Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!att!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!abvax!iccgcc!schmidtg
From: schmidtg@iccgcc.decnet.ab.com
Newsgroups: comp.lang.forth
Subject: More efficient FIG definition for "*" ?
Message-ID: <1927.273bc77b@iccgcc.decnet.ab.com>
Date: 10 Nov 90 14:25:15 GMT
Lines: 29



The FIG Forth which I am using defines 16 bit multiplication as:

: * M* DROP ;

I don't understand why it is not simply defined as:

: * U* DROP ;

Although the second is an unsigned multiplication, the low
order 16 bit result always seems to be correct in the context
of signed multiplication (try it!).  The second is more efficient
as the overhead of managing the quantities as signed numbers
is avoided.  Am I correct on this or am I missing a subtle point
here?


-- 


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Greg Schmidt -> schmidtg@iccgcc.decnet.ab.com
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