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From: rgenter@BBN-LABS-B.ARPA (Rick Genter)
Newsgroups: net.lang.c
Subject: Re: format (printf like routines)
Message-ID: <2568@brl-smoke.ARPA>
Date: Fri, 25-Jul-86 14:20:26 EDT
Article-I.D.: brl-smok.2568
Posted: Fri Jul 25 14:20:26 1986
Date-Received: Sat, 26-Jul-86 05:33:57 EDT
Sender: news@brl-smoke.ARPA
Lines: 14


     With respect to 10**38 being inaccurate:

     Geoff is correct.  Since 10 is not a power of two, to represent 10**38
exactly *does* require many many bits of mantissa (89 to be exact).
*However*, on the VAX, thanks to hardware magic like guard digits, a loop of
38 "* 10.0"s *does* yield the exact representation of 10**38 within the
constraints of a (double).  A subsequent loop of 38 "/ 10.0"s even gives
you 1.0.
--------
Rick Genter 				BBN Laboratories Inc.
(617) 497-3848				10 Moulton St.  6/512
rgenter@labs-b.bbn.COM  (Internet new)	Cambridge, MA   02238
rgenter@bbn-labs-b.ARPA (Internet old)	linus!rgenter%BBN-LABS-B.ARPA (UUCP)