[Python-Dev] Expert floats (original) (raw)

Aahz aahz at pythoncraft.com
Tue Mar 30 20:28:12 EST 2004

On Tue, Mar 30, 2004, Andrew Koenig wrote:

I wish that Python would use the same conversion rules as Scheme: string->float yields the closest rounded approximation to the infinite-precision number represented by the string float->string yields the string with the fewest significant digits that, when converted as above, yields exactly the same floating-point value

I've read the whole thread, and I wanted to repeat a critical point for emphasis:

This doesn't help

No matter what you do to improve conversion issues, you're still dealing with the underlying floating-point problems, and having watched the changing discussions in c.l.py since we moved to the different conversion system, it seems clear to me that we've improved the nature of the discussion by forcing people to get bitten earlier.

Facundo's Decimal module is the only way to improve the current situation.

Aahz (aahz at pythoncraft.com) <*> http://www.pythoncraft.com/

"usenet imitates usenet" --Darkhawk

More information about the Python-Dev mailing list