New transfer tool for Linux: HPex

[Liam Hays]

Hello! I'd like to introduce something I've created. But before that, I want to note that for those of us using Linux and HP RPL calculators, we don't have a lot of options. HPTalx, the GUI option, is outdated, with a strange interface and no XModem support. Kermit's prompt interface is flexible (and works with XModem) but requires a lot of configuration to be compatible with the HP 48. Kermit is also CLI only.

So, out of necessity, I have created a new software tool: HPex (pronounced h-pecks). It's a fully-featured Linux application for transferring objects to and from HP RPL calculators. HPex has complete graphical and command line interfaces, Kermit and XModem support, automatic serial port detection, and best of all: a threaded, message-based architecture. It's written in Python 3 with wxPython and has few dependencies. I've attached a screenshot of the main window, to showcase the GUI.

After much work, HPex is now ready for its first stable release---version 1.0.0. I won't elaborate much more here, so check it out at https://github.com/liamhays/hpex. To download, click "Releases" on the right side of that page and download "Source code" for version 1.0.0. Follow the installation and usage instructions on the URL I linked.

Try HPex out, and if you find any bugs, problems, points of confusion, or anything else, please say something! I've never released a big project like this before, so I'm excited to see how it goes. Also, please note that HPex is currently unstable for use with the HP 48gII/49 series/50g (which I collectively refer to as the "Meta Kernel calculators"). Until I can get one of these calculators, I recommend only using HPex with the HP 48 series.