Re: PG 12 draft release notes - Mailing list pgsql-hackers

From Andres Freund
Subject Re: PG 12 draft release notes
Date
Msg-id 20190520225903.jrdv3p3qmyseczit@alap3.anarazel.de
Whole thread Raw
In response to Re: PG 12 draft release notes  (Andrew Gierth <andrew@tao11.riddles.org.uk>)
Responses Re: PG 12 draft release notes  (Andrew Gierth <andrew@tao11.riddles.org.uk>)
List pgsql-hackers
Hi,

On 2019-05-20 23:56:33 +0100, Andrew Gierth wrote:
> [ To: header pruned ]
> 
> >>>>> "Andres" == Andres Freund <andres@anarazel.de> writes:
> 
>  Andres>      <para>
>  Andres>       Avoid performing unnecessary rounding of <link
>  Andres>       linkend="datatype-float"><type>REAL</type></link> and <type>DOUBLE
>  Andres>       PRECISION</type> values (Andrew Gierth)
>  Andres>      </para>
> 
>  Andres>      <para>
>  Andres>       This dramatically speeds up processing of floating-point
>  Andres>       values but causes additional trailing digits to
>  Andres>       potentially be displayed.  Users wishing to have output
>  Andres>       that is rounded to match the previous behavior can set <link
>  Andres>       linkend="guc-extra-float-digits"><literal>extra_float_digits=0</literal></link>,
>  Andres>       which is no longer the default.
>  Andres>      </para>
>  Andres>     </listitem>
> 
>  Andres> Isn't it exactly the *other* way round? *Previously* we'd
>  Andres> output additional trailing digits. The new algorithm instead
>  Andres> will instead have *exactly* the required number of digits?
> 
> Yeah, this wording is not right. But your description is also wrong.
> 
> Previously we output values rounded to 6+d or 15+d digits where
> d=extra_float_digits, with d=0 being the default. Only clients that
> wanted exact results would set that to 3 instead.
> 
> Now we output the minimum digits to get an exact result, which is
> usually 8 or 17 digits (sometimes less depending on the value, or 9 for
> the relatively rare float4 values that need it) for any
> extra_float_digits value > 0. Clients that set d=3 will therefore
> usually get one less digit than before, and the value they get will
> usually be slightly different (i.e. not the same value that they would
> have seen with d=2), but it should give them the same binary value after
> going through strtod() or strtof().

Any chance for you to propose a text?

Greetings,

Andres Freund



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