Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Path: utzoo!linus!decvax!tektronix!tekecs!orca!andrew
From: andrew@orca.UUCP (Andrew Klossner)
Newsgroups: net.misc
Subject: Artificially different products and HP calculators
Message-ID: <1387@orca.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 13-Jul-83 03:00:13 EDT
Article-I.D.: orca.1387
Posted: Wed Jul 13 03:00:13 1983
Date-Received: Thu, 14-Jul-83 01:12:18 EDT
References: ucbvax.108
Lines: 31


	"Several years ago, Hewlett-Packard made a calculator with a
	built-in stopwatch, and another calculator that was the same
	except for the stopwatch.  Naturally the latter calculator was
	cheaper.  However, by pressing an undocumented combination of
	buttons on the latter calculator, you could put it in the
	stopwatch mode that it wasn't supposed to have!"

If the other "artificially different product" anecdotes are as
apocryphal as this one, then there is a lot of misinformation on the
net this month.

The two calculators in question were the HP-45 and the HP-55.  The
HP-55 appeared many months (years?) after the HP-45, and differed from
it in that it had an accurate clock and was *programmable*.  The HP-45
does in fact have a timer which is not accurate (mine runs at 91% of
real time).  For a while there was a company which offered to install a
crystal to make the clock accurate, but I didn't respond.

The difference in price between these two calculators is more than
adequately explained by the programmability feature.  Incidentally, the
HP-55 was a real loser; people don't seem to want clocks on their
calculators.  Programmability buyers went instead for the HP-65, which
allowed the user to save programs on magnetic cards (and originally
listed for $800 !!)

HP-45 owners who haven't discovered the pseudo-clock feature (after all
these years) can learn the details by sending mail to:

  -- Andrew Klossner   (decvax!teklabs!tekecs!andrew)  [UUCP]
                       (andrew.tektronix@rand-relay)   [ARPA]