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| <HTML> |
| |
| <HEAD> |
| <TITLE>Berkeley TestFloat Source Documentation</TITLE> |
| </HEAD> |
| |
| <BODY> |
| |
| <H1>Berkeley TestFloat Release 3: Source Documentation</H1> |
| |
| <P> |
| John R. Hauser<BR> |
| 2015 Jan 9<BR> |
| </P> |
| |
| |
| <H2>Contents</H2> |
| |
| <BLOCKQUOTE> |
| <TABLE BORDER=0 CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0> |
| <COL WIDTH=25> |
| <COL WIDTH=*> |
| <TR><TD COLSPAN=2>1. Introduction</TD></TR> |
| <TR><TD COLSPAN=2>2. Limitations</TD></TR> |
| <TR><TD COLSPAN=2>3. Acknowledgments and License</TD></TR> |
| <TR><TD COLSPAN=2>4. TestFloat Package Directory Structure</TD></TR> |
| <TR><TD COLSPAN=2>5. Dependence on Berkeley SoftFloat</TD></TR> |
| <TR><TD COLSPAN=2>6. Issues for Porting TestFloat to a New Target</TD></TR> |
| <TR> |
| <TD></TD> |
| <TD>6.1. Standard Headers <CODE><stdbool.h></CODE> and |
| <CODE><stdint.h></CODE></TD> |
| </TR> |
| <TR><TD></TD><TD>6.2. Standard Header <CODE><fenv.h></CODE></TD></TR> |
| <TR><TD></TD><TD>6.3. Macros for Build Options</TD></TR> |
| <TR><TD></TD><TD>6.4. Specializing the <CODE>testfloat</CODE> Program</TD></TR> |
| <TR><TD></TD><TD>6.5. Improving the Random Number Functions</TD></TR> |
| <TR><TD COLSPAN=2>7. Contact Information</TD></TR> |
| </TABLE> |
| </BLOCKQUOTE> |
| |
| |
| <H2>1. Introduction</H2> |
| |
| <P> |
| This document gives information needed for compiling and/or porting Berkeley |
| TestFloat, a small collection of programs for testing that an implementation of |
| binary floating-point conforms to the IEEE Standard for Floating-Point |
| Arithmetic. |
| For basic documentation about TestFloat refer to |
| <A HREF="TestFloat-general.html"><CODE>TestFloat-general.html</CODE></A>. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| The source code for TestFloat is intended to be relatively machine-independent. |
| Most programs in the TestFloat package should be compilable with any |
| ISO-Standard C compiler that also supports <NOBR>64-bit</NOBR> integers. |
| If the all-in-one <CODE>testfloat</CODE> program will be used to test a new |
| floating-point implementation, additional effort will likely be required to |
| retarget that program to invoke the new floating-point operations. |
| TestFloat has been successfully compiled with the GNU C Compiler |
| (<CODE>gcc</CODE>) for several platforms. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| <NOBR>Release 3</NOBR> of TestFloat is a complete rewrite relative to |
| <NOBR>Release 2</NOBR> or earlier. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| TestFloat depends on Berkeley SoftFloat, which is a software implementation of |
| binary floating-point that conforms to the IEEE Standard for Floating-Point |
| Arithmetic. |
| SoftFloat is not included with the TestFloat sources. |
| It can be obtained from the Web page |
| <A HREF="http://www.jhauser.us/arithmetic/SoftFloat.html"><CODE>http://www.jhauser.us/arithmetic/SoftFloat.html</CODE></A>. |
| </P> |
| |
| |
| <H2>2. Limitations</H2> |
| |
| <P> |
| TestFloat assumes the computer has an addressable byte size of either 8 or |
| <NOBR>16 bits</NOBR>. |
| (Nearly all computers in use today have <NOBR>8-bit</NOBR> bytes.) |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| TestFloat is written entirely <NOBR>in C</NOBR>. |
| The C compiler used must conform at a minimum to the 1989 ANSI standard for the |
| C language (same as the 1990 ISO standard) and must in addition support basic |
| arithmetic on <NOBR>64-bit</NOBR> integers. |
| Earlier releases of TestFloat were capable of testing <NOBR>32-bit</NOBR> |
| single-precision and <NOBR>64-bit</NOBR> double-precision floating-point |
| without requiring compiler support for <NOBR>64-bit</NOBR> integers, but this |
| option is not supported with <NOBR>Release 3</NOBR>. |
| Since 1999, ISO standards for C have mandated compiler support for |
| <NOBR>64-bit</NOBR> integers. |
| A compiler conforming to the 1999 C Standard or later is recommended but not |
| strictly required. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| <NOBR>C Standard</NOBR> header files <CODE><stdbool.h></CODE> and |
| <CODE><stdint.h></CODE> are required for defining standard Boolean and |
| integer types. |
| If these headers are not supplied with the C compiler, minimal substitutes must |
| be provided. |
| TestFloat’s dependence on these headers is detailed later in |
| <NOBR>section 6.1</NOBR>, <I>Standard Headers <CODE><stdbool.h></CODE> |
| and <CODE><stdint.h></CODE></I>. |
| </P> |
| |
| |
| <H2>3. Acknowledgments and License</H2> |
| |
| <P> |
| The TestFloat package was written by me, <NOBR>John R.</NOBR> Hauser. |
| <NOBR>Release 3</NOBR> of TestFloat is a completely new implementation |
| supplanting earlier releases. |
| This project (<NOBR>Release 3</NOBR> only, not earlier releases) was done in |
| the employ of the University of California, Berkeley, within the Department of |
| Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences, first for the Parallel Computing |
| Laboratory (Par Lab) and then for the ASPIRE Lab. |
| The work was officially overseen by Prof. Krste Asanovic, with funding provided |
| by these sources: |
| <BLOCKQUOTE> |
| <TABLE> |
| <COL> |
| <COL WIDTH=10> |
| <COL> |
| <TR> |
| <TD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR>Par Lab:</NOBR></TD> |
| <TD></TD> |
| <TD> |
| Microsoft (Award #024263), Intel (Award #024894), and U.C. Discovery |
| (Award #DIG07-10227), with additional support from Par Lab affiliates Nokia, |
| NVIDIA, Oracle, and Samsung. |
| </TD> |
| </TR> |
| <TR> |
| <TD VALIGN=TOP><NOBR>ASPIRE Lab:</NOBR></TD> |
| <TD></TD> |
| <TD> |
| DARPA PERFECT program (Award #HR0011-12-2-0016), with additional support from |
| ASPIRE industrial sponsor Intel and ASPIRE affiliates Google, Nokia, NVIDIA, |
| Oracle, and Samsung. |
| </TD> |
| </TR> |
| </TABLE> |
| </BLOCKQUOTE> |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| The following applies to the whole of TestFloat <NOBR>Release 3</NOBR> as well |
| as to each source file individually. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| Copyright 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 The Regents of the University of California |
| (Regents). |
| All Rights Reserved. |
| Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without |
| modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are met: |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright notice, this |
| list of conditions, and the following two paragraphs of disclaimer. |
| Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright notice, this |
| list of conditions, and the following two paragraphs of disclaimer in the |
| documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution. |
| Neither the name of the Regents nor the names of its contributors may be used |
| to endorse or promote products derived from this software without specific |
| prior written permission. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| IN NO EVENT SHALL REGENTS BE LIABLE TO ANY PARTY FOR DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, |
| INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING LOST PROFITS, ARISING OUT OF |
| THE USE OF THIS SOFTWARE AND ITS DOCUMENTATION, EVEN IF REGENTS HAS BEEN |
| ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| REGENTS SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIMS ANY WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, |
| THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. |
| THE SOFTWARE AND ACCOMPANYING DOCUMENTATION, IF ANY, PROVIDED HEREUNDER IS |
| PROVIDED "<NOBR>AS IS</NOBR>". |
| REGENTS HAS NO OBLIGATION TO PROVIDE MAINTENANCE, SUPPORT, UPDATES, |
| ENHANCEMENTS, OR MODIFICATIONS. |
| </P> |
| |
| |
| <H2>4. TestFloat Package Directory Structure</H2> |
| |
| <P> |
| Because TestFloat is targeted to multiple platforms, its source code is |
| slightly scattered between target-specific and target-independent directories |
| and files. |
| The supplied directory structure is as follows: |
| <BLOCKQUOTE> |
| <PRE> |
| doc |
| source |
| subj-C |
| build |
| template |
| Linux-386-GCC |
| Linux-386-SSE2-GCC |
| Linux-x86_64-GCC |
| Win32-MinGW |
| Win32-SSE2-MinGW |
| Win64-MinGW-w64 |
| </PRE> |
| </BLOCKQUOTE> |
| The majority of the TestFloat sources are provided in the <CODE>source</CODE> |
| directory. |
| The <NOBR><CODE>subj-C</CODE></NOBR> subdirectory contains the sources that |
| configure the all-in-one <CODE>testfloat</CODE> program to test the C |
| compiler’s implementation of the standard C types <CODE>float</CODE>, |
| <CODE>double</CODE>, and possibly <CODE>long</CODE> <CODE>double</CODE>. |
| The ‘<CODE>subj</CODE>’ in <NOBR><CODE>subj-C</CODE></NOBR> is an |
| abbreviation of <I>subject</I>, referring to the floating-point that is the |
| subject of the test. |
| If <CODE>testfloat</CODE> is retargeted to test other floating-point |
| implementations, the corresponding source files would be expected to be in |
| other subdirectories alongside <NOBR><CODE>subj-C</CODE></NOBR>, with names of |
| the form <NOBR><CODE>subj-<target></CODE></NOBR>. |
| More about retargeting <CODE>testfloat</CODE> is found in |
| <NOBR>section 6.4</NOBR>, <I>Specializing the <CODE>testfloat</CODE> |
| Program</I>. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| The <CODE>build</CODE> directory is intended to contain a subdirectory for each |
| target platform for which builds of the TestFloat programs may be created. |
| For each build target, the target’s subdirectory is where all derived |
| object files and the completed TestFloat executables are created. |
| The <CODE>template</CODE> subdirectory is not an actual build target but |
| contains sample files for creating new target directories. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| Ignoring the <CODE>template</CODE> directory, the supplied target directories |
| are intended to follow a naming system of |
| <NOBR><CODE><execution-environment>-<compiler></CODE></NOBR>. |
| For the example targets, |
| <NOBR><CODE><execution-environment></CODE></NOBR> is |
| <NOBR><CODE>Linux-386</CODE></NOBR>, <NOBR><CODE>Linux-386-SSE2</CODE></NOBR>, |
| <NOBR><CODE>Linux-x86_64</CODE></NOBR>, <CODE>Win32</CODE>, |
| <NOBR><CODE>Win32-SSE2</CODE></NOBR>, or <CODE>Win64</CODE>, and |
| <NOBR><CODE><compiler></CODE></NOBR> is <CODE>GCC</CODE>, |
| <CODE>MinGW</CODE>, or <NOBR><CODE>MinGW-w64</CODE></NOBR>. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| As supplied, each target directory contains two files: |
| <BLOCKQUOTE> |
| <PRE> |
| Makefile |
| platform.h |
| </PRE> |
| </BLOCKQUOTE> |
| The provided <CODE>Makefile</CODE> is written for GNU <CODE>make</CODE>. |
| A build of TestFloat for the specific target is begun by executing the |
| <CODE>make</CODE> command with the target directory as the current directory. |
| A completely different build tool can be used if an appropriate |
| <CODE>Makefile</CODE> equivalent is created. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| The <CODE>platform.h</CODE> header file exists to provide a location for |
| additional C declarations specific to the build target. |
| Every C source file of TestFloat contains a <CODE>#include</CODE> for |
| <CODE>platform.h</CODE>. |
| In many cases, the contents of <CODE>platform.h</CODE> can be as simple as one |
| or two lines of code. |
| If the target’s compiler or library has bugs or other shortcomings, |
| workarounds for these issues may be possible with target-specific declarations |
| in <CODE>platform.h</CODE>, without the need to modify the main TestFloat |
| sources. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| It may not be necessary to build all of the TestFloat programs. |
| For testing a floating-point implementation, typically |
| <CODE>testfloat_gen</CODE> and <CODE>testfloat</CODE> will not both be used, |
| and <CODE>testfloat_ver</CODE> may not be needed either. |
| The Makefile (or equivalent) can be modified not to create unneeded programs. |
| This may be especially relevant for the all-in-one test program |
| <CODE>testfloat</CODE>, which might not build without special attention. |
| </P> |
| |
| |
| <H2>5. Dependence on Berkeley SoftFloat</H2> |
| |
| <P> |
| In addition to the distributed sources, TestFloat depends on the existence of a |
| compatible Berkeley SoftFloat library and the corresponding header file |
| <CODE>softfloat.h</CODE>. |
| As mentioned earlier, SoftFloat is a separate package available at Web page |
| <A HREF="http://www.jhauser.us/arithmetic/SoftFloat.html"><CODE>http://www.jhauser.us/arithmetic/SoftFloat.html</CODE></A>. |
| The SoftFloat library must be compiled before the TestFloat programs can be |
| built. |
| In the example Makefiles, the locations of the SoftFloat header files and |
| pre-compiled library are specified by these macros: |
| <BLOCKQUOTE> |
| <DL> |
| <DT><CODE>SOFTFLOAT_INCLUDE_DIR</CODE> |
| <DD> |
| The path of the directory containing <CODE>softfloat.h</CODE>, as well as other |
| nonstandard header files referenced by <CODE>softfloat.h</CODE>, if any. |
| <DT><CODE>SOFTFLOAT_H</CODE> |
| <DD> |
| A list of the full paths of all SoftFloat header files needed by SoftFloat |
| clients. This list must include <CODE>softfloat.h</CODE> and may also include |
| other header files referenced by <CODE>softfloat.h</CODE>, such as |
| <CODE>softfloat_types.h</CODE>. |
| This macro is used only to establish build dependencies between the SoftFloat |
| header files and TestFloat’s source files, in case the SoftFloat header |
| files are changed. |
| <DT><CODE>SOFTFLOAT_LIB</CODE> |
| <DD> |
| The full path of the compiled SoftFloat library (usually |
| <CODE>softfloat.a</CODE> or <CODE>libsoftfloat.a</CODE>). |
| </DL> |
| </BLOCKQUOTE> |
| </P> |
| |
| |
| <H2>6. Issues for Porting TestFloat to a New Target</H2> |
| |
| <H3>6.1. Standard Headers <CODE><stdbool.h></CODE> and <CODE><stdint.h></CODE></H3> |
| |
| <P> |
| The TestFloat sources make use of standard headers |
| <CODE><stdbool.h></CODE> and <CODE><stdint.h></CODE>, which have |
| been part of the ISO C Standard Library since 1999. |
| With any recent compiler, these standard headers are likely to be supported, |
| even if the compiler does not claim complete conformance to the latest ISO C |
| Standard. |
| For older or nonstandard compilers, substitutes for |
| <CODE><stdbool.h></CODE> and <CODE><stdint.h></CODE> may need to be |
| created. |
| TestFloat depends on these names from <CODE><stdbool.h></CODE>: |
| <BLOCKQUOTE> |
| <PRE> |
| bool |
| true |
| false |
| </PRE> |
| </BLOCKQUOTE> |
| and on these names from <CODE><stdint.h></CODE>: |
| <BLOCKQUOTE> |
| <PRE> |
| uint16_t |
| uint32_t |
| uint64_t |
| int32_t |
| int64_t |
| UINT64_C |
| INT64_C |
| uint_least8_t |
| uint_fast8_t |
| uint_fast16_t |
| uint_fast32_t |
| uint_fast64_t |
| int_fast16_t |
| int_fast32_t |
| int_fast64_t |
| </PRE> |
| </BLOCKQUOTE> |
| </P> |
| |
| |
| <H3>6.2. Standard Header <CODE><fenv.h></CODE></H3> |
| |
| <P> |
| Because the supplied all-in-one <CODE>testfloat</CODE> program tests the |
| floating-point operations of the C language, it uses the facilities provided by |
| standard C header <CODE><fenv.h></CODE> to access the floating-point |
| environment of C, in particular to set the rounding mode and to access the |
| floating-point exception flags. |
| Like <CODE><stdbool.h></CODE> and <CODE><stdint.h></CODE>, |
| <CODE><fenv.h></CODE> has been part of the ISO C Standard Library since |
| 1999, but older or nonstandard C compilers may not support it. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| Some form of standard header <CODE><fenv.h></CODE> is needed only if the |
| <CODE>testfloat</CODE> program is wanted <EM>and</EM> the program will not be |
| retargeted to invoke a floating-point implementation in a way that bypasses the |
| standard C environment. |
| Typically, if <CODE>testfloat</CODE> is wanted, it will be retargeted to invoke |
| a new floating-point implementation directly, making |
| <CODE><fenv.h></CODE> irrelevant. |
| For more about retargeting <CODE>testfloat</CODE>, see <NOBR>section 6.4</NOBR> |
| below, <I>Specializing the <CODE>testfloat</CODE> Program</I>. |
| </P> |
| |
| |
| <H3>6.3. Macros for Build Options</H3> |
| |
| <P> |
| The TestFloat source files are affected by a few C preprocessor macros: |
| <BLOCKQUOTE> |
| <DL> |
| <DT><CODE>LITTLEENDIAN</CODE> |
| <DD> |
| Must be defined for little-endian machines; |
| must not be defined for big-endian machines. |
| <DT><CODE>EXTFLOAT80</CODE> |
| <DD> |
| Must be defined if the TestFloat programs are to support the |
| <NOBR>80-bit</NOBR> double-extended-precision floating-point format. |
| <DT><CODE>FLOAT128</CODE> |
| <DD> |
| Must be defined if the TestFloat programs are to support the |
| <NOBR>128-bit</NOBR> quadruple-precision floating-point format. |
| </DL> |
| </BLOCKQUOTE> |
| Following the usual custom <NOBR>for C</NOBR>, the content of a macro’s |
| definition is irrelevant; |
| what matters is a macro’s effect on <CODE>#ifdef</CODE> directives. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| It is recommended that any definition of macro <CODE>LITTLEENDIAN</CODE> be |
| made in a build target’s <CODE>platform.h</CODE> header file, because |
| endianness is expected to be determined inflexibly by the target machine. |
| On the other hand, the <CODE>EXTFLOAT80</CODE> and <CODE>FLOAT128</CODE> macros |
| are not dictated by the target and hence might be better located in the |
| target’s Makefile (or its equivalent). |
| </P> |
| |
| |
| <H3>6.4. Specializing the <CODE>testfloat</CODE> Program</H3> |
| |
| <P> |
| The supplied sources for the all-in-one <CODE>testfloat</CODE> program cause |
| <CODE>testfloat</CODE> to test the C compiler’s <CODE>float</CODE> and |
| <CODE>double</CODE> types for C operations <CODE>+</CODE>, <CODE>-</CODE>, |
| <CODE>*</CODE>, <CODE>/</CODE>, etc. |
| The supplied version is also capable of testing C type <CODE>long</CODE> |
| <CODE>double</CODE> if the sources are compiled with one of these macros |
| defined: |
| <BLOCKQUOTE> |
| <DL> |
| <DT><CODE>LONG_DOUBLE_IS_EXTFLOAT80</CODE> |
| <DD> |
| Indicates that type <CODE>long</CODE> <CODE>double</CODE> is |
| <NOBR>80-bit</NOBR> double-extended-precision floating-point. |
| <DT><CODE>LONG_DOUBLE_IS_FLOAT128</CODE> |
| <DD> |
| Indicates that type <CODE>long</CODE> <CODE>double</CODE> is |
| <NOBR>128-bit</NOBR> quadruple-precision floating-point. |
| </DL> |
| </BLOCKQUOTE> |
| By default, <CODE>testfloat</CODE> assumes that only the IEEE Standard’s |
| original four rounding modes (<CODE>near_even</CODE>, <CODE>minMag</CODE>, |
| <CODE>min</CODE>, and <CODE>max</CODE>) are supported by the floating-point |
| being tested. |
| If the fifth rounding mode, <CODE>near_maxMag</CODE>, is also supported, an |
| additional macro can be defined: |
| <BLOCKQUOTE> |
| <DL> |
| <DT><CODE>SUBJFLOAT_ROUND_NEAR_MAXMAG</CODE> |
| <DD> |
| Indicates that the subject floating-point supports rounding mode |
| <CODE>near_maxMag</CODE> (nearest/away). |
| </DL> |
| </BLOCKQUOTE> |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| To test a new and/or different implementation of floating-point, |
| <CODE>testfloat</CODE> must normally be retargeted to invoke this other |
| floating-point instead of C’s floating-point. |
| Two source files define the functions that <CODE>testfloat</CODE> uses to |
| invoke floating-point operations for testing: |
| <BLOCKQUOTE> |
| <PRE> |
| subjfloat_config.h |
| subjfloat.c |
| </PRE> |
| </BLOCKQUOTE> |
| For the default target of testing C’s floating-point, these files are |
| contained in directory <NOBR><CODE>source/subj-C</CODE></NOBR> as discussed |
| earlier. |
| For a different subject floating-point, it is recommended that appropriate |
| versions of <CODE>subjfloat_config.h</CODE> and <CODE>subjfloat.c</CODE> be |
| stored in a sibling <NOBR><CODE>subj-<target></CODE></NOBR> directory, |
| where <CODE><target></CODE> names the particular target. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| Header file <CODE>subjfloat_config.h</CODE> defines a macro of the form |
| <CODE>SUBJ_*</CODE> for each subject function supported. |
| For example, if function <CODE>subj_f32_add</CODE> exists to perform |
| <NOBR>32-bit</NOBR> floating-point addition, then |
| <CODE>subjfloat_config.h</CODE> should have a definition for macro |
| <CODE>SUBJ_F32_ADD</CODE>. |
| The actual function <CODE>subj_f32_add</CODE> is expected to be defined in |
| <CODE>subjfloat.c</CODE>, along with all other subject functions. |
| A common header file, <CODE>subjfloat.h</CODE>, (not target-specific) provides |
| prototype declarations for all possible subject functions that |
| <CODE>testfloat</CODE> may be compiled to test, whether actually existing or |
| not. |
| (There is no penalty for the header to declare prototypes of nonexistent |
| functions that are never called.) |
| For a specific build of <CODE>testfloat</CODE>, the <CODE>-list</CODE> option |
| will list all subject functions that the <CODE>testfloat</CODE> program is able |
| to invoke and thus test. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| In the source code as supplied, macros <CODE>LONG_DOUBLE_IS_EXTFLOAT80</CODE> |
| and <CODE>LONG_DOUBLE_IS_FLOAT128</CODE> affect only the target-specific source |
| files in <NOBR><CODE>source/subj-C</CODE></NOBR>, so these macros can be |
| ignored for any other subject floating-point that does not depend on them. |
| On the other hand, macro <CODE>SUBJFLOAT_ROUND_NEAR_MAXMAG</CODE> always |
| determines whether the <CODE>testfloat</CODE> program attempts to test rounding |
| mode <CODE>near_maxMag</CODE>, regardless of the subject floating-point. |
| </P> |
| |
| |
| <H3>6.5. Improving the Random Number Functions</H3> |
| |
| <P> |
| If you are serious about using TestFloat for testing floating-point, you should |
| consider replacing the random number functions in <CODE>random.c</CODE>. |
| The supplied random number functions are built on top of the standard C |
| <CODE>rand</CODE> function. |
| Because function <CODE>rand</CODE> is rather poor on some systems, the |
| functions in <CODE>random.c</CODE> assume very little about the quality of |
| <CODE>rand</CODE>. |
| As a result, <CODE>rand</CODE> is called more frequently than it might need to |
| be, shortening the time before random number sequences repeat, and possibly |
| wasting time as well. |
| If <CODE>rand</CODE> is better on a given target platform, or if another, |
| better random number generator is available (such as <CODE>rand48</CODE> on |
| UNIX-derived systems), TestFloat can be improved by overriding the given |
| <CODE>random.c</CODE> with a target-specific one. |
| </P> |
| |
| <P> |
| Rather than modifying the supplied file <CODE>random.c</CODE>, it is |
| recommended instead that a new, alternate file be created and the |
| target’s Makefile be modified to refer to that alternate file in place of |
| <CODE>random.c</CODE>. |
| </P> |
| |
| |
| <H2>7. Contact Information</H2> |
| |
| <P> |
| At the time of this writing, the most up-to-date information about TestFloat |
| and the latest release can be found at the Web page |
| <A HREF="http://www.jhauser.us/arithmetic/TestFloat.html"><CODE>http://www.jhauser.us/arithmetic/TestFloat.html</CODE></A>. |
| </P> |
| |
| |
| </BODY> |
| |
