cprice@mips.COM (Charlie Price) (02/12/91)
Read articles from exotic places! Post assertions! Netnews. It's not just news, it's an education! For those few pople who didn't know better already: LOTS of software systems store, or can store, 80 bits for IEEE FP numbers. In fact, if one thinks about it for more than a moment, you have to do that to make 80-bit computation meaningful. I have apparently only ever used deficient compilers when I've used machines with 80-bit FPUs -- but it left a lasting impression because mixing 80-bit precision registers with 64-bit memory representations caused me a lot of trouble. Sorry about misleading anybody, and thanks to the people who sent me notes. -- Charlie Price cprice@mips.mips.com (408) 720-1700 MIPS Computer Systems / 928 Arques Ave. / Sunnyvale, CA 94086-23650