New Version: 2018.07.06 2.0.0.13865

[Ninetrees]

My relationship with HP goes pretty far back. In the 80s, I worked at a nuclear facility, and frequently did criticality calculations. I purchased a new (not sure...maybe 25C?), and it had problems...key bounce, some firmware error...and I contacted HP about it.They assigned to me an engineer to research the problem, and in a short while hand delivered a new device to be tested. It worked flawlessly. Around the time of the 48SX, I was also working w HP on keyboard layout and keystroke optimization, along with many others. It was a volunteer effort by experienced RPN calculator users. HP thanked us at a special meeting, where they gave us all hot-off-the-presses 48SXs. It remains today as a fond reminder of those halcyon days when the culture was more technically competent.
I have recently left a university, after 10 years. Incoming STEM students are not as well prepared as we were in the late 60s, despite having taken 'advanced' classes. One of the serious deficiencies is in the area of math automaticity and math tool skills. In fact, prior to the U, I ran my own engineering company, and it was clear to me as far back as the 80s that US student STEM performance was in decline. In 2012, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), in a survey of nations with highly developed economies, US 16 to 24 year olds had the lowest scores in “numeracy” among the 22 nations tested.
Even the design and firmware of the Prime, IMO, shows a sacrifice of science and engineering emphasis in favor of marketing.
Every student to whom I demonstrated the superiority of RPN, immediately embraced it, and wondered why, as U students, some in their last years, had never been introduced to it.
I recall during my undergrad years that I was accused of cheating on a physics exam, because I had written down the answer to a complex vector forces problem, rather than step tediously through deriving each step from basic geometry and trig. When I asked the faculty (I can't bring myself to use 'professor'), about getting zero credit, he said it was obvious I cheated. When I explained that I simply did the vector math on my calculator, he said to show him. I did. He said that he was unaware that calculators did vector math!!!!!!! This is who teaches our students.
I was not surprised when the reply from HP recommended that I buy the older Prime. No comment about the newer one missing from the lineup. I wrote back that I declined to spend my money on outdated tech. I should have my new Prime tomorrow.