Path: utzoo!mnetor!tmsoft!torsqnt!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!bonnie.concordia.ca!uunet!munnari.oz.au!metro!macuni!sunb!ifarqhar
From: ifarqhar@sunb.mqcc.mq.oz.au (Ian Farquhar)
Newsgroups: comp.lang.postscript
Subject: Re: PostScript Arithmetic
Message-ID: <1212@macuni.mqcc.mq.oz>
Date: 13 Feb 91 12:53:23 GMT
References: <51887@cornell.UUCP> <1393@vidiot.UUCP>
Sender: news@macuni.mqcc.mq.oz
Distribution: comp
Organization: Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia.
Lines: 22

In article <1393@vidiot.UUCP> brown@vidiot.UUCP (Vidiot) writes:
>In article <51887@cornell.UUCP> charney@cs.cornell.edu (Mark Charney) writes:
><Can someone tell me if PostScript printers generally 
><use or floating point or fixed point numbers for their 
><calculations?
>
>If I read the info correctly, it is floating point.

Well, according to the printer optimization study on the Adobe file
server (essential reading, IMO), anything that goes into the graphics
system is floating point, and that putting integers into such commands
shows it down (ie. 10 20 moveto is slower than 10.0 20.0 moveto.)
However, I am certain that the control entries that take numeric values
take integers.

So, in answer, I would say that it depends on the operator being used.

--
Ian Farquhar                      Phone : + 61 2 805-9400
Office of Computing Services      Fax   : + 61 2 805-7433
Macquarie University  NSW  2109   Also  : + 61 2 805-7420
Australia                         EMail : ifarqhar@suna.mqcc.mq.oz.au