My dream DM42 display layout

Discussion around the SwissMicros DM42 calculator
tycho
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My dream DM42 display layout

Post by tycho »

DM42LAYOUT.png
DM42LAYOUT.png (1.54 KiB) Viewed 6891 times
I love the vintage HP font (shift F5) and that it is in different sizes too, but the optimal for me would be more like the beta version had it with the lower area using a large easy-to-read font, whereas the other registers had smaller font. Also, the "status line" is better placed here, IMO. There is still space for a permanent menu at the bottom as shown. Additional modifications:
  • Less dominant register letters and colons (actually original HP42S)
  • Less dominant down/up arrows
  • Non-rounded function menu buttons with more spacing. Looks better to me.
Finally, an idea is to have the last function executed to be displayed on the "status line" area, e.g. E^X as shown (should disappear when another button is pressed). BMP file:
DM42LAYOUT.zip
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"The Answer to the Great Question... Of Life, the Universe and Everything... Is... DM42" ― Adam Douglas
Olaf
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Re: My dream DM42 display layout

Post by Olaf »

+1
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HP48G, DM42 (# 276), a slide rule and a C compiler :-)
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Guenter
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Re: My dream DM42 display layout

Post by Guenter »

-1

Günter
Günter
DM42 SN:00004 and SN:00184 -- DM41X SN:00013 and SN:00955
rprosperi
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Re: My dream DM42 display layout

Post by rprosperi »

1 -

Too busy for me. But thanks for taking the time to provide a sample screen image, it would have been difficult to visualize this from a description.
--bob p

DM42: β00071 & 00282, DM41X: β00071 & 00656, DM10L: 071/100
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Walter
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Re: My dream DM42 display layout

Post by Walter »

Who needs Z, T, and L displayed as long as he knows they are treated properly??
WP43 SN00000, 34S, and 31S for obvious reasons; HP-35, 45, ..., 35S, 15CE, DM16L S/N# 00093, DM42β SN:00041
dlachieze
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Re: My dream DM42 display layout

Post by dlachieze »

Well, it's super useful to see the whole stack when debugging a program, at least for me.
DM42: 00425 - DM41X: β00066 - WP43: 00042
tycho
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Re: My dream DM42 display layout

Post by tycho »

Thanks for the feedback, however I am a little baffled by the answers because most of you are actually critizing the very reason for having a larger screen to begin with. In fact, my attempt was to make the screen less busy by focusing on the important stuff (x and y regs), while still providing useful information in a separate area. Everything else than the X and Y registers are secondary info on the screen (but still very useful) and should be kept small to minimize noise. A further step would be to make the font in the soft menu key smaller (need not be much larger than text on the physical keys).

Now, the vintage HP font is not for everyone, and I would actually love a nice modern font, but the current standard font is not quite there, unfortunately. And finally, the upper area would not need to show the stack top registers at all (just as currently), but it is a lost opportunity and a waste to leave it completely unused.

/Edit: To be clear, I fully respect that it is useful to remove all other information than X, Y when doing normal calculations, and that is indeed the least noisy display. My post was more an attempt to show how one gracefully could display additional info (when you need it) without cluttering the display.
"The Answer to the Great Question... Of Life, the Universe and Everything... Is... DM42" ― Adam Douglas
jfb9301
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Re: My dream DM42 display layout

Post by jfb9301 »

I would just like to see the stack aligned to the top, not the bottom. Every time I open and close the soft menu it makes the stack jump up and down. The original HP-42S did not move the stack for screen space. I'm a fan of seeing all the stack (and L).


[DM42 STATUSBAR]
[FREE42 ICONS]
L
T
Z
Y
X
. @small space of blank lines
[FIX][SCI][ENG][ALL][RDX.][RDX,]
H2X
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Re: My dream DM42 display layout

Post by H2X »

+1 from me.

It emphasizes the X and Y registers nicely while keeping the others in plain sight which I also like. Slightly busy, perhaps something to do with vertical alignment?
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tycho
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Re: My dream DM42 display layout

Post by tycho »

@jfb9301, yes I also think the stack should be aligned to the top, or actually just stay statically the way the image shows when soft key menu is closed. E.g., if you only want to show X, Y, L, the separator line and X, Y stays fixed. That way, the display becomes even less busy with plenty of space above and below the X, Y registers, making it natural to focus on them.

Here is a more typical scenario when the menu is closed and showing the Z and L regs. Still too busy?
Attachments
DM42LAYOUT2.png
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Last edited by tycho on Thu Jan 04, 2018 12:30 pm, edited 2 times in total.
"The Answer to the Great Question... Of Life, the Universe and Everything... Is... DM42" ― Adam Douglas
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