[comp.lang.smalltalk] floating point support

becher@argosy.UUCP (Jonathan D. Becher) (09/13/89)

I've been playing with the number junta in ParcPlace Smalltalk 2.4
and need to add double-precision floating point support (it only has
single-precision).  I'd like to include IEEE, VAX D and G formats to
be complete.

Before I dived in and started adding the user prims, I thought I'd ask 
if anyone had already done this work and would be willing to share.

Thanks,
Jon Becher

argosy!becher@decwrl.dec.com
"I don't work for DEC - honest"

khaw@parcplace.com (Mike Khaw) (09/16/89)

becher@argosy.UUCP (Jonathan D. Becher) writes:

>I've been playing with the number junta in ParcPlace Smalltalk 2.4
>and need to add double-precision floating point support (it only has
>single-precision).  I'd like to include IEEE, VAX D and G formats to
>be complete.

You may wish to upgrade to version 2.5, now called "Objectworks for
Smalltalk-80", which includes support for double precision floats and
IEEE format (supplied as part of the standard set of fileIns).

For more information, contact:

	ParcPlace Systems, Inc.
	1550 Plymouth Street
	Mountain View, CA 94043
	(415) 691-6700

	e-mail: info@parcplace.com or ...!{uunet,decwrl}!parcplace!info

Please do not contact me directly.  I don't have information about
prices/availability/etc. and would have to refer you to someone else
anyway.

Mike Khaw
-- 
ParcPlace Systems, 1550 Plymouth St., Mountain View, CA 94043	415/691-6749
Domain=khaw@parcplace.com, UUCP={uunet,sun,decwrl}!parcplace!khaw

djp@aerospace.aero.org (Dennis J. Persinger) (09/19/89)

In article <260@argosy.UUCP> becher@argosy.UUCP (Jonathan D. Becher) writes:
>I've been playing with the number junta in ParcPlace Smalltalk 2.4
>and need to add double-precision floating point support (it only has
>single-precision).  I'd like to include IEEE, VAX D and G formats to
>be complete.

ParcPlace Smalltalk 2.5 (being released as we speak) includes fileins for
Double Precision, Complex Numbers, and Meta Numbers (infinities, infinitesimals,
and a few other special types).

Doubles arithmetic is supported by primitives, but I haven't tried using
it yet.  Below is the class comments from the type 'Double':

    Instances of the class Double represent floating-point numbers in 
    IEEE 64-bit format.

    These floating-point numbers are good for about 14 or 15 digits of 
    accuracy, and the range is between plus and minus 10^307.
    Here are some valid floating-point examples:
	8.0   13.3   0.3   2.5e6   1.27e-30  1.27e-31 -12.987654e12
    The format consists mainly of no imbedded blanks, little e for tens 
    power, and a digit on both sides of the decimal point.

    Instance Variables: *byte indexed*

    Class Variables: 
	Pi			<Double> 3.14159
	RadiansPerDegree	<Double> 0.0174533

Dennis Persinger
The Aerospace Corporation
djp@aerospace.aero.org