Is purchasing DM16L as well as DM42 redundant?

[c0rpse]

Well, I've placed an order for both a DM42 and a DM16L. Very excited!

I actually purchased a HP32s in the last weeks as well. I really love it. I've been using it almost every day.
I think I would be totally happy with the HP32s and the DM16L, but I have no clue how long the 32s will last.

I also have to take back my initial remarks on not being interested in the 41 platform. The DM41X still seems a bit complicated for me, but I'm interested in grabbing a DM41L eventually, just for playing around and seeing how far I can push the little thing.

I don't think I realized I was getting into a new hobby when I made my first post!

[rprosperi]

Another one bites the dust.....

Welcome to the club, we all started that way:

"Hmmm, should I get this one or that one?"

This soon becomes:

"I really need both to be sure."

which then gives way to:

"I wonder how that one compares, I better get it to find out"

and eventually:

"I don't think that other one over there is any good at all, but I better get it to be sure"

Obsession is never pretty...

[Thomas Okken]

Obsession is never pretty...

Going from zero to five in a matter of weeks does sound like it could escalate rapidly, yes.
But let me provide some reassurance that it doesn't have to get out of hand. Here's my own collection, in full:

Collection.jpg (179.85 KiB) Viewed 3002 times

If I had never passed anything on and kept every calculator I have ever owned, there would be more -- Sinclair Scientific, TI-30, HP-25C, HP-19C, HP-41C, HP-15C, HP-16C, HP-28S, HP-48G, HP-55, and a bunch of four-bangers I got at trade shows and whatnot. Let's say about 25 in total. Not too bad for someone who has been a calculator enthusiast for more than 40 years.

[Jaymos]

If I had never passed anything on and kept every calculator I have ever owned, there would be more....

The saddest memories are the ones that got away ...

Thomas, not to forget the one you have passed on to every enthusiast around the globe, while you never actually got rid of it. Easy and free(!) to get; I’m sure that gift plays/played a role in affirming many new hobbyists before they start an obsession.

Your tally does not count the number of calculators on your pc and on your phone... I bet there is another two dozen per device

[Thomas Okken]

Thank you!

Your tally does not count the number of calculators on your pc and on your phone... I bet there is another two dozen per device

Not quite that many, but yes, there's a bunch.

[hth313]

A DM41X with Håkan Thörngren‘s Ladybug module is also a great alternative.

Being the author of this module I can only say that once I got it properly working, my HP-16C has only been used a couple of times thanks to being smaller and easier to bring. I took the batteries out of my HP-16C a month ago (one cell had actually started to leak a little) and put it in the drawer.

[rohdo]

I was thinking about this back in May as my daily work requires frequent base operations (digital engineer/programmer). Decided to go for both a DM42 (been watching it since 2017 after having enough disposable income as a graduate engineer), and a DM16. Went for the credit card sized as I already have a full-sized voyager.

After 6 months I tell you, both are a joy to use
I printed manuals for both to use for study and as occasional reference. I love having a dedicated processor with basic machine code level instructions (that's what I think of the DM16).

The DM42 I use for fractional numbers (so I don't have to switch modes on DM16). It's also surprisingly nice to use while only displaying X and Y registers, as it keeps the display clean (AVIEW doesn't obscure registers).

The DM42's keyboard is very good (not as good as HP15C, but miles ahead of any school calc like a Casio/TI ). The DM16's keyboard is not as good, but I like the push buttons (and I bought it for the smaller size anyway).

I haven't quite got the hang of RPN programming as being a C/Python programmer it's a pain only having GOTO equivalent statements for structuring code. Although now after some assembly practice it might be worth trying again.

As someone who debugs masking, shifting, base conversions etc. i think the DM16 is one of the best (though DM16L is probably better feel wise).

Battery wise I didn't seem to be too lucky as the DM16 is on 2.3V, though still running. DM42 on the other hand started glitching as the battery wont from 3.0V to 2.7V during screen refresh. This is after 6 months of light use (DM16 used more). DM16 is on version V29, DM42 was on DMCP 3.18 and PGM 3.15, recently upgraded to 3.20 and 3.16 repectively.

[c0rpse]

I received my units last night! I'm very impressed! I wasn't expecting them to be so HEAVY by comparison to HP.

One quick question that I haven't figured out by searching: Is there a way to make the PRINT menu persistent like the other menus? Should I just assign the functions I want to the CUSTOM menu?

[Thomas Okken]

Menus can be made persistent by activating them twice, so [Shift] [−] [Shift] [−] for the PRINT menu.

The HP-42S menu system is rather sophisticated, but in a nutshell, all menus can be made sticky as shown above, but CUSTOM is always sticky, and SOLVER, ∫f(x), MATRIX, STAT, and BASE are "application" menus, and are special in that they are not merely sticky, but will also reappear after another (non-application) menu has been activated and then dismissed.

The HP-42S manual explains all this in detail, but just remember double-activation to make menus sticky, and you'll be a happier camper already.

[c0rpse]

Menus can be made persistent by activating them twice, so [Shift] [−] [Shift] [−] for the PRINT menu.

The HP-42S menu system is rather sophisticated, but in a nutshell, all menus can be made sticky as shown above, but CUSTOM is always sticky, and SOLVER, ∫f(x), MATRIX, STAT, and BASE are "application" menus, and are special in that they are not merely sticky, but will also reappear after another (non-application) menu has been activated and then dismissed.

The HP-42S manual explains all this in detail, but just remember double-activation to make menus sticky, and you'll be a happier camper already.

Thanks so much Thomas! I read the manual once, going through it with Free42 in order to learn RPN. It obviously worth giving it another read now that I actually know what I'm doing.

I really should have thought to try double tap... alpha on HP48 works the same way.