Re: HP and calculator design
- From: Frank Pittel <fwp@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 12 Jun 2006 23:16:34 -0500
John H Meyers <jhmeyers@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
: On Mon, 12 Jun 2006 19:30:23 -0500, Frank Pittel wrote:
: > I could never figure out how to hold [the 28C] in my hand.
: Those "clamshells" were capable of being unfolded a full 360 degrees,
: which would retain a vertical (although now two-sided) form
: which was easy to hold; this worked well for my HP18C (financial),
: though probably you'd more often use keys on the "back side"
: of your 28C than with an 18C. I found it no problem,
: however, to flip over to use both sides as needed,
: and of course a little table (or even a small tray)
: was even better.
To this day I'm amazed at how resiliant the hinge on the 28 was. When I
used it I tended to hold it flipped around as a vertical unit. Unfortunatly
the constant flipping was annoying. I did like it though.
: > Then there was the problem with the battery compartment. :-(
: Well, what did you do -- force it in any old way,
: or let your dog chew on it,
: or drop it off the roof of your car? :)
Well I think that a calculator from HP should be built in such a way that to
allow me to install the battery cover with a hatchet. I think it's a sad day
in HP engineering when they can't come up with a plastic that can take being
hit a few times with a hatchet!!!
: I always inserted mine with care, and it still works fine!
: > I'm waiting for people to start complaining:
: > "When I pay fifty dollars for a vcr
: > I want the same ruggedness of the $1,000 one
: > I got twenty years ago." :-)
: Why not? -- aren't airline pilots expected to fly just as much
: (and just as safely) as twenty years ago, but for less pay? ;-)
: There are many products (e.g. computers and disk drives, even
: flash drives larger yet cheaper & more reliable than old spindle drives)
: which are more lasting and rugged now, for less money, and also designs made
: with more care and attention up front, which can make a great difference
: for a very modest investment per unit.
But the new VCRs feel cheap compared to the ones made 20 years ago. All that metal
made them work better!!
: Controlling cost is important, yet not a catch-all excuse for lax design.
All the gold plating in the world isn't going to help with sales. The reality of
the world is that calculators today need to be sold at a low cost. Yes the build
quality of the 41 and 48 was higher then that of a 49g+. Unfortunatly not many
people are going to spend $400 on a calculator. As much as I liked the 42s and 32sII
at ~$80 they're beyond todays price point for that type of a machine.
: www.openrpn.org intends to do much better for no greater cost;
: if it turns out that they can, then so could HP have done all along
: (oops, where did that site go? Has an elephant stepped on it?)
I wish them luck and may even buy something from them. Unfortunatly they're going to
run into the same economic facts of life that HP did.
: Thanks for speaking Frankly :)
: [r->] [OFF]
--
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Keep working millions on welfare depend on you
.
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