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HEPAX Bidding War - Printable Version

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HEPAX Bidding War - Howard Owen - 03-26-2006

Up to $510.00 as of post time.


http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=9703515570&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT


Is it about the box? - Vassilis Prevelakis - 03-26-2006

I do not recall who hp-collection is, but I think he is participating in this forum, and in any case, anybody with his collection and experience would be aware of the NOVRAM module.

So are they willing to pay $500+ for the box????

zippyanna must be ecstatic

**vp

Edited: 26 Mar 2006, 4:17 p.m.


Question and Answer - Howard Owen - 03-26-2006

From the auction:

Q: Hello, how much $ for a Buy it Now price on this auction? I'll Paypal. Thanks!

A: There is no Buy It Now price and there is no reserve price. Thank you for your interest!

Sound like someone we know? 8)


Re: Question and Answer - Vassilis Prevelakis - 03-26-2006

If I were the seller for this auction I would be thanking my luck for NOT setting a Buy-It-Now price, because it would certainly NOT have been anything like $500.

At this stage I'd consider setting a Buy-It-Now price for smth like $750 because I do not think it would go that high, and it might just get one of the bidders to pay the money to end the suspense.

Having said that, I am surprised that someone with a long eBay record would bid against a bidder with 0 feedback that is so keen to raise the stakes.

> Sound like someone we know? 8) 

Why, do you have someone in mind?

Most eBay auctions are like that (low starting price, no reserve, no Buy-It-Now) and I find that such auctions are more likely to result in a bidding war than auctions with reserve or high starting prices.

**vp


Re: Question and Answer - Howard Owen - 03-26-2006

A certain eBay seller, often discussed around here, is famous for asking for BIN terms on non-BIN auctions. He thus sometimes succeeds in taking advantage of sellers who are ignorant of the value of the items they are selling.

If we take her statement that she doesn't ".. know much about calculators" to be an indication that she had no idea of what an HEPAX setup was beforehand, then perhaps "zippyanna" was in danger of falling for that sort of thing at one point. Lucky for her, that point is now passed. 8)

"Zippy" indeed!

Regards,
Howard


Re: Question and Answer - Eric - 03-26-2006

Not to be ignorant, I'm not familiar with the 41 series...

What is the HEPAX module, and why is it seemingly (from the previous posts) so sought after?

Thanks!
Eric
(More of a HP48 kind of guy!)


Re: Question and Answer - Howard Owen - 03-26-2006

It's a very cool expansion system for the HP-41. It gives you RAM in the calculator's ROM address space, and the tools to manipulate it. That allows you to load any ROM module image you care to into the RAM. So you can run practically any HP-41 module ever made. You can also use the HEPAX to write your own HP-41 modules.

The HEPAX is quite rare. But there are several solutions that let you run the HEPAX code without owning an HEPAX set up. Diego Diaz has his Clonix family of modules. The NovRAM and Nov32 modules will run the HEPAX code. There's also the MLDL2000, by Meindert Kuipers, which also allows you to load the HEPAX code. Also, many of the simulators of the HP-41, including HP-41X by HrastProgrammer, emu41 by JF Garnier and this, unfortunately unnamable simulator will run the HEPAX code.

So the point is, a technology enthusiast could satisfy the urge to play with the admittedly very cool technology for a lot less money, even for free in the case of some of the simulators. The auction linked to above must have the high price solely due to the rarity of the original HEPAX. One of the participants in the bidding war is a very experienced HP collector, so we can't just chalk the price up to market irrationality.

Regards,
Howard


Re: Is it about the box? - Thomas Radtke - 03-27-2006

Quote:
So are they willing to pay $500+ for the box????

Probably, since The working condition of this item is unknown. Am I the only one who finds this statement disturbing?

Thomas


Re: Is it about the box? - Howard Owen - 03-27-2006

It's probably just because the 41CV she's selling in another auction is non-operational, so she couldn't test the module. But if I were in the market for a HEPAX in order to be able to use it, then I would be disturbed by that disclaimer.

However, for collection purposes it might not matter, depending on what slot I was trying to fill in my collection. But another omission that would matter to me in that case is no mention of a manual.

Regards,
Howard

Edited: 27 Mar 2006, 2:49 a.m.