The following is a copy of the introduction text of the module.
The HP 82490A HP-41 Translator Pac consists of:
• The HP-41 Translator Pac module, which contains a system of programs for the HP-71 designed to
allow you to convert programs written for the HP-41 for use on the HP-71. You can then run the
"translated" programs on your HP-71, taking advantage of the HP-71's enhanced speed and accuracy.
• A keyboard overlay, designed to customize your HP-71 keyboard for use with the HP-41 Translator Pac.
With the HP-41 module installed in your HP-71, you can:
• Use the HP-71 as an HP-41 calculator for keyboard operations and program execution. All HP-41
calculator features, including the alpha register, are available from the HP-71 keyboard.
• Write programs on the HP-71 in HP-41 user-programming language.
• Transfer programs automatically from the HP-41 to the HP-71 via HP-IL. (This requires HP-IL
modules for both calculators.)
• Extend the HP-41 user language, either by adding HP-41 extension module functions not included in
the HP-41 Translator Pac, or by adding new functions of your own design.
In short, the HP-41 Translator Pac allows you to retain the calculator and programming features of the
HP-41, and to use your HP-41 programs, as you move into the more sophisticated and powerful world of
the HP-71.
The HP-41 function set included in the HP-41 Translator Pac includes:
• All functions built into the HP-41C and HP-41CV calculators.
• Additional numeric, flag, and alpha data manipulation functions from the HP-41CX and the
HP 82180A Extended Functions/Memory Module.
• All of the HP-IL printer functions from the HP 82160A HP-IL Module for the HP-41 except the
special graphics functions.
Not included in the HP-41 Translator Pac are the time (TIME is included), date, stopwatch, alarm, and
extended memory functions from the HP-41CX, or any other functions from HP-41 extension modules.
Any HP-41 program that uses functions included in the pac can be translated and run on the HP-71.
HP-41 programs and keyboard operations that are executed on the HP-71 yield the same results as those
obtained with the HP-41, except that:
• The HP-71 provides two additional mantissa digits and and one more exponent digit than the HP-41.
This affects both the accuracy of numeric results and the allowed range of numbers.
• Unlike the HP-41, The HP-41 Translator Pac does not provide the ability to choose the digit sepa-
rator and radix format.
• There are some differences in keyboard entry methods that arise from the different keyboards of the
two computers and from the somewhat different styles of RPN arithmetic associated with HP-71
FORTH and the HP-41.
The HP-41 Translator Pac is based on a FORTH language system built into the pac. FORTH is a com-
puter language that shares many characteristics with the HP-41 user-programming language, but is more
widely recognized and applied to a greater variety of computers. You do not need to learn FORTH to use
the HP-41 translator, but programmers familiar with FORTH can use the system to write HP-71 applica-
tions entirely in FORTH.