🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1992Dec20.004150.14551@sol.ctr.columbia.edu> penev@venezia.rockefeller.edu writes:
>Mark Bartelt (sysmark@helios.physics.utoronto.ca) wrote:
>: Nearly a year ago I groused a bit about the fact that neither C nor
>: fortran (under IRIX 4.0.x) support 128-bit floats, and that (worse!)
>
>I wonder who will do the calculations with 128 bit integers, even if
>the structure is supported in both languages. The R3000,4000,6000 do
>not have support to this, so on them one should do the high-precision
>entirely in software. The MIPS architecture has room for extending the
>data type of the math coprocessor, but I have not heard this step to
>have been taken in R4400. 

When I went to the NEC/MIPS/SGI R4000A ( R4400 ) conference earlier
this year, I specifically asked if the existing IEEE 754 SP and DP
coverage would be extended to EP also.  I was specifically told by the
guy that made the decision that it was not.

Furthermore, the original IEEE 754 hardware rounding is ( not
suprisingly ) still not supported.

That should clear up that question.

Perhaps the next chip?  No.  The FPX, and the low power R4000 ( I
forget its name ) are the two next chips.  Though I go not concrete 
answers, I got a solid feeling that these would also have only SP and
DP.  And the chip after that, the R5000?  I have no idea.  Call your 
salesman today.
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