1 @node Arithmetic, Date and Time, Mathematics, Top
2 @c %MENU% Low level arithmetic functions
3 @chapter Arithmetic Functions
5 This chapter contains information about functions for doing basic
6 arithmetic operations, such as splitting a float into its integer and
7 fractional parts or retrieving the imaginary part of a complex value.
8 These functions are declared in the header files @file{math.h} and
12 * Integers:: Basic integer types and concepts
13 * Integer Division:: Integer division with guaranteed rounding.
14 * Floating Point Numbers:: Basic concepts. IEEE 754.
15 * Floating Point Classes:: The five kinds of floating-point number.
16 * Floating Point Errors:: When something goes wrong in a calculation.
17 * Rounding:: Controlling how results are rounded.
18 * Control Functions:: Saving and restoring the FPU's state.
19 * Arithmetic Functions:: Fundamental operations provided by the library.
20 * Complex Numbers:: The types. Writing complex constants.
21 * Operations on Complex:: Projection, conjugation, decomposition.
22 * Parsing of Numbers:: Converting strings to numbers.
23 * Printing of Floats:: Converting floating-point numbers to strings.
24 * System V Number Conversion:: An archaic way to convert numbers to strings.
31 The C language defines several integer data types: integer, short integer,
32 long integer, and character, all in both signed and unsigned varieties.
33 The GNU C compiler extends the language to contain long long integers
37 The C integer types were intended to allow code to be portable among
38 machines with different inherent data sizes (word sizes), so each type
39 may have different ranges on different machines. The problem with
40 this is that a program often needs to be written for a particular range
41 of integers, and sometimes must be written for a particular size of
42 storage, regardless of what machine the program runs on.
44 To address this problem, @theglibc{} contains C type definitions
45 you can use to declare integers that meet your exact needs. Because the
46 @glibcadj{} header files are customized to a specific machine, your
47 program source code doesn't have to be.
49 These @code{typedef}s are in @file{stdint.h}.
52 If you require that an integer be represented in exactly N bits, use one
53 of the following types, with the obvious mapping to bit size and signedness:
66 If your C compiler and target machine do not allow integers of a certain
67 size, the corresponding above type does not exist.
69 If you don't need a specific storage size, but want the smallest data
70 structure with @emph{at least} N bits, use one of these:
83 If you don't need a specific storage size, but want the data structure
84 that allows the fastest access while having at least N bits (and
85 among data structures with the same access speed, the smallest one), use
99 If you want an integer with the widest range possible on the platform on
100 which it is being used, use one of the following. If you use these,
101 you should write code that takes into account the variable size and range
109 @Theglibc{} also provides macros that tell you the maximum and
110 minimum possible values for each integer data type. The macro names
111 follow these examples: @code{INT32_MAX}, @code{UINT8_MAX},
112 @code{INT_FAST32_MIN}, @code{INT_LEAST64_MIN}, @code{UINTMAX_MAX},
113 @code{INTMAX_MAX}, @code{INTMAX_MIN}. Note that there are no macros for
114 unsigned integer minima. These are always zero. Similiarly, there
115 are macros such as @code{INTMAX_WIDTH} for the width of these types.
116 Those macros for integer type widths come from TS 18661-1:2014.
117 @cindex maximum possible integer
118 @cindex minimum possible integer
120 There are similar macros for use with C's built in integer types which
121 should come with your C compiler. These are described in @ref{Data Type
124 Don't forget you can use the C @code{sizeof} function with any of these
125 data types to get the number of bytes of storage each uses.
128 @node Integer Division
129 @section Integer Division
130 @cindex integer division functions
132 This section describes functions for performing integer division. These
133 functions are redundant when GNU CC is used, because in GNU C the
134 @samp{/} operator always rounds towards zero. But in other C
135 implementations, @samp{/} may round differently with negative arguments.
136 @code{div} and @code{ldiv} are useful because they specify how to round
137 the quotient: towards zero. The remainder has the same sign as the
140 These functions are specified to return a result @var{r} such that the value
141 @code{@var{r}.quot*@var{denominator} + @var{r}.rem} equals
145 To use these facilities, you should include the header file
146 @file{stdlib.h} in your program.
150 @deftp {Data Type} div_t
151 This is a structure type used to hold the result returned by the @code{div}
152 function. It has the following members:
156 The quotient from the division.
159 The remainder from the division.
165 @deftypefun div_t div (int @var{numerator}, int @var{denominator})
166 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
167 @c Functions in this section are pure, and thus safe.
168 The function @code{div} computes the quotient and remainder from
169 the division of @var{numerator} by @var{denominator}, returning the
170 result in a structure of type @code{div_t}.
172 If the result cannot be represented (as in a division by zero), the
173 behavior is undefined.
175 Here is an example, albeit not a very useful one.
179 result = div (20, -6);
183 Now @code{result.quot} is @code{-3} and @code{result.rem} is @code{2}.
188 @deftp {Data Type} ldiv_t
189 This is a structure type used to hold the result returned by the @code{ldiv}
190 function. It has the following members:
194 The quotient from the division.
197 The remainder from the division.
200 (This is identical to @code{div_t} except that the components are of
201 type @code{long int} rather than @code{int}.)
206 @deftypefun ldiv_t ldiv (long int @var{numerator}, long int @var{denominator})
207 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
208 The @code{ldiv} function is similar to @code{div}, except that the
209 arguments are of type @code{long int} and the result is returned as a
210 structure of type @code{ldiv_t}.
215 @deftp {Data Type} lldiv_t
216 This is a structure type used to hold the result returned by the @code{lldiv}
217 function. It has the following members:
220 @item long long int quot
221 The quotient from the division.
223 @item long long int rem
224 The remainder from the division.
227 (This is identical to @code{div_t} except that the components are of
228 type @code{long long int} rather than @code{int}.)
233 @deftypefun lldiv_t lldiv (long long int @var{numerator}, long long int @var{denominator})
234 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
235 The @code{lldiv} function is like the @code{div} function, but the
236 arguments are of type @code{long long int} and the result is returned as
237 a structure of type @code{lldiv_t}.
239 The @code{lldiv} function was added in @w{ISO C99}.
244 @deftp {Data Type} imaxdiv_t
245 This is a structure type used to hold the result returned by the @code{imaxdiv}
246 function. It has the following members:
250 The quotient from the division.
253 The remainder from the division.
256 (This is identical to @code{div_t} except that the components are of
257 type @code{intmax_t} rather than @code{int}.)
259 See @ref{Integers} for a description of the @code{intmax_t} type.
265 @deftypefun imaxdiv_t imaxdiv (intmax_t @var{numerator}, intmax_t @var{denominator})
266 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
267 The @code{imaxdiv} function is like the @code{div} function, but the
268 arguments are of type @code{intmax_t} and the result is returned as
269 a structure of type @code{imaxdiv_t}.
271 See @ref{Integers} for a description of the @code{intmax_t} type.
273 The @code{imaxdiv} function was added in @w{ISO C99}.
277 @node Floating Point Numbers
278 @section Floating Point Numbers
279 @cindex floating point
281 @cindex IEEE floating point
283 Most computer hardware has support for two different kinds of numbers:
284 integers (@math{@dots{}-3, -2, -1, 0, 1, 2, 3@dots{}}) and
285 floating-point numbers. Floating-point numbers have three parts: the
286 @dfn{mantissa}, the @dfn{exponent}, and the @dfn{sign bit}. The real
287 number represented by a floating-point value is given by
289 $(s \mathrel? -1 \mathrel: 1) \cdot 2^e \cdot M$
292 @math{(s ? -1 : 1) @mul{} 2^e @mul{} M}
294 where @math{s} is the sign bit, @math{e} the exponent, and @math{M}
295 the mantissa. @xref{Floating Point Concepts}, for details. (It is
296 possible to have a different @dfn{base} for the exponent, but all modern
297 hardware uses @math{2}.)
299 Floating-point numbers can represent a finite subset of the real
300 numbers. While this subset is large enough for most purposes, it is
301 important to remember that the only reals that can be represented
302 exactly are rational numbers that have a terminating binary expansion
303 shorter than the width of the mantissa. Even simple fractions such as
304 @math{1/5} can only be approximated by floating point.
306 Mathematical operations and functions frequently need to produce values
307 that are not representable. Often these values can be approximated
308 closely enough for practical purposes, but sometimes they can't.
309 Historically there was no way to tell when the results of a calculation
310 were inaccurate. Modern computers implement the @w{IEEE 754} standard
311 for numerical computations, which defines a framework for indicating to
312 the program when the results of calculation are not trustworthy. This
313 framework consists of a set of @dfn{exceptions} that indicate why a
314 result could not be represented, and the special values @dfn{infinity}
315 and @dfn{not a number} (NaN).
317 @node Floating Point Classes
318 @section Floating-Point Number Classification Functions
319 @cindex floating-point classes
320 @cindex classes, floating-point
323 @w{ISO C99} defines macros that let you determine what sort of
324 floating-point number a variable holds.
328 @deftypefn {Macro} int fpclassify (@emph{float-type} @var{x})
329 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
330 This is a generic macro which works on all floating-point types and
331 which returns a value of type @code{int}. The possible values are:
335 The floating-point number @var{x} is ``Not a Number'' (@pxref{Infinity
338 The value of @var{x} is either plus or minus infinity (@pxref{Infinity
341 The value of @var{x} is zero. In floating-point formats like @w{IEEE
342 754}, where zero can be signed, this value is also returned if
343 @var{x} is negative zero.
345 Numbers whose absolute value is too small to be represented in the
346 normal format are represented in an alternate, @dfn{denormalized} format
347 (@pxref{Floating Point Concepts}). This format is less precise but can
348 represent values closer to zero. @code{fpclassify} returns this value
349 for values of @var{x} in this alternate format.
351 This value is returned for all other values of @var{x}. It indicates
352 that there is nothing special about the number.
357 @code{fpclassify} is most useful if more than one property of a number
358 must be tested. There are more specific macros which only test one
359 property at a time. Generally these macros execute faster than
360 @code{fpclassify}, since there is special hardware support for them.
361 You should therefore use the specific macros whenever possible.
365 @deftypefn {Macro} int iscanonical (@emph{float-type} @var{x})
366 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
367 In some floating-point formats, some values have canonical (preferred)
368 and noncanonical encodings (for IEEE interchange binary formats, all
369 encodings are canonical). This macro returns a nonzero value if
370 @var{x} has a canonical encoding. It is from TS 18661-1:2014.
372 Note that some formats have multiple encodings of a value which are
373 all equally canonical; @code{iscanonical} returns a nonzero value for
374 all such encodings. Also, formats may have encodings that do not
375 correspond to any valid value of the type. In ISO C terms these are
376 @dfn{trap representations}; in @theglibc{}, @code{iscanonical} returns
377 zero for such encodings.
382 @deftypefn {Macro} int isfinite (@emph{float-type} @var{x})
383 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
384 This macro returns a nonzero value if @var{x} is finite: not plus or
385 minus infinity, and not NaN. It is equivalent to
388 (fpclassify (x) != FP_NAN && fpclassify (x) != FP_INFINITE)
391 @code{isfinite} is implemented as a macro which accepts any
397 @deftypefn {Macro} int isnormal (@emph{float-type} @var{x})
398 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
399 This macro returns a nonzero value if @var{x} is finite and normalized.
403 (fpclassify (x) == FP_NORMAL)
409 @deftypefn {Macro} int isnan (@emph{float-type} @var{x})
410 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
411 This macro returns a nonzero value if @var{x} is NaN. It is equivalent
415 (fpclassify (x) == FP_NAN)
421 @deftypefn {Macro} int issignaling (@emph{float-type} @var{x})
422 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
423 This macro returns a nonzero value if @var{x} is a signaling NaN
424 (sNaN). It is from TS 18661-1:2014.
429 @deftypefn {Macro} int issubnormal (@emph{float-type} @var{x})
430 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
431 This macro returns a nonzero value if @var{x} is subnormal. It is
432 from TS 18661-1:2014.
437 @deftypefn {Macro} int iszero (@emph{float-type} @var{x})
438 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
439 This macro returns a nonzero value if @var{x} is zero. It is from TS
443 Another set of floating-point classification functions was provided by
444 BSD. @Theglibc{} also supports these functions; however, we
445 recommend that you use the ISO C99 macros in new code. Those are standard
446 and will be available more widely. Also, since they are macros, you do
447 not have to worry about the type of their argument.
451 @deftypefun int isinf (double @var{x})
454 @deftypefunx int isinff (float @var{x})
457 @deftypefunx int isinfl (long double @var{x})
458 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
459 This function returns @code{-1} if @var{x} represents negative infinity,
460 @code{1} if @var{x} represents positive infinity, and @code{0} otherwise.
465 @deftypefun int isnan (double @var{x})
468 @deftypefunx int isnanf (float @var{x})
471 @deftypefunx int isnanl (long double @var{x})
472 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
473 This function returns a nonzero value if @var{x} is a ``not a number''
474 value, and zero otherwise.
476 @strong{NB:} The @code{isnan} macro defined by @w{ISO C99} overrides
477 the BSD function. This is normally not a problem, because the two
478 routines behave identically. However, if you really need to get the BSD
479 function for some reason, you can write
488 @deftypefun int finite (double @var{x})
491 @deftypefunx int finitef (float @var{x})
494 @deftypefunx int finitel (long double @var{x})
495 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
496 This function returns a nonzero value if @var{x} is finite or a ``not a
497 number'' value, and zero otherwise.
500 @strong{Portability Note:} The functions listed in this section are BSD
504 @node Floating Point Errors
505 @section Errors in Floating-Point Calculations
508 * FP Exceptions:: IEEE 754 math exceptions and how to detect them.
509 * Infinity and NaN:: Special values returned by calculations.
510 * Status bit operations:: Checking for exceptions after the fact.
511 * Math Error Reporting:: How the math functions report errors.
515 @subsection FP Exceptions
519 @cindex division by zero
520 @cindex inexact exception
521 @cindex invalid exception
522 @cindex overflow exception
523 @cindex underflow exception
525 The @w{IEEE 754} standard defines five @dfn{exceptions} that can occur
526 during a calculation. Each corresponds to a particular sort of error,
529 When exceptions occur (when exceptions are @dfn{raised}, in the language
530 of the standard), one of two things can happen. By default the
531 exception is simply noted in the floating-point @dfn{status word}, and
532 the program continues as if nothing had happened. The operation
533 produces a default value, which depends on the exception (see the table
534 below). Your program can check the status word to find out which
537 Alternatively, you can enable @dfn{traps} for exceptions. In that case,
538 when an exception is raised, your program will receive the @code{SIGFPE}
539 signal. The default action for this signal is to terminate the
540 program. @xref{Signal Handling}, for how you can change the effect of
544 In the System V math library, the user-defined function @code{matherr}
545 is called when certain exceptions occur inside math library functions.
546 However, the Unix98 standard deprecates this interface. We support it
547 for historical compatibility, but recommend that you do not use it in
548 new programs. When this interface is used, exceptions may not be
552 The exceptions defined in @w{IEEE 754} are:
555 @item Invalid Operation
556 This exception is raised if the given operands are invalid for the
557 operation to be performed. Examples are
558 (see @w{IEEE 754}, @w{section 7}):
561 Addition or subtraction: @math{@infinity{} - @infinity{}}. (But
562 @math{@infinity{} + @infinity{} = @infinity{}}).
564 Multiplication: @math{0 @mul{} @infinity{}}.
566 Division: @math{0/0} or @math{@infinity{}/@infinity{}}.
568 Remainder: @math{x} REM @math{y}, where @math{y} is zero or @math{x} is
571 Square root if the operand is less than zero. More generally, any
572 mathematical function evaluated outside its domain produces this
575 Conversion of a floating-point number to an integer or decimal
576 string, when the number cannot be represented in the target format (due
577 to overflow, infinity, or NaN).
579 Conversion of an unrecognizable input string.
581 Comparison via predicates involving @math{<} or @math{>}, when one or
582 other of the operands is NaN. You can prevent this exception by using
583 the unordered comparison functions instead; see @ref{FP Comparison Functions}.
586 If the exception does not trap, the result of the operation is NaN.
588 @item Division by Zero
589 This exception is raised when a finite nonzero number is divided
590 by zero. If no trap occurs the result is either @math{+@infinity{}} or
591 @math{-@infinity{}}, depending on the signs of the operands.
594 This exception is raised whenever the result cannot be represented
595 as a finite value in the precision format of the destination. If no trap
596 occurs the result depends on the sign of the intermediate result and the
597 current rounding mode (@w{IEEE 754}, @w{section 7.3}):
600 Round to nearest carries all overflows to @math{@infinity{}}
601 with the sign of the intermediate result.
603 Round toward @math{0} carries all overflows to the largest representable
604 finite number with the sign of the intermediate result.
606 Round toward @math{-@infinity{}} carries positive overflows to the
607 largest representable finite number and negative overflows to
611 Round toward @math{@infinity{}} carries negative overflows to the
612 most negative representable finite number and positive overflows
613 to @math{@infinity{}}.
616 Whenever the overflow exception is raised, the inexact exception is also
620 The underflow exception is raised when an intermediate result is too
621 small to be calculated accurately, or if the operation's result rounded
622 to the destination precision is too small to be normalized.
624 When no trap is installed for the underflow exception, underflow is
625 signaled (via the underflow flag) only when both tininess and loss of
626 accuracy have been detected. If no trap handler is installed the
627 operation continues with an imprecise small value, or zero if the
628 destination precision cannot hold the small exact result.
631 This exception is signalled if a rounded result is not exact (such as
632 when calculating the square root of two) or a result overflows without
636 @node Infinity and NaN
637 @subsection Infinity and NaN
642 @w{IEEE 754} floating point numbers can represent positive or negative
643 infinity, and @dfn{NaN} (not a number). These three values arise from
644 calculations whose result is undefined or cannot be represented
645 accurately. You can also deliberately set a floating-point variable to
646 any of them, which is sometimes useful. Some examples of calculations
647 that produce infinity or NaN:
651 @math{1/0 = @infinity{}}
652 @math{log (0) = -@infinity{}}
653 @math{sqrt (-1) = NaN}
657 $${1\over0} = \infty$$
659 $$\sqrt{-1} = \hbox{NaN}$$
662 When a calculation produces any of these values, an exception also
663 occurs; see @ref{FP Exceptions}.
665 The basic operations and math functions all accept infinity and NaN and
666 produce sensible output. Infinities propagate through calculations as
667 one would expect: for example, @math{2 + @infinity{} = @infinity{}},
668 @math{4/@infinity{} = 0}, atan @math{(@infinity{}) = @pi{}/2}. NaN, on
669 the other hand, infects any calculation that involves it. Unless the
670 calculation would produce the same result no matter what real value
671 replaced NaN, the result is NaN.
673 In comparison operations, positive infinity is larger than all values
674 except itself and NaN, and negative infinity is smaller than all values
675 except itself and NaN. NaN is @dfn{unordered}: it is not equal to,
676 greater than, or less than anything, @emph{including itself}. @code{x ==
677 x} is false if the value of @code{x} is NaN. You can use this to test
678 whether a value is NaN or not, but the recommended way to test for NaN
679 is with the @code{isnan} function (@pxref{Floating Point Classes}). In
680 addition, @code{<}, @code{>}, @code{<=}, and @code{>=} will raise an
681 exception when applied to NaNs.
683 @file{math.h} defines macros that allow you to explicitly set a variable
688 @deftypevr Macro float INFINITY
689 An expression representing positive infinity. It is equal to the value
690 produced by mathematical operations like @code{1.0 / 0.0}.
691 @code{-INFINITY} represents negative infinity.
693 You can test whether a floating-point value is infinite by comparing it
694 to this macro. However, this is not recommended; you should use the
695 @code{isfinite} macro instead. @xref{Floating Point Classes}.
697 This macro was introduced in the @w{ISO C99} standard.
702 @deftypevr Macro float NAN
703 An expression representing a value which is ``not a number''. This
704 macro is a GNU extension, available only on machines that support the
705 ``not a number'' value---that is to say, on all machines that support
708 You can use @samp{#ifdef NAN} to test whether the machine supports
709 NaN. (Of course, you must arrange for GNU extensions to be visible,
710 such as by defining @code{_GNU_SOURCE}, and then you must include
716 @deftypevr Macro float SNANF
717 @deftypevrx Macro double SNAN
718 @deftypevrx Macro {long double} SNANL
719 These macros, defined by TS 18661-1:2014, are constant expressions for
723 @w{IEEE 754} also allows for another unusual value: negative zero. This
724 value is produced when you divide a positive number by negative
725 infinity, or when a negative result is smaller than the limits of
728 @node Status bit operations
729 @subsection Examining the FPU status word
731 @w{ISO C99} defines functions to query and manipulate the
732 floating-point status word. You can use these functions to check for
733 untrapped exceptions when it's convenient, rather than worrying about
734 them in the middle of a calculation.
736 These constants represent the various @w{IEEE 754} exceptions. Not all
737 FPUs report all the different exceptions. Each constant is defined if
738 and only if the FPU you are compiling for supports that exception, so
739 you can test for FPU support with @samp{#ifdef}. They are defined in
746 The inexact exception.
750 The divide by zero exception.
754 The underflow exception.
758 The overflow exception.
762 The invalid exception.
765 The macro @code{FE_ALL_EXCEPT} is the bitwise OR of all exception macros
766 which are supported by the FP implementation.
768 These functions allow you to clear exception flags, test for exceptions,
769 and save and restore the set of exceptions flagged.
773 @deftypefun int feclearexcept (int @var{excepts})
774 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{@assposix{}}@acsafe{@acsposix{}}}
775 @c The other functions in this section that modify FP status register
776 @c mostly do so with non-atomic load-modify-store sequences, but since
777 @c the register is thread-specific, this should be fine, and safe for
778 @c cancellation. As long as the FP environment is restored before the
779 @c signal handler returns control to the interrupted thread (like any
780 @c kernel should do), the functions are also safe for use in signal
782 This function clears all of the supported exception flags indicated by
785 The function returns zero in case the operation was successful, a
786 non-zero value otherwise.
791 @deftypefun int feraiseexcept (int @var{excepts})
792 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
793 This function raises the supported exceptions indicated by
794 @var{excepts}. If more than one exception bit in @var{excepts} is set
795 the order in which the exceptions are raised is undefined except that
796 overflow (@code{FE_OVERFLOW}) or underflow (@code{FE_UNDERFLOW}) are
797 raised before inexact (@code{FE_INEXACT}). Whether for overflow or
798 underflow the inexact exception is also raised is also implementation
801 The function returns zero in case the operation was successful, a
802 non-zero value otherwise.
807 @deftypefun int fesetexcept (int @var{excepts})
808 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
809 This function sets the supported exception flags indicated by
810 @var{excepts}, like @code{feraiseexcept}, but without causing enabled
811 traps to be taken. @code{fesetexcept} is from TS 18661-1:2014.
813 The function returns zero in case the operation was successful, a
814 non-zero value otherwise.
819 @deftypefun int fetestexcept (int @var{excepts})
820 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
821 Test whether the exception flags indicated by the parameter @var{except}
822 are currently set. If any of them are, a nonzero value is returned
823 which specifies which exceptions are set. Otherwise the result is zero.
826 To understand these functions, imagine that the status word is an
827 integer variable named @var{status}. @code{feclearexcept} is then
828 equivalent to @samp{status &= ~excepts} and @code{fetestexcept} is
829 equivalent to @samp{(status & excepts)}. The actual implementation may
830 be very different, of course.
832 Exception flags are only cleared when the program explicitly requests it,
833 by calling @code{feclearexcept}. If you want to check for exceptions
834 from a set of calculations, you should clear all the flags first. Here
835 is a simple example of the way to use @code{fetestexcept}:
841 feclearexcept (FE_ALL_EXCEPT);
843 raised = fetestexcept (FE_OVERFLOW | FE_INVALID);
844 if (raised & FE_OVERFLOW) @{ /* @dots{} */ @}
845 if (raised & FE_INVALID) @{ /* @dots{} */ @}
850 You cannot explicitly set bits in the status word. You can, however,
851 save the entire status word and restore it later. This is done with the
856 @deftypefun int fegetexceptflag (fexcept_t *@var{flagp}, int @var{excepts})
857 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
858 This function stores in the variable pointed to by @var{flagp} an
859 implementation-defined value representing the current setting of the
860 exception flags indicated by @var{excepts}.
862 The function returns zero in case the operation was successful, a
863 non-zero value otherwise.
868 @deftypefun int fesetexceptflag (const fexcept_t *@var{flagp}, int @var{excepts})
869 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
870 This function restores the flags for the exceptions indicated by
871 @var{excepts} to the values stored in the variable pointed to by
874 The function returns zero in case the operation was successful, a
875 non-zero value otherwise.
878 Note that the value stored in @code{fexcept_t} bears no resemblance to
879 the bit mask returned by @code{fetestexcept}. The type may not even be
880 an integer. Do not attempt to modify an @code{fexcept_t} variable.
884 @deftypefun int fetestexceptflag (const fexcept_t *@var{flagp}, int @var{excepts})
885 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
886 Test whether the exception flags indicated by the parameter
887 @var{excepts} are set in the variable pointed to by @var{flagp}. If
888 any of them are, a nonzero value is returned which specifies which
889 exceptions are set. Otherwise the result is zero.
890 @code{fetestexceptflag} is from TS 18661-1:2014.
893 @node Math Error Reporting
894 @subsection Error Reporting by Mathematical Functions
895 @cindex errors, mathematical
899 Many of the math functions are defined only over a subset of the real or
900 complex numbers. Even if they are mathematically defined, their result
901 may be larger or smaller than the range representable by their return
902 type without loss of accuracy. These are known as @dfn{domain errors},
904 @dfn{underflows}, respectively. Math functions do several things when
905 one of these errors occurs. In this manual we will refer to the
906 complete response as @dfn{signalling} a domain error, overflow, or
909 When a math function suffers a domain error, it raises the invalid
910 exception and returns NaN. It also sets @var{errno} to @code{EDOM};
911 this is for compatibility with old systems that do not support @w{IEEE
912 754} exception handling. Likewise, when overflow occurs, math
913 functions raise the overflow exception and, in the default rounding
914 mode, return @math{@infinity{}} or @math{-@infinity{}} as appropriate
915 (in other rounding modes, the largest finite value of the appropriate
916 sign is returned when appropriate for that rounding mode). They also
917 set @var{errno} to @code{ERANGE} if returning @math{@infinity{}} or
918 @math{-@infinity{}}; @var{errno} may or may not be set to
919 @code{ERANGE} when a finite value is returned on overflow. When
920 underflow occurs, the underflow exception is raised, and zero
921 (appropriately signed) or a subnormal value, as appropriate for the
922 mathematical result of the function and the rounding mode, is
923 returned. @var{errno} may be set to @code{ERANGE}, but this is not
924 guaranteed; it is intended that @theglibc{} should set it when the
925 underflow is to an appropriately signed zero, but not necessarily for
928 Some of the math functions are defined mathematically to result in a
929 complex value over parts of their domains. The most familiar example of
930 this is taking the square root of a negative number. The complex math
931 functions, such as @code{csqrt}, will return the appropriate complex value
932 in this case. The real-valued functions, such as @code{sqrt}, will
933 signal a domain error.
935 Some older hardware does not support infinities. On that hardware,
936 overflows instead return a particular very large number (usually the
937 largest representable number). @file{math.h} defines macros you can use
938 to test for overflow on both old and new hardware.
942 @deftypevr Macro double HUGE_VAL
945 @deftypevrx Macro float HUGE_VALF
948 @deftypevrx Macro {long double} HUGE_VALL
949 An expression representing a particular very large number. On machines
950 that use @w{IEEE 754} floating point format, @code{HUGE_VAL} is infinity.
951 On other machines, it's typically the largest positive number that can
954 Mathematical functions return the appropriately typed version of
955 @code{HUGE_VAL} or @code{@minus{}HUGE_VAL} when the result is too large
960 @section Rounding Modes
962 Floating-point calculations are carried out internally with extra
963 precision, and then rounded to fit into the destination type. This
964 ensures that results are as precise as the input data. @w{IEEE 754}
965 defines four possible rounding modes:
968 @item Round to nearest.
969 This is the default mode. It should be used unless there is a specific
970 need for one of the others. In this mode results are rounded to the
971 nearest representable value. If the result is midway between two
972 representable values, the even representable is chosen. @dfn{Even} here
973 means the lowest-order bit is zero. This rounding mode prevents
974 statistical bias and guarantees numeric stability: round-off errors in a
975 lengthy calculation will remain smaller than half of @code{FLT_EPSILON}.
977 @c @item Round toward @math{+@infinity{}}
978 @item Round toward plus Infinity.
979 All results are rounded to the smallest representable value
980 which is greater than the result.
982 @c @item Round toward @math{-@infinity{}}
983 @item Round toward minus Infinity.
984 All results are rounded to the largest representable value which is less
987 @item Round toward zero.
988 All results are rounded to the largest representable value whose
989 magnitude is less than that of the result. In other words, if the
990 result is negative it is rounded up; if it is positive, it is rounded
995 @file{fenv.h} defines constants which you can use to refer to the
996 various rounding modes. Each one will be defined if and only if the FPU
997 supports the corresponding rounding mode.
1002 @vindex FE_TONEAREST
1010 Round toward @math{+@infinity{}}.
1016 Round toward @math{-@infinity{}}.
1020 @vindex FE_TOWARDZERO
1025 Underflow is an unusual case. Normally, @w{IEEE 754} floating point
1026 numbers are always normalized (@pxref{Floating Point Concepts}).
1027 Numbers smaller than @math{2^r} (where @math{r} is the minimum exponent,
1028 @code{FLT_MIN_RADIX-1} for @var{float}) cannot be represented as
1029 normalized numbers. Rounding all such numbers to zero or @math{2^r}
1030 would cause some algorithms to fail at 0. Therefore, they are left in
1031 denormalized form. That produces loss of precision, since some bits of
1032 the mantissa are stolen to indicate the decimal point.
1034 If a result is too small to be represented as a denormalized number, it
1035 is rounded to zero. However, the sign of the result is preserved; if
1036 the calculation was negative, the result is @dfn{negative zero}.
1037 Negative zero can also result from some operations on infinity, such as
1038 @math{4/-@infinity{}}.
1040 At any time, one of the above four rounding modes is selected. You can
1041 find out which one with this function:
1045 @deftypefun int fegetround (void)
1046 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1047 Returns the currently selected rounding mode, represented by one of the
1048 values of the defined rounding mode macros.
1052 To change the rounding mode, use this function:
1056 @deftypefun int fesetround (int @var{round})
1057 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1058 Changes the currently selected rounding mode to @var{round}. If
1059 @var{round} does not correspond to one of the supported rounding modes
1060 nothing is changed. @code{fesetround} returns zero if it changed the
1061 rounding mode, or a nonzero value if the mode is not supported.
1064 You should avoid changing the rounding mode if possible. It can be an
1065 expensive operation; also, some hardware requires you to compile your
1066 program differently for it to work. The resulting code may run slower.
1067 See your compiler documentation for details.
1068 @c This section used to claim that functions existed to round one number
1069 @c in a specific fashion. I can't find any functions in the library
1070 @c that do that. -zw
1072 @node Control Functions
1073 @section Floating-Point Control Functions
1075 @w{IEEE 754} floating-point implementations allow the programmer to
1076 decide whether traps will occur for each of the exceptions, by setting
1077 bits in the @dfn{control word}. In C, traps result in the program
1078 receiving the @code{SIGFPE} signal; see @ref{Signal Handling}.
1080 @strong{NB:} @w{IEEE 754} says that trap handlers are given details of
1081 the exceptional situation, and can set the result value. C signals do
1082 not provide any mechanism to pass this information back and forth.
1083 Trapping exceptions in C is therefore not very useful.
1085 It is sometimes necessary to save the state of the floating-point unit
1086 while you perform some calculation. The library provides functions
1087 which save and restore the exception flags, the set of exceptions that
1088 generate traps, and the rounding mode. This information is known as the
1089 @dfn{floating-point environment}.
1091 The functions to save and restore the floating-point environment all use
1092 a variable of type @code{fenv_t} to store information. This type is
1093 defined in @file{fenv.h}. Its size and contents are
1094 implementation-defined. You should not attempt to manipulate a variable
1095 of this type directly.
1097 To save the state of the FPU, use one of these functions:
1101 @deftypefun int fegetenv (fenv_t *@var{envp})
1102 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1103 Store the floating-point environment in the variable pointed to by
1106 The function returns zero in case the operation was successful, a
1107 non-zero value otherwise.
1112 @deftypefun int feholdexcept (fenv_t *@var{envp})
1113 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1114 Store the current floating-point environment in the object pointed to by
1115 @var{envp}. Then clear all exception flags, and set the FPU to trap no
1116 exceptions. Not all FPUs support trapping no exceptions; if
1117 @code{feholdexcept} cannot set this mode, it returns nonzero value. If it
1118 succeeds, it returns zero.
1121 The functions which restore the floating-point environment can take these
1126 Pointers to @code{fenv_t} objects, which were initialized previously by a
1127 call to @code{fegetenv} or @code{feholdexcept}.
1130 The special macro @code{FE_DFL_ENV} which represents the floating-point
1131 environment as it was available at program start.
1133 Implementation defined macros with names starting with @code{FE_} and
1134 having type @code{fenv_t *}.
1136 @vindex FE_NOMASK_ENV
1137 If possible, @theglibc{} defines a macro @code{FE_NOMASK_ENV}
1138 which represents an environment where every exception raised causes a
1139 trap to occur. You can test for this macro using @code{#ifdef}. It is
1140 only defined if @code{_GNU_SOURCE} is defined.
1142 Some platforms might define other predefined environments.
1146 To set the floating-point environment, you can use either of these
1151 @deftypefun int fesetenv (const fenv_t *@var{envp})
1152 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1153 Set the floating-point environment to that described by @var{envp}.
1155 The function returns zero in case the operation was successful, a
1156 non-zero value otherwise.
1161 @deftypefun int feupdateenv (const fenv_t *@var{envp})
1162 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1163 Like @code{fesetenv}, this function sets the floating-point environment
1164 to that described by @var{envp}. However, if any exceptions were
1165 flagged in the status word before @code{feupdateenv} was called, they
1166 remain flagged after the call. In other words, after @code{feupdateenv}
1167 is called, the status word is the bitwise OR of the previous status word
1168 and the one saved in @var{envp}.
1170 The function returns zero in case the operation was successful, a
1171 non-zero value otherwise.
1175 TS 18661-1:2014 defines additional functions to save and restore
1176 floating-point control modes (such as the rounding mode and whether
1177 traps are enabled) while leaving other status (such as raised flags)
1181 The special macro @code{FE_DFL_MODE} may be passed to
1182 @code{fesetmode}. It represents the floating-point control modes at
1187 @deftypefun int fegetmode (femode_t *@var{modep})
1188 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1189 Store the floating-point control modes in the variable pointed to by
1192 The function returns zero in case the operation was successful, a
1193 non-zero value otherwise.
1198 @deftypefun int fesetmode (const femode_t *@var{modep})
1199 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1200 Set the floating-point control modes to those described by
1203 The function returns zero in case the operation was successful, a
1204 non-zero value otherwise.
1208 To control for individual exceptions if raising them causes a trap to
1209 occur, you can use the following two functions.
1211 @strong{Portability Note:} These functions are all GNU extensions.
1215 @deftypefun int feenableexcept (int @var{excepts})
1216 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1217 This function enables traps for each of the exceptions as indicated by
1218 the parameter @var{excepts}. The individual exceptions are described in
1219 @ref{Status bit operations}. Only the specified exceptions are
1220 enabled, the status of the other exceptions is not changed.
1222 The function returns the previous enabled exceptions in case the
1223 operation was successful, @code{-1} otherwise.
1228 @deftypefun int fedisableexcept (int @var{excepts})
1229 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1230 This function disables traps for each of the exceptions as indicated by
1231 the parameter @var{excepts}. The individual exceptions are described in
1232 @ref{Status bit operations}. Only the specified exceptions are
1233 disabled, the status of the other exceptions is not changed.
1235 The function returns the previous enabled exceptions in case the
1236 operation was successful, @code{-1} otherwise.
1241 @deftypefun int fegetexcept (void)
1242 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1243 The function returns a bitmask of all currently enabled exceptions. It
1244 returns @code{-1} in case of failure.
1247 @node Arithmetic Functions
1248 @section Arithmetic Functions
1250 The C library provides functions to do basic operations on
1251 floating-point numbers. These include absolute value, maximum and minimum,
1252 normalization, bit twiddling, rounding, and a few others.
1255 * Absolute Value:: Absolute values of integers and floats.
1256 * Normalization Functions:: Extracting exponents and putting them back.
1257 * Rounding Functions:: Rounding floats to integers.
1258 * Remainder Functions:: Remainders on division, precisely defined.
1259 * FP Bit Twiddling:: Sign bit adjustment. Adding epsilon.
1260 * FP Comparison Functions:: Comparisons without risk of exceptions.
1261 * Misc FP Arithmetic:: Max, min, positive difference, multiply-add.
1264 @node Absolute Value
1265 @subsection Absolute Value
1266 @cindex absolute value functions
1268 These functions are provided for obtaining the @dfn{absolute value} (or
1269 @dfn{magnitude}) of a number. The absolute value of a real number
1270 @var{x} is @var{x} if @var{x} is positive, @minus{}@var{x} if @var{x} is
1271 negative. For a complex number @var{z}, whose real part is @var{x} and
1272 whose imaginary part is @var{y}, the absolute value is @w{@code{sqrt
1273 (@var{x}*@var{x} + @var{y}*@var{y})}}.
1277 Prototypes for @code{abs}, @code{labs} and @code{llabs} are in @file{stdlib.h};
1278 @code{imaxabs} is declared in @file{inttypes.h};
1279 @code{fabs}, @code{fabsf} and @code{fabsl} are declared in @file{math.h}.
1280 @code{cabs}, @code{cabsf} and @code{cabsl} are declared in @file{complex.h}.
1284 @deftypefun int abs (int @var{number})
1287 @deftypefunx {long int} labs (long int @var{number})
1290 @deftypefunx {long long int} llabs (long long int @var{number})
1293 @deftypefunx intmax_t imaxabs (intmax_t @var{number})
1294 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1295 These functions return the absolute value of @var{number}.
1297 Most computers use a two's complement integer representation, in which
1298 the absolute value of @code{INT_MIN} (the smallest possible @code{int})
1299 cannot be represented; thus, @w{@code{abs (INT_MIN)}} is not defined.
1301 @code{llabs} and @code{imaxdiv} are new to @w{ISO C99}.
1303 See @ref{Integers} for a description of the @code{intmax_t} type.
1309 @deftypefun double fabs (double @var{number})
1312 @deftypefunx float fabsf (float @var{number})
1315 @deftypefunx {long double} fabsl (long double @var{number})
1316 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1317 This function returns the absolute value of the floating-point number
1323 @deftypefun double cabs (complex double @var{z})
1326 @deftypefunx float cabsf (complex float @var{z})
1329 @deftypefunx {long double} cabsl (complex long double @var{z})
1330 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1331 These functions return the absolute value of the complex number @var{z}
1332 (@pxref{Complex Numbers}). The absolute value of a complex number is:
1335 sqrt (creal (@var{z}) * creal (@var{z}) + cimag (@var{z}) * cimag (@var{z}))
1338 This function should always be used instead of the direct formula
1339 because it takes special care to avoid losing precision. It may also
1340 take advantage of hardware support for this operation. See @code{hypot}
1341 in @ref{Exponents and Logarithms}.
1344 @node Normalization Functions
1345 @subsection Normalization Functions
1346 @cindex normalization functions (floating-point)
1348 The functions described in this section are primarily provided as a way
1349 to efficiently perform certain low-level manipulations on floating point
1350 numbers that are represented internally using a binary radix;
1351 see @ref{Floating Point Concepts}. These functions are required to
1352 have equivalent behavior even if the representation does not use a radix
1353 of 2, but of course they are unlikely to be particularly efficient in
1357 All these functions are declared in @file{math.h}.
1361 @deftypefun double frexp (double @var{value}, int *@var{exponent})
1364 @deftypefunx float frexpf (float @var{value}, int *@var{exponent})
1367 @deftypefunx {long double} frexpl (long double @var{value}, int *@var{exponent})
1368 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1369 These functions are used to split the number @var{value}
1370 into a normalized fraction and an exponent.
1372 If the argument @var{value} is not zero, the return value is @var{value}
1373 times a power of two, and its magnitude is always in the range 1/2
1374 (inclusive) to 1 (exclusive). The corresponding exponent is stored in
1375 @code{*@var{exponent}}; the return value multiplied by 2 raised to this
1376 exponent equals the original number @var{value}.
1378 For example, @code{frexp (12.8, &exponent)} returns @code{0.8} and
1379 stores @code{4} in @code{exponent}.
1381 If @var{value} is zero, then the return value is zero and
1382 zero is stored in @code{*@var{exponent}}.
1387 @deftypefun double ldexp (double @var{value}, int @var{exponent})
1390 @deftypefunx float ldexpf (float @var{value}, int @var{exponent})
1393 @deftypefunx {long double} ldexpl (long double @var{value}, int @var{exponent})
1394 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1395 These functions return the result of multiplying the floating-point
1396 number @var{value} by 2 raised to the power @var{exponent}. (It can
1397 be used to reassemble floating-point numbers that were taken apart
1400 For example, @code{ldexp (0.8, 4)} returns @code{12.8}.
1403 The following functions, which come from BSD, provide facilities
1404 equivalent to those of @code{ldexp} and @code{frexp}. See also the
1405 @w{ISO C} function @code{logb} which originally also appeared in BSD.
1409 @deftypefun double scalb (double @var{value}, double @var{exponent})
1412 @deftypefunx float scalbf (float @var{value}, float @var{exponent})
1415 @deftypefunx {long double} scalbl (long double @var{value}, long double @var{exponent})
1416 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1417 The @code{scalb} function is the BSD name for @code{ldexp}.
1422 @deftypefun double scalbn (double @var{x}, int @var{n})
1425 @deftypefunx float scalbnf (float @var{x}, int @var{n})
1428 @deftypefunx {long double} scalbnl (long double @var{x}, int @var{n})
1429 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1430 @code{scalbn} is identical to @code{scalb}, except that the exponent
1431 @var{n} is an @code{int} instead of a floating-point number.
1436 @deftypefun double scalbln (double @var{x}, long int @var{n})
1439 @deftypefunx float scalblnf (float @var{x}, long int @var{n})
1442 @deftypefunx {long double} scalblnl (long double @var{x}, long int @var{n})
1443 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1444 @code{scalbln} is identical to @code{scalb}, except that the exponent
1445 @var{n} is a @code{long int} instead of a floating-point number.
1450 @deftypefun double significand (double @var{x})
1453 @deftypefunx float significandf (float @var{x})
1456 @deftypefunx {long double} significandl (long double @var{x})
1457 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1458 @code{significand} returns the mantissa of @var{x} scaled to the range
1460 It is equivalent to @w{@code{scalb (@var{x}, (double) -ilogb (@var{x}))}}.
1462 This function exists mainly for use in certain standardized tests
1463 of @w{IEEE 754} conformance.
1466 @node Rounding Functions
1467 @subsection Rounding Functions
1468 @cindex converting floats to integers
1471 The functions listed here perform operations such as rounding and
1472 truncation of floating-point values. Some of these functions convert
1473 floating point numbers to integer values. They are all declared in
1476 You can also convert floating-point numbers to integers simply by
1477 casting them to @code{int}. This discards the fractional part,
1478 effectively rounding towards zero. However, this only works if the
1479 result can actually be represented as an @code{int}---for very large
1480 numbers, this is impossible. The functions listed here return the
1481 result as a @code{double} instead to get around this problem.
1485 @deftypefun double ceil (double @var{x})
1488 @deftypefunx float ceilf (float @var{x})
1491 @deftypefunx {long double} ceill (long double @var{x})
1492 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1493 These functions round @var{x} upwards to the nearest integer,
1494 returning that value as a @code{double}. Thus, @code{ceil (1.5)}
1500 @deftypefun double floor (double @var{x})
1503 @deftypefunx float floorf (float @var{x})
1506 @deftypefunx {long double} floorl (long double @var{x})
1507 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1508 These functions round @var{x} downwards to the nearest
1509 integer, returning that value as a @code{double}. Thus, @code{floor
1510 (1.5)} is @code{1.0} and @code{floor (-1.5)} is @code{-2.0}.
1515 @deftypefun double trunc (double @var{x})
1518 @deftypefunx float truncf (float @var{x})
1521 @deftypefunx {long double} truncl (long double @var{x})
1522 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1523 The @code{trunc} functions round @var{x} towards zero to the nearest
1524 integer (returned in floating-point format). Thus, @code{trunc (1.5)}
1525 is @code{1.0} and @code{trunc (-1.5)} is @code{-1.0}.
1530 @deftypefun double rint (double @var{x})
1533 @deftypefunx float rintf (float @var{x})
1536 @deftypefunx {long double} rintl (long double @var{x})
1537 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1538 These functions round @var{x} to an integer value according to the
1539 current rounding mode. @xref{Floating Point Parameters}, for
1540 information about the various rounding modes. The default
1541 rounding mode is to round to the nearest integer; some machines
1542 support other modes, but round-to-nearest is always used unless
1543 you explicitly select another.
1545 If @var{x} was not initially an integer, these functions raise the
1551 @deftypefun double nearbyint (double @var{x})
1554 @deftypefunx float nearbyintf (float @var{x})
1557 @deftypefunx {long double} nearbyintl (long double @var{x})
1558 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1559 These functions return the same value as the @code{rint} functions, but
1560 do not raise the inexact exception if @var{x} is not an integer.
1565 @deftypefun double round (double @var{x})
1568 @deftypefunx float roundf (float @var{x})
1571 @deftypefunx {long double} roundl (long double @var{x})
1572 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1573 These functions are similar to @code{rint}, but they round halfway
1574 cases away from zero instead of to the nearest integer (or other
1575 current rounding mode).
1580 @deftypefun {long int} lrint (double @var{x})
1583 @deftypefunx {long int} lrintf (float @var{x})
1586 @deftypefunx {long int} lrintl (long double @var{x})
1587 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1588 These functions are just like @code{rint}, but they return a
1589 @code{long int} instead of a floating-point number.
1594 @deftypefun {long long int} llrint (double @var{x})
1597 @deftypefunx {long long int} llrintf (float @var{x})
1600 @deftypefunx {long long int} llrintl (long double @var{x})
1601 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1602 These functions are just like @code{rint}, but they return a
1603 @code{long long int} instead of a floating-point number.
1608 @deftypefun {long int} lround (double @var{x})
1611 @deftypefunx {long int} lroundf (float @var{x})
1614 @deftypefunx {long int} lroundl (long double @var{x})
1615 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1616 These functions are just like @code{round}, but they return a
1617 @code{long int} instead of a floating-point number.
1622 @deftypefun {long long int} llround (double @var{x})
1625 @deftypefunx {long long int} llroundf (float @var{x})
1628 @deftypefunx {long long int} llroundl (long double @var{x})
1629 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1630 These functions are just like @code{round}, but they return a
1631 @code{long long int} instead of a floating-point number.
1637 @deftypefun double modf (double @var{value}, double *@var{integer-part})
1640 @deftypefunx float modff (float @var{value}, float *@var{integer-part})
1643 @deftypefunx {long double} modfl (long double @var{value}, long double *@var{integer-part})
1644 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1645 These functions break the argument @var{value} into an integer part and a
1646 fractional part (between @code{-1} and @code{1}, exclusive). Their sum
1647 equals @var{value}. Each of the parts has the same sign as @var{value},
1648 and the integer part is always rounded toward zero.
1650 @code{modf} stores the integer part in @code{*@var{integer-part}}, and
1651 returns the fractional part. For example, @code{modf (2.5, &intpart)}
1652 returns @code{0.5} and stores @code{2.0} into @code{intpart}.
1655 @node Remainder Functions
1656 @subsection Remainder Functions
1658 The functions in this section compute the remainder on division of two
1659 floating-point numbers. Each is a little different; pick the one that
1664 @deftypefun double fmod (double @var{numerator}, double @var{denominator})
1667 @deftypefunx float fmodf (float @var{numerator}, float @var{denominator})
1670 @deftypefunx {long double} fmodl (long double @var{numerator}, long double @var{denominator})
1671 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1672 These functions compute the remainder from the division of
1673 @var{numerator} by @var{denominator}. Specifically, the return value is
1674 @code{@var{numerator} - @w{@var{n} * @var{denominator}}}, where @var{n}
1675 is the quotient of @var{numerator} divided by @var{denominator}, rounded
1676 towards zero to an integer. Thus, @w{@code{fmod (6.5, 2.3)}} returns
1677 @code{1.9}, which is @code{6.5} minus @code{4.6}.
1679 The result has the same sign as the @var{numerator} and has magnitude
1680 less than the magnitude of the @var{denominator}.
1682 If @var{denominator} is zero, @code{fmod} signals a domain error.
1687 @deftypefun double drem (double @var{numerator}, double @var{denominator})
1690 @deftypefunx float dremf (float @var{numerator}, float @var{denominator})
1693 @deftypefunx {long double} dreml (long double @var{numerator}, long double @var{denominator})
1694 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1695 These functions are like @code{fmod} except that they round the
1696 internal quotient @var{n} to the nearest integer instead of towards zero
1697 to an integer. For example, @code{drem (6.5, 2.3)} returns @code{-0.4},
1698 which is @code{6.5} minus @code{6.9}.
1700 The absolute value of the result is less than or equal to half the
1701 absolute value of the @var{denominator}. The difference between
1702 @code{fmod (@var{numerator}, @var{denominator})} and @code{drem
1703 (@var{numerator}, @var{denominator})} is always either
1704 @var{denominator}, minus @var{denominator}, or zero.
1706 If @var{denominator} is zero, @code{drem} signals a domain error.
1711 @deftypefun double remainder (double @var{numerator}, double @var{denominator})
1714 @deftypefunx float remainderf (float @var{numerator}, float @var{denominator})
1717 @deftypefunx {long double} remainderl (long double @var{numerator}, long double @var{denominator})
1718 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1719 This function is another name for @code{drem}.
1722 @node FP Bit Twiddling
1723 @subsection Setting and modifying single bits of FP values
1724 @cindex FP arithmetic
1726 There are some operations that are too complicated or expensive to
1727 perform by hand on floating-point numbers. @w{ISO C99} defines
1728 functions to do these operations, which mostly involve changing single
1733 @deftypefun double copysign (double @var{x}, double @var{y})
1736 @deftypefunx float copysignf (float @var{x}, float @var{y})
1739 @deftypefunx {long double} copysignl (long double @var{x}, long double @var{y})
1740 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1741 These functions return @var{x} but with the sign of @var{y}. They work
1742 even if @var{x} or @var{y} are NaN or zero. Both of these can carry a
1743 sign (although not all implementations support it) and this is one of
1744 the few operations that can tell the difference.
1746 @code{copysign} never raises an exception.
1747 @c except signalling NaNs
1749 This function is defined in @w{IEC 559} (and the appendix with
1750 recommended functions in @w{IEEE 754}/@w{IEEE 854}).
1755 @deftypefun int signbit (@emph{float-type} @var{x})
1756 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1757 @code{signbit} is a generic macro which can work on all floating-point
1758 types. It returns a nonzero value if the value of @var{x} has its sign
1761 This is not the same as @code{x < 0.0}, because @w{IEEE 754} floating
1762 point allows zero to be signed. The comparison @code{-0.0 < 0.0} is
1763 false, but @code{signbit (-0.0)} will return a nonzero value.
1768 @deftypefun double nextafter (double @var{x}, double @var{y})
1771 @deftypefunx float nextafterf (float @var{x}, float @var{y})
1774 @deftypefunx {long double} nextafterl (long double @var{x}, long double @var{y})
1775 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1776 The @code{nextafter} function returns the next representable neighbor of
1777 @var{x} in the direction towards @var{y}. The size of the step between
1778 @var{x} and the result depends on the type of the result. If
1779 @math{@var{x} = @var{y}} the function simply returns @var{y}. If either
1780 value is @code{NaN}, @code{NaN} is returned. Otherwise
1781 a value corresponding to the value of the least significant bit in the
1782 mantissa is added or subtracted, depending on the direction.
1783 @code{nextafter} will signal overflow or underflow if the result goes
1784 outside of the range of normalized numbers.
1786 This function is defined in @w{IEC 559} (and the appendix with
1787 recommended functions in @w{IEEE 754}/@w{IEEE 854}).
1792 @deftypefun double nexttoward (double @var{x}, long double @var{y})
1795 @deftypefunx float nexttowardf (float @var{x}, long double @var{y})
1798 @deftypefunx {long double} nexttowardl (long double @var{x}, long double @var{y})
1799 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1800 These functions are identical to the corresponding versions of
1801 @code{nextafter} except that their second argument is a @code{long
1807 @deftypefun double nextup (double @var{x})
1810 @deftypefunx float nextupf (float @var{x})
1813 @deftypefunx {long double} nextupl (long double @var{x})
1814 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1815 The @code{nextup} function returns the next representable neighbor of @var{x}
1816 in the direction of positive infinity. If @var{x} is the smallest negative
1817 subnormal number in the type of @var{x} the function returns @code{-0}. If
1818 @math{@var{x} = @code{0}} the function returns the smallest positive subnormal
1819 number in the type of @var{x}. If @var{x} is NaN, NaN is returned.
1820 If @var{x} is @math{+@infinity{}}, @math{+@infinity{}} is returned.
1821 @code{nextup} is from TS 18661-1:2014.
1822 @code{nextup} never raises an exception except for signaling NaNs.
1827 @deftypefun double nextdown (double @var{x})
1830 @deftypefunx float nextdownf (float @var{x})
1833 @deftypefunx {long double} nextdownl (long double @var{x})
1834 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1835 The @code{nextdown} function returns the next representable neighbor of @var{x}
1836 in the direction of negative infinity. If @var{x} is the smallest positive
1837 subnormal number in the type of @var{x} the function returns @code{+0}. If
1838 @math{@var{x} = @code{0}} the function returns the smallest negative subnormal
1839 number in the type of @var{x}. If @var{x} is NaN, NaN is returned.
1840 If @var{x} is @math{-@infinity{}}, @math{-@infinity{}} is returned.
1841 @code{nextdown} is from TS 18661-1:2014.
1842 @code{nextdown} never raises an exception except for signaling NaNs.
1848 @deftypefun double nan (const char *@var{tagp})
1851 @deftypefunx float nanf (const char *@var{tagp})
1854 @deftypefunx {long double} nanl (const char *@var{tagp})
1855 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1856 @c The unsafe-but-ruled-safe locale use comes from strtod.
1857 The @code{nan} function returns a representation of NaN, provided that
1858 NaN is supported by the target platform.
1859 @code{nan ("@var{n-char-sequence}")} is equivalent to
1860 @code{strtod ("NAN(@var{n-char-sequence})")}.
1862 The argument @var{tagp} is used in an unspecified manner. On @w{IEEE
1863 754} systems, there are many representations of NaN, and @var{tagp}
1864 selects one. On other systems it may do nothing.
1869 @deftypefun int canonicalize (double *@var{cx}, const double *@var{x})
1872 @deftypefunx int canonicalizef (float *@var{cx}, const float *@var{x})
1875 @deftypefunx int canonicalizel (long double *@var{cx}, const long double *@var{x})
1876 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1877 In some floating-point formats, some values have canonical (preferred)
1878 and noncanonical encodings (for IEEE interchange binary formats, all
1879 encodings are canonical). These functions, defined by TS
1880 18661-1:2014, attempt to produce a canonical version of the
1881 floating-point value pointed to by @var{x}; if that value is a
1882 signaling NaN, they raise the invalid exception and produce a quiet
1883 NaN. If a canonical value is produced, it is stored in the object
1884 pointed to by @var{cx}, and these functions return zero. Otherwise
1885 (if a canonical value could not be produced because the object pointed
1886 to by @var{x} is not a valid representation of any floating-point
1887 value), the object pointed to by @var{cx} is unchanged and a nonzero
1890 Note that some formats have multiple encodings of a value which are
1891 all equally canonical; when such an encoding is used as an input to
1892 this function, any such encoding of the same value (or of the
1893 corresponding quiet NaN, if that value is a signaling NaN) may be
1899 @deftypefun double getpayload (const double *@var{x})
1902 @deftypefunx float getpayloadf (const float *@var{x})
1905 @deftypefunx {long double} getpayloadl (const long double *@var{x})
1906 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1907 IEEE 754 defines the @dfn{payload} of a NaN to be an integer value
1908 encoded in the representation of the NaN. Payloads are typically
1909 propagated from NaN inputs to the result of a floating-point
1910 operation. These functions, defined by TS 18661-1:2014, return the
1911 payload of the NaN pointed to by @var{x} (returned as a positive
1912 integer, or positive zero, represented as a floating-point number); if
1913 @var{x} is not a NaN, they return an unspecified value. They raise no
1914 floating-point exceptions even for signaling NaNs.
1917 @node FP Comparison Functions
1918 @subsection Floating-Point Comparison Functions
1919 @cindex unordered comparison
1921 The standard C comparison operators provoke exceptions when one or other
1922 of the operands is NaN. For example,
1929 will raise an exception if @var{a} is NaN. (This does @emph{not}
1930 happen with @code{==} and @code{!=}; those merely return false and true,
1931 respectively, when NaN is examined.) Frequently this exception is
1932 undesirable. @w{ISO C99} therefore defines comparison functions that
1933 do not raise exceptions when NaN is examined. All of the functions are
1934 implemented as macros which allow their arguments to be of any
1935 floating-point type. The macros are guaranteed to evaluate their
1936 arguments only once. TS 18661-1:2014 adds such a macro for an
1937 equality comparison that @emph{does} raise an exception for a NaN
1938 argument; it also adds functions that provide a total ordering on all
1939 floating-point values, including NaNs, without raising any exceptions
1940 even for signaling NaNs.
1944 @deftypefn Macro int isgreater (@emph{real-floating} @var{x}, @emph{real-floating} @var{y})
1945 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1946 This macro determines whether the argument @var{x} is greater than
1947 @var{y}. It is equivalent to @code{(@var{x}) > (@var{y})}, but no
1948 exception is raised if @var{x} or @var{y} are NaN.
1953 @deftypefn Macro int isgreaterequal (@emph{real-floating} @var{x}, @emph{real-floating} @var{y})
1954 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1955 This macro determines whether the argument @var{x} is greater than or
1956 equal to @var{y}. It is equivalent to @code{(@var{x}) >= (@var{y})}, but no
1957 exception is raised if @var{x} or @var{y} are NaN.
1962 @deftypefn Macro int isless (@emph{real-floating} @var{x}, @emph{real-floating} @var{y})
1963 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1964 This macro determines whether the argument @var{x} is less than @var{y}.
1965 It is equivalent to @code{(@var{x}) < (@var{y})}, but no exception is
1966 raised if @var{x} or @var{y} are NaN.
1971 @deftypefn Macro int islessequal (@emph{real-floating} @var{x}, @emph{real-floating} @var{y})
1972 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1973 This macro determines whether the argument @var{x} is less than or equal
1974 to @var{y}. It is equivalent to @code{(@var{x}) <= (@var{y})}, but no
1975 exception is raised if @var{x} or @var{y} are NaN.
1980 @deftypefn Macro int islessgreater (@emph{real-floating} @var{x}, @emph{real-floating} @var{y})
1981 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1982 This macro determines whether the argument @var{x} is less or greater
1983 than @var{y}. It is equivalent to @code{(@var{x}) < (@var{y}) ||
1984 (@var{x}) > (@var{y})} (although it only evaluates @var{x} and @var{y}
1985 once), but no exception is raised if @var{x} or @var{y} are NaN.
1987 This macro is not equivalent to @code{@var{x} != @var{y}}, because that
1988 expression is true if @var{x} or @var{y} are NaN.
1993 @deftypefn Macro int isunordered (@emph{real-floating} @var{x}, @emph{real-floating} @var{y})
1994 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
1995 This macro determines whether its arguments are unordered. In other
1996 words, it is true if @var{x} or @var{y} are NaN, and false otherwise.
2001 @deftypefn Macro int iseqsig (@emph{real-floating} @var{x}, @emph{real-floating} @var{y})
2002 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2003 This macro determines whether its arguments are equal. It is
2004 equivalent to @code{(@var{x}) == (@var{y})}, but it raises the invalid
2005 exception and sets @code{errno} to @code{EDOM} is either argument is a
2011 @deftypefun int totalorder (double @var{x}, double @var{y})
2013 @deftypefunx int totalorderf (float @var{x}, float @var{y})
2015 @deftypefunx int totalorderl (long double @var{x}, long double @var{y})
2016 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2017 These functions determine whether the total order relationship,
2018 defined in IEEE 754-2008, is true for @var{x} and @var{y}, returning
2019 nonzero if it is true and zero if it is false. No exceptions are
2020 raised even for signaling NaNs. The relationship is true if they are
2021 the same floating-point value (including sign for zero and NaNs, and
2022 payload for NaNs), or if @var{x} comes before @var{y} in the following
2023 order: negative quiet NaNs, in order of decreasing payload; negative
2024 signaling NaNs, in order of decreasing payload; negative infinity;
2025 finite numbers, in ascending order, with negative zero before positive
2026 zero; positive infinity; positive signaling NaNs, in order of
2027 increasing payload; positive quiet NaNs, in order of increasing
2033 @deftypefun int totalordermag (double @var{x}, double @var{y})
2035 @deftypefunx int totalordermagf (float @var{x}, float @var{y})
2037 @deftypefunx int totalordermagl (long double @var{x}, long double @var{y})
2038 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2039 These functions determine whether the total order relationship,
2040 defined in IEEE 754-2008, is true for the absolute values of @var{x}
2041 and @var{y}, returning nonzero if it is true and zero if it is false.
2042 No exceptions are raised even for signaling NaNs.
2045 Not all machines provide hardware support for these operations. On
2046 machines that don't, the macros can be very slow. Therefore, you should
2047 not use these functions when NaN is not a concern.
2049 @strong{NB:} There are no macros @code{isequal} or @code{isunequal}.
2050 They are unnecessary, because the @code{==} and @code{!=} operators do
2051 @emph{not} throw an exception if one or both of the operands are NaN.
2053 @node Misc FP Arithmetic
2054 @subsection Miscellaneous FP arithmetic functions
2057 @cindex positive difference
2058 @cindex multiply-add
2060 The functions in this section perform miscellaneous but common
2061 operations that are awkward to express with C operators. On some
2062 processors these functions can use special machine instructions to
2063 perform these operations faster than the equivalent C code.
2067 @deftypefun double fmin (double @var{x}, double @var{y})
2070 @deftypefunx float fminf (float @var{x}, float @var{y})
2073 @deftypefunx {long double} fminl (long double @var{x}, long double @var{y})
2074 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2075 The @code{fmin} function returns the lesser of the two values @var{x}
2076 and @var{y}. It is similar to the expression
2078 ((x) < (y) ? (x) : (y))
2080 except that @var{x} and @var{y} are only evaluated once.
2082 If an argument is NaN, the other argument is returned. If both arguments
2083 are NaN, NaN is returned.
2088 @deftypefun double fmax (double @var{x}, double @var{y})
2091 @deftypefunx float fmaxf (float @var{x}, float @var{y})
2094 @deftypefunx {long double} fmaxl (long double @var{x}, long double @var{y})
2095 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2096 The @code{fmax} function returns the greater of the two values @var{x}
2099 If an argument is NaN, the other argument is returned. If both arguments
2100 are NaN, NaN is returned.
2105 @deftypefun double fdim (double @var{x}, double @var{y})
2108 @deftypefunx float fdimf (float @var{x}, float @var{y})
2111 @deftypefunx {long double} fdiml (long double @var{x}, long double @var{y})
2112 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2113 The @code{fdim} function returns the positive difference between
2114 @var{x} and @var{y}. The positive difference is @math{@var{x} -
2115 @var{y}} if @var{x} is greater than @var{y}, and @math{0} otherwise.
2117 If @var{x}, @var{y}, or both are NaN, NaN is returned.
2122 @deftypefun double fma (double @var{x}, double @var{y}, double @var{z})
2125 @deftypefunx float fmaf (float @var{x}, float @var{y}, float @var{z})
2128 @deftypefunx {long double} fmal (long double @var{x}, long double @var{y}, long double @var{z})
2130 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2131 The @code{fma} function performs floating-point multiply-add. This is
2132 the operation @math{(@var{x} @mul{} @var{y}) + @var{z}}, but the
2133 intermediate result is not rounded to the destination type. This can
2134 sometimes improve the precision of a calculation.
2136 This function was introduced because some processors have a special
2137 instruction to perform multiply-add. The C compiler cannot use it
2138 directly, because the expression @samp{x*y + z} is defined to round the
2139 intermediate result. @code{fma} lets you choose when you want to round
2143 On processors which do not implement multiply-add in hardware,
2144 @code{fma} can be very slow since it must avoid intermediate rounding.
2145 @file{math.h} defines the symbols @code{FP_FAST_FMA},
2146 @code{FP_FAST_FMAF}, and @code{FP_FAST_FMAL} when the corresponding
2147 version of @code{fma} is no slower than the expression @samp{x*y + z}.
2148 In @theglibc{}, this always means the operation is implemented in
2152 @node Complex Numbers
2153 @section Complex Numbers
2155 @cindex complex numbers
2157 @w{ISO C99} introduces support for complex numbers in C. This is done
2158 with a new type qualifier, @code{complex}. It is a keyword if and only
2159 if @file{complex.h} has been included. There are three complex types,
2160 corresponding to the three real types: @code{float complex},
2161 @code{double complex}, and @code{long double complex}.
2163 To construct complex numbers you need a way to indicate the imaginary
2164 part of a number. There is no standard notation for an imaginary
2165 floating point constant. Instead, @file{complex.h} defines two macros
2166 that can be used to create complex numbers.
2168 @deftypevr Macro {const float complex} _Complex_I
2169 This macro is a representation of the complex number ``@math{0+1i}''.
2170 Multiplying a real floating-point value by @code{_Complex_I} gives a
2171 complex number whose value is purely imaginary. You can use this to
2172 construct complex constants:
2175 @math{3.0 + 4.0i} = @code{3.0 + 4.0 * _Complex_I}
2178 Note that @code{_Complex_I * _Complex_I} has the value @code{-1}, but
2179 the type of that value is @code{complex}.
2182 @c Put this back in when gcc supports _Imaginary_I. It's too confusing.
2185 Without an optimizing compiler this is more expensive than the use of
2186 @code{_Imaginary_I} but with is better than nothing. You can avoid all
2187 the hassles if you use the @code{I} macro below if the name is not
2190 @deftypevr Macro {const float imaginary} _Imaginary_I
2191 This macro is a representation of the value ``@math{1i}''. I.e., it is
2195 _Imaginary_I * _Imaginary_I = -1
2199 The result is not of type @code{float imaginary} but instead @code{float}.
2200 One can use it to easily construct complex number like in
2203 3.0 - _Imaginary_I * 4.0
2207 which results in the complex number with a real part of 3.0 and a
2208 imaginary part -4.0.
2213 @code{_Complex_I} is a bit of a mouthful. @file{complex.h} also defines
2214 a shorter name for the same constant.
2216 @deftypevr Macro {const float complex} I
2217 This macro has exactly the same value as @code{_Complex_I}. Most of the
2218 time it is preferable. However, it causes problems if you want to use
2219 the identifier @code{I} for something else. You can safely write
2222 #include <complex.h>
2227 if you need @code{I} for your own purposes. (In that case we recommend
2228 you also define some other short name for @code{_Complex_I}, such as
2232 If the implementation does not support the @code{imaginary} types
2233 @code{I} is defined as @code{_Complex_I} which is the second best
2234 solution. It still can be used in the same way but requires a most
2235 clever compiler to get the same results.
2239 @node Operations on Complex
2240 @section Projections, Conjugates, and Decomposing of Complex Numbers
2241 @cindex project complex numbers
2242 @cindex conjugate complex numbers
2243 @cindex decompose complex numbers
2246 @w{ISO C99} also defines functions that perform basic operations on
2247 complex numbers, such as decomposition and conjugation. The prototypes
2248 for all these functions are in @file{complex.h}. All functions are
2249 available in three variants, one for each of the three complex types.
2253 @deftypefun double creal (complex double @var{z})
2256 @deftypefunx float crealf (complex float @var{z})
2259 @deftypefunx {long double} creall (complex long double @var{z})
2260 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2261 These functions return the real part of the complex number @var{z}.
2266 @deftypefun double cimag (complex double @var{z})
2269 @deftypefunx float cimagf (complex float @var{z})
2272 @deftypefunx {long double} cimagl (complex long double @var{z})
2273 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2274 These functions return the imaginary part of the complex number @var{z}.
2279 @deftypefun {complex double} conj (complex double @var{z})
2282 @deftypefunx {complex float} conjf (complex float @var{z})
2285 @deftypefunx {complex long double} conjl (complex long double @var{z})
2286 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2287 These functions return the conjugate value of the complex number
2288 @var{z}. The conjugate of a complex number has the same real part and a
2289 negated imaginary part. In other words, @samp{conj(a + bi) = a + -bi}.
2294 @deftypefun double carg (complex double @var{z})
2297 @deftypefunx float cargf (complex float @var{z})
2300 @deftypefunx {long double} cargl (complex long double @var{z})
2301 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2302 These functions return the argument of the complex number @var{z}.
2303 The argument of a complex number is the angle in the complex plane
2304 between the positive real axis and a line passing through zero and the
2305 number. This angle is measured in the usual fashion and ranges from
2306 @math{-@pi{}} to @math{@pi{}}.
2308 @code{carg} has a branch cut along the negative real axis.
2313 @deftypefun {complex double} cproj (complex double @var{z})
2316 @deftypefunx {complex float} cprojf (complex float @var{z})
2319 @deftypefunx {complex long double} cprojl (complex long double @var{z})
2320 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2321 These functions return the projection of the complex value @var{z} onto
2322 the Riemann sphere. Values with an infinite imaginary part are projected
2323 to positive infinity on the real axis, even if the real part is NaN. If
2324 the real part is infinite, the result is equivalent to
2327 INFINITY + I * copysign (0.0, cimag (z))
2331 @node Parsing of Numbers
2332 @section Parsing of Numbers
2333 @cindex parsing numbers (in formatted input)
2334 @cindex converting strings to numbers
2335 @cindex number syntax, parsing
2336 @cindex syntax, for reading numbers
2338 This section describes functions for ``reading'' integer and
2339 floating-point numbers from a string. It may be more convenient in some
2340 cases to use @code{sscanf} or one of the related functions; see
2341 @ref{Formatted Input}. But often you can make a program more robust by
2342 finding the tokens in the string by hand, then converting the numbers
2346 * Parsing of Integers:: Functions for conversion of integer values.
2347 * Parsing of Floats:: Functions for conversion of floating-point
2351 @node Parsing of Integers
2352 @subsection Parsing of Integers
2356 The @samp{str} functions are declared in @file{stdlib.h} and those
2357 beginning with @samp{wcs} are declared in @file{wchar.h}. One might
2358 wonder about the use of @code{restrict} in the prototypes of the
2359 functions in this section. It is seemingly useless but the @w{ISO C}
2360 standard uses it (for the functions defined there) so we have to do it
2365 @deftypefun {long int} strtol (const char *restrict @var{string}, char **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2366 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2367 @c strtol uses the thread-local pointer to the locale in effect, and
2368 @c strtol_l loads the LC_NUMERIC locale data from it early on and once,
2369 @c but if the locale is the global locale, and another thread calls
2370 @c setlocale in a way that modifies the pointer to the LC_CTYPE locale
2371 @c category, the behavior of e.g. IS*, TOUPPER will vary throughout the
2372 @c execution of the function, because they re-read the locale data from
2373 @c the given locale pointer. We solved this by documenting setlocale as
2375 The @code{strtol} (``string-to-long'') function converts the initial
2376 part of @var{string} to a signed integer, which is returned as a value
2377 of type @code{long int}.
2379 This function attempts to decompose @var{string} as follows:
2383 A (possibly empty) sequence of whitespace characters. Which characters
2384 are whitespace is determined by the @code{isspace} function
2385 (@pxref{Classification of Characters}). These are discarded.
2388 An optional plus or minus sign (@samp{+} or @samp{-}).
2391 A nonempty sequence of digits in the radix specified by @var{base}.
2393 If @var{base} is zero, decimal radix is assumed unless the series of
2394 digits begins with @samp{0} (specifying octal radix), or @samp{0x} or
2395 @samp{0X} (specifying hexadecimal radix); in other words, the same
2396 syntax used for integer constants in C.
2398 Otherwise @var{base} must have a value between @code{2} and @code{36}.
2399 If @var{base} is @code{16}, the digits may optionally be preceded by
2400 @samp{0x} or @samp{0X}. If base has no legal value the value returned
2401 is @code{0l} and the global variable @code{errno} is set to @code{EINVAL}.
2404 Any remaining characters in the string. If @var{tailptr} is not a null
2405 pointer, @code{strtol} stores a pointer to this tail in
2406 @code{*@var{tailptr}}.
2409 If the string is empty, contains only whitespace, or does not contain an
2410 initial substring that has the expected syntax for an integer in the
2411 specified @var{base}, no conversion is performed. In this case,
2412 @code{strtol} returns a value of zero and the value stored in
2413 @code{*@var{tailptr}} is the value of @var{string}.
2415 In a locale other than the standard @code{"C"} locale, this function
2416 may recognize additional implementation-dependent syntax.
2418 If the string has valid syntax for an integer but the value is not
2419 representable because of overflow, @code{strtol} returns either
2420 @code{LONG_MAX} or @code{LONG_MIN} (@pxref{Range of Type}), as
2421 appropriate for the sign of the value. It also sets @code{errno}
2422 to @code{ERANGE} to indicate there was overflow.
2424 You should not check for errors by examining the return value of
2425 @code{strtol}, because the string might be a valid representation of
2426 @code{0l}, @code{LONG_MAX}, or @code{LONG_MIN}. Instead, check whether
2427 @var{tailptr} points to what you expect after the number
2428 (e.g. @code{'\0'} if the string should end after the number). You also
2429 need to clear @var{errno} before the call and check it afterward, in
2430 case there was overflow.
2432 There is an example at the end of this section.
2437 @deftypefun {long int} wcstol (const wchar_t *restrict @var{string}, wchar_t **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2438 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2439 The @code{wcstol} function is equivalent to the @code{strtol} function
2440 in nearly all aspects but handles wide character strings.
2442 The @code{wcstol} function was introduced in @w{Amendment 1} of @w{ISO C90}.
2447 @deftypefun {unsigned long int} strtoul (const char *retrict @var{string}, char **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2448 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2449 The @code{strtoul} (``string-to-unsigned-long'') function is like
2450 @code{strtol} except it converts to an @code{unsigned long int} value.
2451 The syntax is the same as described above for @code{strtol}. The value
2452 returned on overflow is @code{ULONG_MAX} (@pxref{Range of Type}).
2454 If @var{string} depicts a negative number, @code{strtoul} acts the same
2455 as @var{strtol} but casts the result to an unsigned integer. That means
2456 for example that @code{strtoul} on @code{"-1"} returns @code{ULONG_MAX}
2457 and an input more negative than @code{LONG_MIN} returns
2458 (@code{ULONG_MAX} + 1) / 2.
2460 @code{strtoul} sets @var{errno} to @code{EINVAL} if @var{base} is out of
2461 range, or @code{ERANGE} on overflow.
2466 @deftypefun {unsigned long int} wcstoul (const wchar_t *restrict @var{string}, wchar_t **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2467 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2468 The @code{wcstoul} function is equivalent to the @code{strtoul} function
2469 in nearly all aspects but handles wide character strings.
2471 The @code{wcstoul} function was introduced in @w{Amendment 1} of @w{ISO C90}.
2476 @deftypefun {long long int} strtoll (const char *restrict @var{string}, char **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2477 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2478 The @code{strtoll} function is like @code{strtol} except that it returns
2479 a @code{long long int} value, and accepts numbers with a correspondingly
2482 If the string has valid syntax for an integer but the value is not
2483 representable because of overflow, @code{strtoll} returns either
2484 @code{LLONG_MAX} or @code{LLONG_MIN} (@pxref{Range of Type}), as
2485 appropriate for the sign of the value. It also sets @code{errno} to
2486 @code{ERANGE} to indicate there was overflow.
2488 The @code{strtoll} function was introduced in @w{ISO C99}.
2493 @deftypefun {long long int} wcstoll (const wchar_t *restrict @var{string}, wchar_t **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2494 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2495 The @code{wcstoll} function is equivalent to the @code{strtoll} function
2496 in nearly all aspects but handles wide character strings.
2498 The @code{wcstoll} function was introduced in @w{Amendment 1} of @w{ISO C90}.
2503 @deftypefun {long long int} strtoq (const char *restrict @var{string}, char **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2504 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2505 @code{strtoq} (``string-to-quad-word'') is the BSD name for @code{strtoll}.
2510 @deftypefun {long long int} wcstoq (const wchar_t *restrict @var{string}, wchar_t **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2511 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2512 The @code{wcstoq} function is equivalent to the @code{strtoq} function
2513 in nearly all aspects but handles wide character strings.
2515 The @code{wcstoq} function is a GNU extension.
2520 @deftypefun {unsigned long long int} strtoull (const char *restrict @var{string}, char **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2521 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2522 The @code{strtoull} function is related to @code{strtoll} the same way
2523 @code{strtoul} is related to @code{strtol}.
2525 The @code{strtoull} function was introduced in @w{ISO C99}.
2530 @deftypefun {unsigned long long int} wcstoull (const wchar_t *restrict @var{string}, wchar_t **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2531 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2532 The @code{wcstoull} function is equivalent to the @code{strtoull} function
2533 in nearly all aspects but handles wide character strings.
2535 The @code{wcstoull} function was introduced in @w{Amendment 1} of @w{ISO C90}.
2540 @deftypefun {unsigned long long int} strtouq (const char *restrict @var{string}, char **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2541 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2542 @code{strtouq} is the BSD name for @code{strtoull}.
2547 @deftypefun {unsigned long long int} wcstouq (const wchar_t *restrict @var{string}, wchar_t **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2548 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2549 The @code{wcstouq} function is equivalent to the @code{strtouq} function
2550 in nearly all aspects but handles wide character strings.
2552 The @code{wcstouq} function is a GNU extension.
2557 @deftypefun intmax_t strtoimax (const char *restrict @var{string}, char **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2558 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2559 The @code{strtoimax} function is like @code{strtol} except that it returns
2560 a @code{intmax_t} value, and accepts numbers of a corresponding range.
2562 If the string has valid syntax for an integer but the value is not
2563 representable because of overflow, @code{strtoimax} returns either
2564 @code{INTMAX_MAX} or @code{INTMAX_MIN} (@pxref{Integers}), as
2565 appropriate for the sign of the value. It also sets @code{errno} to
2566 @code{ERANGE} to indicate there was overflow.
2568 See @ref{Integers} for a description of the @code{intmax_t} type. The
2569 @code{strtoimax} function was introduced in @w{ISO C99}.
2574 @deftypefun intmax_t wcstoimax (const wchar_t *restrict @var{string}, wchar_t **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2575 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2576 The @code{wcstoimax} function is equivalent to the @code{strtoimax} function
2577 in nearly all aspects but handles wide character strings.
2579 The @code{wcstoimax} function was introduced in @w{ISO C99}.
2584 @deftypefun uintmax_t strtoumax (const char *restrict @var{string}, char **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2585 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2586 The @code{strtoumax} function is related to @code{strtoimax}
2587 the same way that @code{strtoul} is related to @code{strtol}.
2589 See @ref{Integers} for a description of the @code{intmax_t} type. The
2590 @code{strtoumax} function was introduced in @w{ISO C99}.
2595 @deftypefun uintmax_t wcstoumax (const wchar_t *restrict @var{string}, wchar_t **restrict @var{tailptr}, int @var{base})
2596 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2597 The @code{wcstoumax} function is equivalent to the @code{strtoumax} function
2598 in nearly all aspects but handles wide character strings.
2600 The @code{wcstoumax} function was introduced in @w{ISO C99}.
2605 @deftypefun {long int} atol (const char *@var{string})
2606 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2607 This function is similar to the @code{strtol} function with a @var{base}
2608 argument of @code{10}, except that it need not detect overflow errors.
2609 The @code{atol} function is provided mostly for compatibility with
2610 existing code; using @code{strtol} is more robust.
2615 @deftypefun int atoi (const char *@var{string})
2616 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2617 This function is like @code{atol}, except that it returns an @code{int}.
2618 The @code{atoi} function is also considered obsolete; use @code{strtol}
2624 @deftypefun {long long int} atoll (const char *@var{string})
2625 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2626 This function is similar to @code{atol}, except it returns a @code{long
2629 The @code{atoll} function was introduced in @w{ISO C99}. It too is
2630 obsolete (despite having just been added); use @code{strtoll} instead.
2633 All the functions mentioned in this section so far do not handle
2634 alternative representations of characters as described in the locale
2635 data. Some locales specify thousands separator and the way they have to
2636 be used which can help to make large numbers more readable. To read
2637 such numbers one has to use the @code{scanf} functions with the @samp{'}
2640 Here is a function which parses a string as a sequence of integers and
2641 returns the sum of them:
2645 sum_ints_from_string (char *string)
2653 /* @r{Skip whitespace by hand, to detect the end.} */
2654 while (isspace (*string)) string++;
2658 /* @r{There is more nonwhitespace,} */
2659 /* @r{so it ought to be another number.} */
2662 next = strtol (string, &tail, 0);
2663 /* @r{Add it in, if not overflow.} */
2665 printf ("Overflow\n");
2668 /* @r{Advance past it.} */
2676 @node Parsing of Floats
2677 @subsection Parsing of Floats
2680 The @samp{str} functions are declared in @file{stdlib.h} and those
2681 beginning with @samp{wcs} are declared in @file{wchar.h}. One might
2682 wonder about the use of @code{restrict} in the prototypes of the
2683 functions in this section. It is seemingly useless but the @w{ISO C}
2684 standard uses it (for the functions defined there) so we have to do it
2689 @deftypefun double strtod (const char *restrict @var{string}, char **restrict @var{tailptr})
2690 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2691 @c Besides the unsafe-but-ruled-safe locale uses, this uses a lot of
2692 @c mpn, but it's all safe.
2695 @c get_rounding_mode ok
2699 @c MPN2FLOAT -> mpn_construct_(float|double|long_double) ok
2701 @c mpn_mul_1 -> umul_ppmm ok
2703 @c mpn_lshift_1 -> mpn_lshift ok
2707 @c STRNCASECMP ok, wide and narrow
2708 @c round_and_return ok
2714 @c count_leading_zeros ok
2719 The @code{strtod} (``string-to-double'') function converts the initial
2720 part of @var{string} to a floating-point number, which is returned as a
2721 value of type @code{double}.
2723 This function attempts to decompose @var{string} as follows:
2727 A (possibly empty) sequence of whitespace characters. Which characters
2728 are whitespace is determined by the @code{isspace} function
2729 (@pxref{Classification of Characters}). These are discarded.
2732 An optional plus or minus sign (@samp{+} or @samp{-}).
2734 @item A floating point number in decimal or hexadecimal format. The
2739 A nonempty sequence of digits optionally containing a decimal-point
2740 character---normally @samp{.}, but it depends on the locale
2741 (@pxref{General Numeric}).
2744 An optional exponent part, consisting of a character @samp{e} or
2745 @samp{E}, an optional sign, and a sequence of digits.
2749 The hexadecimal format is as follows:
2753 A 0x or 0X followed by a nonempty sequence of hexadecimal digits
2754 optionally containing a decimal-point character---normally @samp{.}, but
2755 it depends on the locale (@pxref{General Numeric}).
2758 An optional binary-exponent part, consisting of a character @samp{p} or
2759 @samp{P}, an optional sign, and a sequence of digits.
2764 Any remaining characters in the string. If @var{tailptr} is not a null
2765 pointer, a pointer to this tail of the string is stored in
2766 @code{*@var{tailptr}}.
2769 If the string is empty, contains only whitespace, or does not contain an
2770 initial substring that has the expected syntax for a floating-point
2771 number, no conversion is performed. In this case, @code{strtod} returns
2772 a value of zero and the value returned in @code{*@var{tailptr}} is the
2773 value of @var{string}.
2775 In a locale other than the standard @code{"C"} or @code{"POSIX"} locales,
2776 this function may recognize additional locale-dependent syntax.
2778 If the string has valid syntax for a floating-point number but the value
2779 is outside the range of a @code{double}, @code{strtod} will signal
2780 overflow or underflow as described in @ref{Math Error Reporting}.
2782 @code{strtod} recognizes four special input strings. The strings
2783 @code{"inf"} and @code{"infinity"} are converted to @math{@infinity{}},
2784 or to the largest representable value if the floating-point format
2785 doesn't support infinities. You can prepend a @code{"+"} or @code{"-"}
2786 to specify the sign. Case is ignored when scanning these strings.
2788 The strings @code{"nan"} and @code{"nan(@var{chars@dots{}})"} are converted
2789 to NaN. Again, case is ignored. If @var{chars@dots{}} are provided, they
2790 are used in some unspecified fashion to select a particular
2791 representation of NaN (there can be several).
2793 Since zero is a valid result as well as the value returned on error, you
2794 should check for errors in the same way as for @code{strtol}, by
2795 examining @var{errno} and @var{tailptr}.
2800 @deftypefun float strtof (const char *@var{string}, char **@var{tailptr})
2803 @deftypefunx {long double} strtold (const char *@var{string}, char **@var{tailptr})
2804 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2805 These functions are analogous to @code{strtod}, but return @code{float}
2806 and @code{long double} values respectively. They report errors in the
2807 same way as @code{strtod}. @code{strtof} can be substantially faster
2808 than @code{strtod}, but has less precision; conversely, @code{strtold}
2809 can be much slower but has more precision (on systems where @code{long
2810 double} is a separate type).
2812 These functions have been GNU extensions and are new to @w{ISO C99}.
2817 @deftypefun double wcstod (const wchar_t *restrict @var{string}, wchar_t **restrict @var{tailptr})
2820 @deftypefunx float wcstof (const wchar_t *@var{string}, wchar_t **@var{tailptr})
2823 @deftypefunx {long double} wcstold (const wchar_t *@var{string}, wchar_t **@var{tailptr})
2824 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2825 The @code{wcstod}, @code{wcstof}, and @code{wcstol} functions are
2826 equivalent in nearly all aspect to the @code{strtod}, @code{strtof}, and
2827 @code{strtold} functions but it handles wide character string.
2829 The @code{wcstod} function was introduced in @w{Amendment 1} of @w{ISO
2830 C90}. The @code{wcstof} and @code{wcstold} functions were introduced in
2836 @deftypefun double atof (const char *@var{string})
2837 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2838 This function is similar to the @code{strtod} function, except that it
2839 need not detect overflow and underflow errors. The @code{atof} function
2840 is provided mostly for compatibility with existing code; using
2841 @code{strtod} is more robust.
2844 @Theglibc{} also provides @samp{_l} versions of these functions,
2845 which take an additional argument, the locale to use in conversion.
2847 See also @ref{Parsing of Integers}.
2849 @node Printing of Floats
2850 @section Printing of Floats
2853 The @samp{strfrom} functions are declared in @file{stdlib.h}.
2856 @comment ISO/IEC TS 18661-1
2857 @deftypefun int strfromd (char *restrict @var{string}, size_t @var{size}, const char *restrict @var{format}, double @var{value})
2858 @deftypefunx int strfromf (char *restrict @var{string}, size_t @var{size}, const char *restrict @var{format}, float @var{value})
2859 @deftypefunx int strfroml (char *restrict @var{string}, size_t @var{size}, const char *restrict @var{format}, long double @var{value})
2860 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{@mtslocale{}}@asunsafe{@ascuheap{}}@acunsafe{@acsmem{}}}
2861 @comment these functions depend on __printf_fp and __printf_fphex, which are
2862 @comment AS-unsafe (ascuheap) and AC-unsafe (acsmem).
2863 The functions @code{strfromd} (``string-from-double''), @code{strfromf}
2864 (``string-from-float''), and @code{strfroml} (``string-from-long-double'')
2865 convert the floating-point number @var{value} to a string of characters and
2866 stores them into the area pointed to by @var{string}. The conversion
2867 writes at most @var{size} characters and respects the format specified by
2870 The format string must start with the character @samp{%}. An optional
2871 precision follows, which starts with a period, @samp{.}, and may be
2872 followed by a decimal integer, representing the precision. If a decimal
2873 integer is not specified after the period, the precision is taken to be
2874 zero. The character @samp{*} is not allowed. Finally, the format string
2875 ends with one of the following conversion specifiers: @samp{a}, @samp{A},
2876 @samp{e}, @samp{E}, @samp{f}, @samp{F}, @samp{g} or @samp{G} (@pxref{Table
2877 of Output Conversions}). Invalid format strings result in undefined
2880 These functions return the number of characters that would have been
2881 written to @var{string} had @var{size} been sufficiently large, not
2882 counting the terminating null character. Thus, the null-terminated output
2883 has been completely written if and only if the returned value is less than
2886 These functions were introduced by ISO/IEC TS 18661-1.
2889 @node System V Number Conversion
2890 @section Old-fashioned System V number-to-string functions
2892 The old @w{System V} C library provided three functions to convert
2893 numbers to strings, with unusual and hard-to-use semantics. @Theglibc{}
2894 also provides these functions and some natural extensions.
2896 These functions are only available in @theglibc{} and on systems descended
2897 from AT&T Unix. Therefore, unless these functions do precisely what you
2898 need, it is better to use @code{sprintf}, which is standard.
2900 All these functions are defined in @file{stdlib.h}.
2903 @comment SVID, Unix98
2904 @deftypefun {char *} ecvt (double @var{value}, int @var{ndigit}, int *@var{decpt}, int *@var{neg})
2905 @safety{@prelim{}@mtunsafe{@mtasurace{:ecvt}}@asunsafe{}@acsafe{}}
2906 The function @code{ecvt} converts the floating-point number @var{value}
2907 to a string with at most @var{ndigit} decimal digits. The
2908 returned string contains no decimal point or sign. The first digit of
2909 the string is non-zero (unless @var{value} is actually zero) and the
2910 last digit is rounded to nearest. @code{*@var{decpt}} is set to the
2911 index in the string of the first digit after the decimal point.
2912 @code{*@var{neg}} is set to a nonzero value if @var{value} is negative,
2915 If @var{ndigit} decimal digits would exceed the precision of a
2916 @code{double} it is reduced to a system-specific value.
2918 The returned string is statically allocated and overwritten by each call
2921 If @var{value} is zero, it is implementation defined whether
2922 @code{*@var{decpt}} is @code{0} or @code{1}.
2924 For example: @code{ecvt (12.3, 5, &d, &n)} returns @code{"12300"}
2925 and sets @var{d} to @code{2} and @var{n} to @code{0}.
2929 @comment SVID, Unix98
2930 @deftypefun {char *} fcvt (double @var{value}, int @var{ndigit}, int *@var{decpt}, int *@var{neg})
2931 @safety{@prelim{}@mtunsafe{@mtasurace{:fcvt}}@asunsafe{@ascuheap{}}@acunsafe{@acsmem{}}}
2932 The function @code{fcvt} is like @code{ecvt}, but @var{ndigit} specifies
2933 the number of digits after the decimal point. If @var{ndigit} is less
2934 than zero, @var{value} is rounded to the @math{@var{ndigit}+1}'th place to the
2935 left of the decimal point. For example, if @var{ndigit} is @code{-1},
2936 @var{value} will be rounded to the nearest 10. If @var{ndigit} is
2937 negative and larger than the number of digits to the left of the decimal
2938 point in @var{value}, @var{value} will be rounded to one significant digit.
2940 If @var{ndigit} decimal digits would exceed the precision of a
2941 @code{double} it is reduced to a system-specific value.
2943 The returned string is statically allocated and overwritten by each call
2948 @comment SVID, Unix98
2949 @deftypefun {char *} gcvt (double @var{value}, int @var{ndigit}, char *@var{buf})
2950 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2951 @c gcvt calls sprintf, that ultimately calls vfprintf, which malloc()s
2952 @c args_value if it's too large, but gcvt never exercises this path.
2953 @code{gcvt} is functionally equivalent to @samp{sprintf(buf, "%*g",
2954 ndigit, value}. It is provided only for compatibility's sake. It
2957 If @var{ndigit} decimal digits would exceed the precision of a
2958 @code{double} it is reduced to a system-specific value.
2961 As extensions, @theglibc{} provides versions of these three
2962 functions that take @code{long double} arguments.
2966 @deftypefun {char *} qecvt (long double @var{value}, int @var{ndigit}, int *@var{decpt}, int *@var{neg})
2967 @safety{@prelim{}@mtunsafe{@mtasurace{:qecvt}}@asunsafe{}@acsafe{}}
2968 This function is equivalent to @code{ecvt} except that it takes a
2969 @code{long double} for the first parameter and that @var{ndigit} is
2970 restricted by the precision of a @code{long double}.
2975 @deftypefun {char *} qfcvt (long double @var{value}, int @var{ndigit}, int *@var{decpt}, int *@var{neg})
2976 @safety{@prelim{}@mtunsafe{@mtasurace{:qfcvt}}@asunsafe{@ascuheap{}}@acunsafe{@acsmem{}}}
2977 This function is equivalent to @code{fcvt} except that it
2978 takes a @code{long double} for the first parameter and that @var{ndigit} is
2979 restricted by the precision of a @code{long double}.
2984 @deftypefun {char *} qgcvt (long double @var{value}, int @var{ndigit}, char *@var{buf})
2985 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
2986 This function is equivalent to @code{gcvt} except that it takes a
2987 @code{long double} for the first parameter and that @var{ndigit} is
2988 restricted by the precision of a @code{long double}.
2993 The @code{ecvt} and @code{fcvt} functions, and their @code{long double}
2994 equivalents, all return a string located in a static buffer which is
2995 overwritten by the next call to the function. @Theglibc{}
2996 provides another set of extended functions which write the converted
2997 string into a user-supplied buffer. These have the conventional
3000 @code{gcvt_r} is not necessary, because @code{gcvt} already uses a
3001 user-supplied buffer.
3005 @deftypefun int ecvt_r (double @var{value}, int @var{ndigit}, int *@var{decpt}, int *@var{neg}, char *@var{buf}, size_t @var{len})
3006 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
3007 The @code{ecvt_r} function is the same as @code{ecvt}, except
3008 that it places its result into the user-specified buffer pointed to by
3009 @var{buf}, with length @var{len}. The return value is @code{-1} in
3010 case of an error and zero otherwise.
3012 This function is a GNU extension.
3016 @comment SVID, Unix98
3017 @deftypefun int fcvt_r (double @var{value}, int @var{ndigit}, int *@var{decpt}, int *@var{neg}, char *@var{buf}, size_t @var{len})
3018 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
3019 The @code{fcvt_r} function is the same as @code{fcvt}, except that it
3020 places its result into the user-specified buffer pointed to by
3021 @var{buf}, with length @var{len}. The return value is @code{-1} in
3022 case of an error and zero otherwise.
3024 This function is a GNU extension.
3029 @deftypefun int qecvt_r (long double @var{value}, int @var{ndigit}, int *@var{decpt}, int *@var{neg}, char *@var{buf}, size_t @var{len})
3030 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
3031 The @code{qecvt_r} function is the same as @code{qecvt}, except
3032 that it places its result into the user-specified buffer pointed to by
3033 @var{buf}, with length @var{len}. The return value is @code{-1} in
3034 case of an error and zero otherwise.
3036 This function is a GNU extension.
3041 @deftypefun int qfcvt_r (long double @var{value}, int @var{ndigit}, int *@var{decpt}, int *@var{neg}, char *@var{buf}, size_t @var{len})
3042 @safety{@prelim{}@mtsafe{}@assafe{}@acsafe{}}
3043 The @code{qfcvt_r} function is the same as @code{qfcvt}, except
3044 that it places its result into the user-specified buffer pointed to by
3045 @var{buf}, with length @var{len}. The return value is @code{-1} in
3046 case of an error and zero otherwise.
3048 This function is a GNU extension.