The DB48X project intends to rebuild and improve the user experience of the HP48 family of calculators, notably their "Reverse Polish Lisp" (RPL) language with its rich set of data types and built-in functions, and Lisp-level programming power.
The project in this repository is presently targeting the SwissMicro DM42, DM32 and DM42n calculators. You can order keyboard overlays to adjust the calculator's faceplates to DB48X. DB48X leverages SwissMicros's built-in software platform, known as DMCP. There is also a simulator that is tested on macOS or Linux, and you can even try it in your browser
In the long-term, the vision is to be able to port DB48X on a number of different physical calculator platforms, like the ARM-based HP50 and related machines (HP49, HP48Gii, etc), and the HP Prime (at least the G1, since the G2 seems a bit more locked down), maybe others. The basis for that work can be found in the DB48X project.
This project was presented at FOSDEM 2023 and FOSDEM 2024. There is a YouTube playlist featuring a number of tutorials and topical videos.
DB stands for "Dave and Bill", who are more commonly known as Hewlett and Packard. The order is reversed compared to HP, since they reportedly chose the order at random, and it's about time Dave Packard was given preeminence.
Part of Dave and Bill's great legacy (beyond giving birth to the Silicon Valley) is a legendary series of calculators. The HP48 remains one of my favorites, notably for its rich built-in programming language, known as Reverse Polish Lisp (RPL). This project aims at recreating a decent successor to the HP48, at least in spirit.
DB48x is currently fairly usable, and probably one of the best scientific calculators in the world, even in its current unfinished state. It implements a large fraction of the features set of the latest HP RPL calculators (HP48SX, HP50G), with significant enhancements, such as variable-precision decimal numbers, an extensive built-in help, and an up-to-date and extended library of equations and constants.
The detailed current status is described in the STATUS file and in the list of implemented commands.
The INSTALL file details the installation procedure on SwissMicros DM32, DM42 and DM42 calculators, which is outlined in the video below:
This video is part of a playlist that contains many other DB48x-related videos, and where you can find the evolution of the project over time, as well as demonistrations of some of the more recent features.
There is a separate document explaining how to build this project.
The simulator includes a test suite, which you should run before submitting
patches. To run these tests, pass the -T option to the simulator, or hit the
F12 key in the simulator.
The calculator features an extensive built-in documentation
that uses a restricted version of Markdown.
You access that built-in help by holding a key down, or
using the Help command
There is DMCP interface doc in progress see DMCP IFC doc (or you can download html zip from doc directory).
The source code of the DM42PGM program
is also quite informative about the capabilities of the DMCP.