HP-41: Formula Evaluation ROM

[pier4r]

(06-06-2017 05:38 PM)Namir Wrote:  I agree with you Angel. When RPN programmable calculators were kings, programming expressions in RPN (and using smart tricks to save intermediate results) was THE way to go. Hardly anyone complained. But after over 35 years of programming high-level languages (Basic, Pascal, C, C++, Matlab, R, Python, Perl, PHP, Java, Javascript, and so on) where we use algebraic-like expressions that are easy to read (and easy to fix or edit), I am beginning to lose adoration with using RPN to code long and/or numerous expressions.

Ironically RPL calculators allow you to cheat and EVALuate algebraic expressions enclosed in single-quote strings. It's time to bring RPN engines to par with RPL.

So your solution is most welcome.

Namir

Maybe because I do read formulas like sentences and I do not break down in my mind (except for parentheses and co), but I never used the RPN aside from very short formulas involving maximum 5-6 operators.

Also on the free42 is the same. In the worst case I save intermediate parts and then I combine those.

Otherwise I either write it down in the source code, so it may take a bit longer but I have a comment for it, or I write the algebraic form.

Also, if the formula itself is not so "easy" in computational terms, like a summation, the overhead to convert the formula from algebraic to RPL code seems negligible, at least with the 50g.

So in short, I agree with Namir.

edit: I forgot. Kudos for the work, Angel. I saw a lot of those works for the 41 and I believe they are all very neat, unfortunately the 41 is outside my interest unless I misunderstood its capabilities (the 42s/free42 should be a superset of it, right?).