HP 48GX and HP Prime - Finding resultant vector

[@CommodoreGreg]

As someone who's used to the 48 and is curious about the Prime, this is really nice to see. I would watch more videos like this.

[@scottcollins7513]

Thanks for the feedback. The 28/48/49/50 are just a completely different machine than the Prime. Both have their strengths/weaknesses.

[@parragoriouse0138]

@@scottcollins7513 the prime can also use rpl or rpn i think

[@scottcollins7513]

@@parragoriouse0138 True, but it is still a “standard” calculator at heart. The RPN is not full featured as far as I know (I have very little experience using the Prime in RPN).

[@2adamast]

Nice exercice, just got a 48G. Used list to do it differently. Put the stack in one list, saved it and then added the list. Finding the second vector 'directly' is still a future challenge

[@scottcollins7513]

Thank you. If you figure out a way to create the polar vector efficiently on the Prime please let me know. Enjoy that 48G!

[@alistercarmichael4990]

Late to the part here. I'm looking for something that makes vector calculations a joy and have no need for a restricted system. I just need answers. Here in the UK the earlier hp machines are rare and expensive so the prime looks like the goto. Your two videos are both excellent for showing how this works and the ease of the old tech. Maybe the new units can graph the regression of ease of use for us. Top work though. Thanks.

[@scottcollins7513]

Thanks for the comment, Alister. Glad you found it useful! Yes, when it comes to "just needing answers", I feel like the vintage hp calculators like the hp 28s and hp 48gx were superb. Appreciated the cheeky "regression of ease of use" graph comment, too.

[@bolleke702]

Another remark, right now, spherical or cylindrical coordinates are still not implemented on the prime. This has already been asked for a long time so it seems, but even with the latest firmware (2020), it's still not implemented. So it's better to work with the 2D-vectors as complex numbers I guess, for easy switching between rectangular and polar form. (=within normal brackets)

[@scottcollins7513]

It is strange that they never addressed this issue. Thanks for the comment.

[@ahall3823]

I've got the same issue with the HP Prime. It doesn't seem to work as well in RPN mode as the 48/49/50G series.

[@scottcollins7513]

I cannot quite articulate why, but for me the Prime is lacking the magic of the old RPN/RPL calcs (28S, 48GX, 42S) even if it is immensely powerful.

[@INCYTER]

Hiya Scott. To convert your second vector on the HP Prime (at 2m38s), the better way was to enter what you did..but inside round parens. i.e. [(50

[@scottcollins7513]

By using the () round parens, you are solving the problem using complex numbers rather than vectors. Granted, you will get the same answer, and it may actually be simpler. I just wish the vector [ ] abilities were more full-featured. As far as the ± goes, it is there whenever you use [ ] to enter a bracket -- it is how you add an additional column (e.g. for a 3D vector). Thanks for leaving a comment, Incyter!

[@Hearthglow]

Using () will get different results /sometimes/ depending on the quadrant, I believe. Try it with different quadrants, and see.

[@uranuz30]

excelent....thanks for you information......

[@scottcollins7513]

Glad it was helpful, Gustavo. Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment.

[@holgerH1]

The results differ between the two calculators, any idea why? Btw this is really slick on the 48 as you said. Would it be simpler on the Prime in RPN mode?

[@bolleke702]

The results appear exactly the same to me ;-)

[@holgerH1]

@@bolleke702 Oh my bad. The result on the Prime is in rectangular form, that threw me off. 🤦‍♂️

[@scottcollins7513]

I have essentially no experience using the Prime in RPN mode. My hunch is that using RPN on Prime would be convoluted in comparison to the 48.

[@Hearthglow]

RPN is my default mode for the Prime. I got one of the first 48 to come out, and still think it is hot stuff, in a nostalgic sort of way. I also use the 50G. I miss vector math on the Prime, because I use it so often. Doing this problem in RPN is virtually the same on both machines. The extra step is converting the complex number to a 2D vector, which is simple editing, as you have shown. The -3,-5 vector I enter 2X, so that I can take the abs() of it, then divide and multiply. All the same steps you need to go through to solve the problem, so there is no short cut. You could have calculated atan to go with the 40, but there is no savings there.

[@Chrls5]

Beautiful hp 48!

[@scottcollins7513]

Thank you. HP really built an impressive machine. Appreciate the comment.

[@pablopicaro7649]

Had a 48Gx way back in old days. Did NOT like it at all, was very SLOW to respond, and very SLOW to calculate. sold it to another foreign student at Iowa State University. The person paid in cash $1, $5, $10 he and his girlfriend must have saved up all they could for it. $300 or $350 it seems like with various accessories. 1

[@scottcollins7513]

I do not mind the speed of calculation on my 48GX, but do agree that when you are using the graphical-based menus/programs it is painfully slow. I don't use the calculator very often these days, but when I do, I generally avoid the graphical menus. Thanks for the comment, Pablo.

[@bolleke702]

If you just want to add the vectors, you don't need to first store them into variables

[@scottcollins7513]

Correct. I should have been more clear about that. I just wanted to show how one could save them for use in subsequent calculations.