Date: Mon, 19 Jan 2004 13:05:05 -0800 From: Tim Kientzle <kientzle@acm.org> To: Ruslan Ermilov <ru@FreeBSD.org> Cc: cvs-src@FreeBSD.org Subject: Re: cvs commit: src/lib/libc/stdio printf.3 Message-ID: <400C4681.8070709@acm.org> In-Reply-To: <20040119110415.GE41159@FreeBSD.org.ua> References: <200401190828.i0J8SUsY040770@repoman.freebsd.org> <20040119090934.GB2708@server.vk2pj.dyndns.org> <20040119092254.GA61125@VARK.homeunix.com> <20040119110415.GE41159@FreeBSD.org.ua>
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Ruslan Ermilov wrote: > On Mon, Jan 19, 2004 at 01:22:54AM -0800, David Schultz wrote: > >>On Mon, Jan 19, 2004, Peter Jeremy wrote: >> >>>On Mon, Jan 19, 2004 at 12:28:30AM -0800, David Schultz wrote: >>> >>>>das 2004/01/19 00:28:30 PST >>>> >>>> FreeBSD src repository >>>> >>>> Modified files: >>>> lib/libc/stdio printf.3 >>>> Log: >>>> Bring the *printf(3) documentation up to date with the code: >>>> >>>> - Update and improve the documentation for %[aA] >>> >>>... >>> >>>> o Clarify that the exponent field represents a decimal exponent of 2. >>> >>> The >>> .Cm p >>> is a literal character >>>-.Ql p ; >>>-the exponent is preceded by a positive or negative sign >>>-and is represented in decimal, using only enough characters >>>-to represent the exponent. >>>+.Ql p , >>>+and the exponent consists of a positive or negative sign >>>+followed by a decimal number representing an exponent of 2. >>> >>>Maybe it's just me but I still don't find that wording very clear. >>>I'm still not totally happy with the following but I think changing >>>'2' to 'base-2' makes it a bit clearer: >>> >>>.Ql p , >>>and the exponent consists of a positive or negative sign >>>followed by a decimal number representing the base-2 exponent. >> >>Hmm...to me, ``base-2 foo'' means ``foo represented in base 2'', >>so I'm not too happy with that wording. It's hard to think of >>something better, though; ``power of 2'' is also easily >>misinterpreted. I'm open to other suggestions, though. >> > > POSIX says "the decimal exponent of 2", and it sounds pretty > legal in mathematics, at least in this part of the world. ;) Yeah, I think das's wording should stand. (It seems slightly clearer than the POSIX wording.) Tim Kientzle (PhD Mathematics ;-)
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