New 41Z Manual available at last
#1

Greetings to all, and best new year wishes.

The new 41Z manual is finally available. Should be posted at TOS in a few days, but I can mail it to you if you're in a a hurry.


Best,
'AM

#2

Great! And thanks!

I confess I tried some of the new features but I was not completely concentrated on the task... I failed in many ways. Now I'll follow the correct way.

Thanks again, Geir.

Cheers.

Luiz (Brazil)

Edited: 8 Jan 2010, 12:29 p.m.

#3

Quote:
I confess I tried some of the new features but I was not completely concentrated on the task... I failed in many ways. Now I'll follow the correct way.

Me too.
#4

so much for self-explamatory, intuitively obvious software... which is what I'd sworn it was :(

Let's hope it gets better with the manual, or else...

You've got mail.

#5

I want mail too ;-)

#6

Quote:
so much for self-explamatory, intuitively obvious software... which is what I'd sworn it was :(
Hi, Ángel;

I cannot help telling you that there is no such thing as 'intuitively obvious software'... After studying semiotics I got to the conclusion that everything is obvious once known. As you created the MMI (Man-Machine Interface), it is obvious for you, of course! And it will be for all of us... once we get to know it! 8^)

I remember struggling to understand ISG/DSE and flags for the first time in my life after buying an HP41 in the 80's. I was a regular engineering student in an university with only one computer to serve its own needs. We had to program in FORTRAN with punched cards and wait for about a week to have the results (or to see the list of errors) of our code. Suddenly I had an alphanumeric display (easy) with keystroke programming (easy), subroutines (easy), indirect addressing (easy) flags (what are those for?) and loop control through ISG and DSE (What?!!??).

Took me almost a week to figure the whole calculator out, with no help at all, just reading the manual (it was in English and I was not so proficient as I am today...). And I remember the HP survey about the learning curve:

How long did it take for you to master the HP41?
And the last option was
More than eight hours
I felt embarrassed with myself... Now I teach people how to use these features and how they work.

So please, do not blame yourself. Allow us to get in touch with your thoughts first by reading the manual. THEN... we´ll talk about this again 8^D

Cheers.

Luiz (Brazil)

Edited: 8 Jan 2010, 7:48 p.m.

#7

Hi Luiz, it's interesting how our computer education went paralell ways: I too suffered the FORTRAN punched-card days, and also learned the 41 from a second language (hard to recall now but sure it was).

The good news is that the 41Z doesn't add radical new concepts to the 41 OS, it just extends them (ok, I'll admit it stretches them a bit, perhaps) but following the same game rules (when applicable).

Once you read the complex stack section and get the knack of the complex keyboard it should be crystal clear (famous last words).

That said, go ahead and send the feedback back to me, criticism included - this is for all us to enjoy, no worries to hurt any feelings.

Best wishes,
AM

Edited: 9 Jan 2010, 12:25 p.m. after one or more responses were posted

#8

Gene, let me know your email address and I'll send it over to you.

#9

Hi, Ángel;

I took a brief look at the manual just right now and, based on existing documentation you wrote, it is superb as expected. Together with the blueprints (available at T.O.S.), it is truly a 'never leave home without it' manual.

Thanks again, Ángel. I only hope to develop and share the ideas I have for a ROM the way you did ;)

Cheers.

Luiz (Brazil)



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