From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 X-Spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 3.4.4 (2020-01-24) on polar.synack.me X-Spam-Level: *** X-Spam-Status: No, score=3.2 required=5.0 tests=BAYES_00,FROM_WORDY, INVALID_DATE,REPLYTO_WITHOUT_TO_CC autolearn=no autolearn_force=no version=3.4.4 Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.3 4.3bsd-beta 6/6/85; site ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!ucbvax!info-ada From: MCGRATH%OZ.AI.MIT.EDU@XX.LCS.MIT.EDU ("Jim McGrath") Newsgroups: net.lang.ada Subject: Radix quey Message-ID: <12183177717.25.MCGRATH@OZ.AI.MIT.EDU> Date: Thu, 13-Feb-86 22:14:00 EST Article-I.D.: OZ.12183177717.25.MCGRATH Posted: Thu Feb 13 22:14:00 1986 Date-Received: Sat, 15-Feb-86 03:26:17 EST Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Reply-To: mcgrath%mit-oz@mit-mc.arpa Organization: The ARPA Internet List-Id: From: sdcsvax!sdcrdcf!steve@ucbvax.berkeley.edu (Steven Holtsberg) (2) On page 3-20 of the reference manual, the canonical form for any floating point number other than zero is given as sign * mantissa * (radix ** exponent) My question: Why is radix given as a parameter? Isn't the radix, by definition, two? No, it is not. The radix can, in general, be any number. If your data is in base 10, then it is a big win if the language you are using supports that representation directly, rather than forcing you to convert it yourself. Even computers do not exclusively compute in base 2. Many have optional base 8, 10, nd 16 operations. Jim -------