The Definitive User's Guide to the HP 48g/49g/50g Calculators

HP provides an impressive quantity of user documentation, but quantity is no guarantee of quality! Tom Barber has been a professional programmer of the C/UNIX persuasion for more than 25 years, hooked on HP calculators since his college days when he implemented Gaussian quadrature on the HP25. The reputation of HP calculators as being somewhat difficult to use, has a lot to do with the user documentation. That is why he wrote this book.Written primarily for novice users, experienced users who occasionally find themselves frustrated may also find help within the pages. The author takes a tutorial approach for certain topics such as the Equation Writer, and overall, his narrative explanations are better organized and more complete than HP's manuals. He uses tables and lists for topics where a more accessible summary of essential facts and behaviors is needed. He paid careful attention to the importance of writing in a clear, precise manner.Topics covered include:Essential Architectural FeaturesKeypad operationEssential calculator modesWhat the CAS modes Numeric and Approx actually doBasic entry techniques using the command lineTechniques and commands to manage global variablesThe text editorThe Equation WriterScreen-based re-use of prior expressionsListsCustom menusUnit objects, Units conversions and the Constants LibraryComplex numbers and ordered pairsVectors and arraysBinary integers and number basesCharacter/Text StringsThe Matrix WriterStatistics applicationsThe Equation SolverThe TVM Financial SolverThe numerical solvers for polynomials and systems of equationsProgrammatic management of the stack in RPN modeRecursive evaluation of the RPN command line and RPL programsProgramming the calculator in RPLTechniques for manipulating algebraic expressions symbolicallyPlottingThe File ManagerSystem Operation8.5 x 11, 110 pages, equivalent to 250 pages in a more typical handbook format.