a Vx off ebay plus hardcase and folding laptop-style keyboard for about £25. That got stolen. Then I bought an E2, which I used til I got a Samsung i600 WinMo phone with qwerty and wifi. Now I have a Blackberry Curve 8320 and I have to say
Calculators SUCK!
Calculators SUCK!

Cosmologicon wrote:Emu* implemented a naive east-first strategy and ran it for an hour, producing results that rivaled many sophisticated strategies, visiting 614 cells. For this, Emu* is awarded Best Deterministic Algorithm!
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
and i don't understand why the fact that someone (um, many people) wrote Breakout clones for TI calcs means "Breakout reference = TI bias"
Re: Why no HP calculator jokes?
The HP50g is absolutely godlike and I take comfort in the complete superiority it represents. It is the pinnacle of engineering, art, Western thought and human kind. The engineers at HP plucked it and its included faux-leather carrying case from the realm of the gods, and in so doing gave physical form to the Platonic ideal of the calculator. Its 9.5 megabyte, 887 page user's guide was penned by monks and inspired by a choir of heavenly muses. All hail the glorious HP50g.
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 6 guests