17 Dec
2003
17 Dec
'03
11:17 p.m.
R.Hirschfeld@cwi.nl writes:
Date: Wed, 22 May 1996 15:04:04 -0400 From: "Perry E. Metzger" <perry@piermont.com>
Floating point systems are built to do approximate math on a very wide range of number sizes. Accounting systems require exact math -- down to the cent. Floats aren't suitable.
I completely agree. But are the usual fixed-point representations adequate for exchange rates, where it's not a matter of "down to the cent" but of ratios of cents and centimes?
It depends on the number of significant figures you need to represent. Forex usually involves numbers with five significant figures, which can be represented fairly conveniently in fixed point. Perry