I like Hewlett Packard calculators. I have two HP32SII's and a 42S,
have worn out several others over the years since the HP-35, the
first scientific handheld calculator with trig functions and all. I
felt lucky as hell to find one of those used at $135, in the early
'70s when that was more than a house payment. That's when I retired
my trusty Post Versalog slide rule. I also have an HP48G but I've
never liked it much. Too damned complicated for everyday use.

One 32SII has been my shop/lab workhorse for over a decade. The
buttons are still legible, all but one anyway. Lately some of the
buttons got to be intermittent. Got out the "backup" 32SII I
spotted (and glommed) in a bookshop years ago after HP had quit
making them. There were none to be had here but this bookshop was
on a back street in Ghent, Belgium.

Same keyboard problem with it, though it has about no "miles" on it.
Oh, darn! Got out the 42S which I'd been hoarding because I
*really* like that calculator. Same thing. Ooooooo nooooooo!

Battery voltages all looked fine. I put new batteries in one anyway.
No help.

Then I recalled that one of my fishing sonars got wierd earlier this
year after a 1-week fishin' trip where it rained nearly every day.
One might think that a boat gadget would be weatherproof, right?
Maybe it was when new 6 years ago.

I'd bagged the sonar with a 1-oz desiccant pack for a few days. That
fixed it, as expected.

Mmmm (you can see it coming already, right?) I bagged the
calculators in a ziplock with a desiccant pack. Three days later,
they all work perfectly.

I'm gonna start using the 42S now. It's in brand-new condition but
it probably won't be for long, with everyday use in the shop/lab. What
the hell, I'm gonna enjoy it while I can still see it.

The 32SII's will be transferred to a screw-top jar with a coupla
desiccant paks.