HP 39gs Resetting Manual

R e s e t t i n g t h e c a
R e s e t t i n g t h e c a
It is probably inevitable as the line between calculators and computers becomes blurred
that calculators will inherit one of the more frustrating characteristics of computers: they
crash! The hp 39gs and hp 40gs can sometimes do this due to the very complex and
flexible operating system they use. If you find that the calculator is beginning to behave
strangely, or is locking up then there are a number of ways to deal with this.
Calculator Tip
If you are a user of external aplets then you may occasionally find that
an aplet that has been working perfectly will unexpectedly stop working
with the message "Invalid syntax. Edit program?". There is almost
certainly nothing wrong. Press
run the aplet again.
Soft reboot (Keyboard)
ON+SK3
Pressing will perform a soft reboot. It is perfectly safe and will not cause any
memory loss except that your
while still holding it down, press the third screen key from the left. The calculator will
very briefly display a boot screen and then redisplay the
aplet as the active one.
If you find that the calculator locks up so completely that the keyboard will not respond
then a method of reset is provided below which is independent of the keyboard. This
shouldn't happen but it is important to know how to deal with it in case it happened
during a test or an exam.
Soft reboot (Hardware)
Thi s method is provided in case the calculator is locked up to the point that the keyboard
no longer responds.
On the back of the calculator is a small hole. Poke a paper clip or a pin into this hole and
press gently on the switch inside. This briefly interrupts the power supply and, to the
calculator, is exactly equivalent to a soft reboot as outlined in the previous section.
Normally it should not only unlock the calculator but retain your data intact. However, it
must be pointed out that a problem so severe that it has locked up the keyboard may be so
bad that it has corrupted the memory anyway. If so then you may find that you see the
"Memory Clear" message when it reboots. If you find that it keeps locking up repeatedly
then you should perform a hard reboot as described in the next section. If you have
important data on the calculator then you might try to save it to a PC before doing this
since a hard reboot will wipe all user memory.
Extracted from "Mastering the hp 39gs & hp 40gs Graphical Calculators" copyright © 2006 Applications in Mathematics & Hewlett
Packard. Permission is granted for use in education and for owners of HP calculators but not for commercial use.
l c u l a t o r
l c u l a t o r
HOME
History will be cleared. Hold down the
, try a soft reboot as below, then
HOME
view, with the Function
ON
key and,