Article View: comp.sys.atari.st
Article #27282MWC and VAX floating-point format
From: Karl Rowley
Date: Wed, 17 Jun 1987 17:15
Date: Wed, 17 Jun 1987 17:15
23 lines
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1394 bytes
The reason why MWC chose the VAX floating-point format has been questioned. VAX double-precision format is identical to single-precision format, except that the mantissa is extended. The IEEE format does not have this property. A floating-point library to use the VAX format is simplified by this similarity. In addition, all function arguments of type float are converted to doubles before they are put on the stack in MWC. Conversion from floats to doubles and back is certainly simple enough in VAX format. In other words, implementing the VAX floating-point format in software is probably simpler than implementing the IEEE format in software. Of course, IEEE format is superior in many ways, and doesn't have its bytes all flipped around. Karl Rowley rowley@orville.nas.nasa.gov
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Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: arc1-ca.pugleaf.net!utzoo!mnetor!seismo!gatech!hao!husc6!mit-eddie!genrad!decvax!ucbvax!ORVILLE.ARPA!rowley From: rowley@ORVILLE.ARPA (Karl Rowley) Newsgroups: comp.sys.atari.st Subject: MWC and VAX floating-point format Message-ID: <8706171715.AA08471@orville.arpa> Date: Wed, 17-Jun-87 13:15:24 EDT Article-I.D.: orville.8706171715.AA08471 Posted: Wed Jun 17 13:15:24 1987 Date-Received: Sun, 21-Jun-87 10:03:22 EDT Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU Distribution: world Organization: The ARPA Internet Lines: 23