HP 49G

General Discussion

The 49G is a bit of a lemmon. However if properly set up it can be fast. Its eccentricies really come out when programming and a real critisism would be pages. The 48G is a descendent of the s28 which was the calculator that the astronaughts used when they went to the moon. This programming language is awsome. Provided you stick to basic its a real programming language with a file structure underneath!

The 49G is not really a lemmon because when working properly (not cleaning up memory when you are inputing data and asking you to wait a second - all the time) but has the best programming language; Excluding the more complicated commands. Definity download the manual from the net at HP's website.

Use lessthan half available memory.
Use RPN mode
Do not use for symbolic calculations, Numberical Calculations only. Have the symbols substitued with their numberical numbers.
6 lines, large font display, current directory and modes.
Screen Contrast needs to be adjusted for different lighting conditions. Hold down ON and + - .

Complex Numbers

There are two complex menus. Right Shift CMPLX and Left Shift MATH CMPLX the better menu.

RE IM C→R R→C ABS ARG SIGN NEG CONJ

RE is real part, IM is imaginary part. R→C and C→R convert between the complex as 2 numbers on the stack and a complex number.

The display of complex numbers is independent of how they are entered and is in rectangular or cylindrical form. RECT or CYLIN.

The HP puts the complex number on the stack in cartesian form, and not polar form which is often more convenient. I wrote a function for angular input of complex numbers.

P→C
<< → R T 
  << R T COS R * T SIN * R→C
  >>
>>

eg  2 60 P→C  in degrees mode.

Hewlett Packard's Discrace

Patentented Reverse Polish Notation in hardware. Why anyone would be allowed to do this is unknown. RPN is the most general form of computing there is, ALL computers use it. I used to admire HP for their RPN in the calculators wondering why their compeditors did not implement RPN too. This in my opinion seriously impacted the history of calculator development and hence computation with calculators.