[Coco] A Basic09 Query

[Bill Gunshannon]

On 8/27/19 9:16 AM, Wayne Campbell wrote:
> I had to consult the cocopedia page I created years ago,
> http://www.cocopedia.com/wiki/index.php/The_Structure_of_I-Code. There are
> 2 functions for square root and 2 functions for square. SQR  (token AB)
> becomes SQRT (token AA) in packed i-code, and I assume that was just a
> convenience so you could type 3 characters instead of 4. SQ has 2 tokens,
> B2 for byte/integer calculations and B3 for real calculations.
> 
> This information was accumulated by much testing by writing code, packing
> it, and decoding the packed i-code to get the tokens.
> 
> You are correct that the square functions are really overkill since it is a
> simple multiplication. The square root functions, imo, are not so simple
> and I can see why it was included.

I didn't mean  to mention the square root because it is complex
and a function makes sense.  I just misread and thought it was
two SQUARE Functions rather than two SQUARE ROOT Functions.
Sorry about that. I just wondered what the rationale was for the others.

> 
> Maybe someone here knows why they included so much in Basic09. As for PI, I
> don't know why they would bother to calculate it when they could easily
> just make it a constant value and save space. 

I doubt they actually calculate.  The function probably only
contains:
Function Pi:
   begin
      Pi := 3.14159265;
   end;

But, as simple as that is it would include the underlying complexity
of a function call.


>                                                Basic09 is already as large
> as a program can get and still run in a 64k space. I think Curtis may be
> able to say whether it's a calculation or not.

I doubt it is.

As for SQ, wouldn't a PowrOf function have been a better answer?

bill