Re: Hypothetical HP 15CII or 34S Message #5 Posted by Vincent Weber on 24 June 2004, 6:35 a.m., in response to message #1 by westridge_cz
Hi all,
I would actually start from the 42s rather than the 15c as a base... Valentin, if you read this don't kill me ok... :)) The 15C is a wonderful machine, but I think that the 42s was more than a worthy replacement to it: Yes, the 15C had some unique advantages (the size, weight an classy design, the matrix descriptors with names), but I would not trade them for the huge advantages of the 42s (unlimited labels to keep loads of programs, speed, alphanumeric displays of program steps and prompts, 41 compatibility). Granted, the 42s is a bit more bulkier and is not as classy as the 15C, but it can still fit in a shirt pocket and is still far less bulky than the newer 33s. I also liked the sobriety of the keyboard, and the menus which some find ennoying are very fast and clever to me... There is no way all functions of the 42s could fit on the keyboard !! I just did not like the 2-stroke alpha entry, which was not troublesome for variables thanks to the menus, but made the 42s unsuitable to keep long textes. The 41, in my view, had the right balance between accessibility and clutter, with one shift key but one alpha mode.
What about starting with the 42s, and making the following changes:
1/Use the horizontal classy shape of the 15C
2/Have a direct alpha entry like the 41
3/Import the two goods unique features of the 32sii/33s world: the fraction mode, which is very unique, and the equations with multivariable solver, very useful when equations are too complex for RPN. But add editing facilities like in the 17bii/19bii world... lack of edititing capabilities is very frustrating on the 32sii/33s...
4/Add a USB port to backup and import programs from/to PC.
This would be my dream calc...
Cheers,
Vincent
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