Re: More help wanted at OpenRPN.org

On Fri, 07 Apr 2006 23:56:44 -0500, hugh.evans wrote:

In my designs, aside from the 49G+ retrofit, the SD/MMC expansion slot
is internal, so there is no eject feature. The way I see it is: If
you want the extra storage space you'll add it and never remove it
unless you upgrade to a bigger card.

Well, everything I had said about the convenience of using SD cards
*instead* of a direct cable is changed by that,
as is the loss of the convenience
of making backups on different SD cards and keeping those backups
separate from the calculator, without needing any computer at all,
just some cards themselves.

That would also be invaluable to all the "data collection" people
who keep these things in the field, such as surveyors,
who don't want to carry the whole office with them,
just the data collector itself, and take the data back
in some very easily carriable way.

I see that you mean to make the entire calculator into a virtual drive;
well, that's neat, but always you'll still need a computer handy
(and close by the calculator).

Do you equate "eject feature" with the mechanical spring-loaded thing
that an HP49G+ has? I have SD devices with just a plain slot --
I pull the card out myself, so all this takes is a slot on the side
somewhere. To me, it would be hugely more valuable to be able
to immediately swap cards without having to take the calculator apart!

What if digital camera and MP3 people thought the same -- locked the card
inside the device, instead of letting you easily swap them and take them
elsewhere to view/transfer/download/safekeep, or else that connecting the thing
by cord to a computer was the only way you could off-load the stuff?

It seems to me that this would be a throwback to how it was
before there existed any media cards at all.

That's also why the screws for
internal access are on the front face of the machine. This makes the
electronics easier to access for service/upgrade purposes. In
addition, it is the access point for the battery compartment which will
be useful for non-rechargeable battery users.

I have some really old clock-calcs and such
which have to be taken apart to change batteries;
even though battery changes are infrequent,
I find this a pain
(some of these now even sport transparent tape,
where both screws and their matching threads once existed :)

The manufacturers seem all to have agreed that a clever little
slide-out for a battery makes the customer much happier.

Come to think of it, however, I did once have a PC in which
the motherboard's CMOS battery was *soldered* into the circuit :)

Even my cordless handset at home never meets the base station,
and never recharges in it -- the handset is kept right next to me,
while the base is nowhere near, and what I do instead is
to charge an alternate battery elsewhere and swap it
(don't many cell phone users do the same?)

I think it's great to be able to open the case
("close once, destroy if ever again opened" is very annoying),
but for things like cards whose very existence was designed
for removeability, and batteries likewise,
it is mighty restrictive to make those things non-swappable
(or very inconvenient to swap), somewhat negating
the positive value of being able to access
for servicing or modification.

Does anyone remember "Commander Data" having a fingernail
that he flipped up to access inner workings within his hand?

How about "Kryten" (from "Red Dwarf") -- all sorts of things
could be attached to him, in a most novel fashion
that would certainly enliven any dull old calculator :)

[r->] [OFF]
.

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