Re: RPN (was Re: TI-83 )
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Re: RPN (was Re: TI-83 )
Tom Lake wrote:
> Back in the '70s when HP and TI were really competing against each other in
> the programmable calculator market, an HP brochure made a point that really
> seems to be true: TI's calculator language (back then called Algebraic
> Operating System or AOS) lets you enter an equation as it's written. HP's
> RPN lets you enter an equation as you would solve it with pencil and paper.
> You can see that this is true. If you were to solve the above by hand,
> which op would you do first? n-1 of course then you'd do the
> exponentiation, then the subtraction, then the division last. I like both
> systems. When I'm porting a BASIC program, TI's is easier. When I'm
> performing calculations ad hoc, I like RPN. There's an RPN program
> available for the TI as well as an algebraic program for the HP so you can
> do both on either brand.
RPN allows to create slightly more compact programs. It was VERY
important in those times, when calculators boasted... 49 program
steps in memory and the language reminded of assembly.
mjw
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