What impresses my about the 33S

[Eddie Shore]

1. The manual is a deatiled one (I can say this about the 17BII+ also).

2. When you press a key, you can actually see the function you are implementing.

What's weird: The ENTER key is simular to the DUP function on the 48/49 family and there is no button to just to put the number on the x stack.

Other than that, the HP33S is a good buy (considering I missed out on the 32/42).

[Ron Ross]

Not to rain on your parade, but the 33s manual is nothing more than a slightly modified Hp32sII manual. And that manual was written in/prior to 1995, before the Calculator division was shut down in Corvalus (sp?).

[bill platt]

Hi Eddie, (and also hello Ron!)

The 17bii+ manual is also taken directly from the 17bii -- also a Corvallis product.

Your observation about ENTER being like "DUP" in the 48--that is true. But you give yourself away as a non-RPN person! (that is OK BTW). The 33s is "classic" RPN. The 48 is "RPL" which is a language rather than a notation. In a 48, there is a "command line" and then ENTER puts anything on the command line into level 1. If nothing is on the command line, then it will push the stack and DUPlicate level 1 into level 2.

An RPN stack does not have a "command line." Rather, any time you start typing, you are in the 1st stack level (called "x"). ENTER will push the stack, and duplicate your value into level 2 (called "y"). The stack is X--y--z--t.

Because RPL (28 and 48 series) allows operations between the "command line" and level 1, it behaves almost identically with RPN, with a few exceptions. The most notable difference is as you noted--On an RPL machine, you have to push ENTER twice after typing a number, in order to get it into the 2nd level. This means that on an RPL machine, to manually "square" a number, you go "v" ENTER ENTER *. But in RPN, all you have to do is "V" ENTER *.

Be careful with one thing in RPN mode on the 17bii series---after a master clearing or switch from ALG, the stack will be only one level deep to begin with, and will not feed a constant----see the Museum, and also Craig Finseth's site for a good description of this quirk. (BTW it also happens to the "history stack" wneh you come bact to ALG out of RPN).

Regards,

Bill

[Mike Sebastian]

A modified/updated Corvallis authored manual is far superior to the jumbo-sized sheet of paper filled with cryptic instructions printed in a 6-point font that comes with the 9G, 9S, 30S, and many other low and moderate priced calculators. I certainly don't see anything wrong with HP updating an already existing manual.

[V-PN]

"I certainly don't see anything wrong with HP updating an already existing manual."

That's what they should have done with the 49 models:
use old 48 manuals and make a new volume for the new features

[VPN]

[Eddie Shore]

Do with what works.