Downloadable DM41 « programming tool »

This is the place to discuss the usage of DM1x/DM41 machines and to share any tips & tricks you may have stumbled across.

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[DM41] How to change the number of program steps available
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michel_b
Posts: 34
Joined: Wed Jan 30, 2019 10:07 pm

Downloadable DM41 « programming tool »

Post by michel_b »

Hello there,

I'm the new proud owner of a DM41L and noticed the « programming tool » at http://dm41.swissmicros.com , that helps converting the memory dump into readable code.

That's great, but that's... online.

I wonder if there exists a downloadable tool that would allow doing the same without relying on an Internet connection or the availability of SwissMicro's server ?

And uh... Under Linux ;)

TIA for any help.
jthole
Posts: 129
Joined: Mon Nov 27, 2017 8:46 pm
Location: Netherlands

Re: Downloadable DM41 « programming tool »

Post by jthole »

I don't have the time to dig into it right now, but the Javascript source of the online encoder/decoder plus the hp41uc tool (which you know about, I guess?) should help you a lot to create an offline utility.

Edit: actually the hp41uc tool, with the patch from the SwissMicros site, seems to be able to do that ... anyone who knows which arguments you should give to it, to compile or decompile a dm41 memory dump? I've tried to find out in the code, but no luck so far.

Thanks!
DM42 s/n 06181 DM41X s/n \(\beta\)0005 (sold)
axd
Posts: 15
Joined: Wed Oct 04, 2017 12:39 am

Re: Downloadable DM41 « programming tool »

Post by axd »

This is indeed an eternal challenge for companies to think ahead and imagine the day there might be no Internet (or, more realistically, there is no SwissMicros server any more), and users are left behind with hardware that s no longer accessible because the relevant source code was not made public.

A related issue is that updates in firmware are not always reflected in user manuals. The issue here is that documentation is often seen as a PITA, and kept separate from source code.

I've experienced this in other domains too, for example digital synthesizers that are abandoned by manufacturers after a while, rather than release sufficient source code so that users can continue to modify firmware on their own (let's forget about copyright issues for once) - or at least manage RAW files etc.

(And all this assuming that the hardware will outlive the company - which one could expect from a Swiss manufacturer.)
DM15,41, HP15C/48SX/42S/32S
Elektronika, Casio, Facit, Sorobans...

Preserve the HP-42S software
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