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bc(C)


bc -- invoke a calculator

Syntax

bc [ -cl ] [ file ... ]

Description

bc is an interactive processor for a language that resembles C. It provides unlimited precision arithmetic and displays the results within a configurable number of decimal places, to a maximum of 99. It takes input from any files given, then reads the standard input.

bc understands the following command line options:


-c
Generate commands suitable for dc(C) on the standard output; do not send them to dc. This option is intended as a tool for debugging. In previous releases, -d was accepted as an equivalent to -c; -d is no longer supported.

-l
Load the arbitrary precision math library.
bc acts as a preprocessor for dc, a calculator which operates on Reverse Polish Notation input. (bc is easier to use than dc.) Although substantial programs can be written with bc, it is often used as an interactive tool for performing calculator-like computations. The language supports a complete set of control structures and functions that can be defined and saved for later execution. The syntax of bc has been deliberately selected to agree with the C language. A small collection of library functions is also available, including sin, cos, arctan, log, exponential, and Bessel functions of integer order.

Common uses for bc are:

There is a scaling provision that permits the use of decimal point notation. Provision is made for input and output in bases other than decimal. Numbers can be converted from decimal to octal simply by setting the output base equal to 8.

The actual limit on the number of digits that can be handled depends on the amount of storage available on the machine, so manipulation of numbers with many hundreds of digits is possible.

Tasks

This section describes how to perform common bc tasks.

Computing with integers

The simplest kind of statement is an arithmetic expression on a line by itself. For instance, the expression:

142857 + 285714

when evaluated, responds immediately with the line:

428571

Other operators can also be used. The complete list includes:

+ - * / % ^

They indicate addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, modulo (remaindering), and exponentiation, respectively. Division of integers produces an integer result truncated toward zero. Division by zero produces an error message.

Any term in an expression can be prefixed with a minus sign to indicate that it is to be negated (this is the ``unary'' minus sign). For example, the expression:

7 + -3

is interpreted to mean that -3 is to be added to 7.

More complex expressions with several operators and with parentheses are interpreted just as in FORTRAN, with exponentiation (^) performed first, then multiplication (*), division (/), modulo (%), and finally, addition (+), and subtraction (-). The contents of parentheses are evaluated before expressions outside the parentheses. All of the above operations are performed from left to right, except exponentiation, which is performed from right to left.

Thus the following two expressions:

a^b^c and a^(b^c)

are equivalent, as are the two expressions:

a*b*c and (a*b)*c

bc shares with FORTRAN and C the convention that a/b*c is equivalent to (a/b)*c.

Internal storage registers to hold numbers have single lowercase letter names. The value of an expression can be assigned to a register in the usual way, thus the statement:

x = x + 3

has the effect of increasing by 3 the value of the contents of the register named x. When, as in this case, the outermost operator is the assignment operator (=), then the assignment is performed but the result is not printed. There are 26 available named storage registers, one for each letter of the alphabet.

There is also a built-in square root function whose result is truncated to an integer (see also ``Scaling quantities'', below). For example, the lines:

x = sqrt(191)

x

produce the printed result:

   13

Specifying input and output bases

There are special internal quantities in bc, called ibase (or base) and obase. base and ibase can be used interchangeably. ibase is initially set to 10, and determines the base used for interpreting numbers that are read in to bc. For example, the lines:

ibase = 8
11

produce the output line:

   9
and set up bc to do octal to decimal conversions. Beware of trying to change the input base back to decimal by entering:

ibase = 10

Because the number 10 is interpreted as octal, this statement has no effect. For those who deal in hexadecimal notation, the uppercase characters A-F are permitted in numbers (no matter what base is in effect) and are interpreted as digits having values 10-15, respectively. These characters must be uppercase and not lowercase.

The statement:

ibase = A

changes back to decimal input base no matter what the current input base is. Negative and large positive input bases are permitted; however no mechanism has been provided for the input of arbitrary numbers in bases less than 1 and greater than 16.

obase is used as the base for output numbers. The value of obase is initially set to a decimal 10. The lines:

obase = 16
1000

produce the output line:

   3E8
This is interpreted as a three-digit hexadecimal number. Very large output bases are permitted. For example, large numbers can be output in groups of five digits by setting obase to 100000. Even strange output bases, such as negative bases, and 1 and 0, are handled correctly.

Very large numbers are split across lines with seventy characters per line. A split line that continues on the next line ends with a backslash (\). Decimal output conversion is fast, but output of very large numbers (that is, more than 100 digits) with other bases is rather slow.

The values of ibase and obase do not affect the course of internal computation or the evaluation of expressions; they only affect input and output conversion.

Scaling quantities

A special internal quantity called scale is used to determine the scale of calculated quantities. Numbers can have up to 99 decimal digits after the decimal point. This fractional part is retained in further computations. We refer to the number of digits after the decimal point of a number as its scale.

When two scaled numbers are combined by means of one of the arithmetic operations, the result has a scale determined by the following rules:


Addition, subtraction
The scale of the result is the larger of the scales of the two operands. There is never any truncation of the result.

Multiplication
The scale of the result is never less than the maximum of the two scales of the operands, and never more than the sum of the scales of the operands, and subject to those two restrictions, the scale of the result is set equal to the contents of the internal quantity, scale.

Division
The scale of a quotient is the contents of the internal quantity, scale.

Modulo
The scale of a remainder is the sum of the scales of the quotient and the divisor.

Exponentiation
The result of an exponentiation is scaled as if the implied multiplications were performed. An exponent must be an integer.

Square Root
The scale of a square root is set to the maximum of the scale of the argument and the contents of scale.
All of the internal operations are actually carried out in terms of integers, with digits being discarded when necessary. In every case where digits are discarded truncation is performed without rounding.

The contents of scale must be no greater than 99 and no less than 0. It is initially set to 0.

The internal quantities scale, ibase, and base can be used in expressions just like other variables. The line:


scale = scale + 1

increases the value of scale by 1, and the line:

scale

causes the current value of scale to be printed.

The value of scale retains its meaning as a number of decimal digits to be retained in internal computation even when ibase or obase are not equal to 10. The internal computations (which are still conducted in decimal, regardless of the bases) are performed to the specified number of decimal digits, never hexadecimal, octal or any other kind of digits.

Using functions

The name of a function is a single lowercase letter. Function names are permitted to use the same letters as simple variable names. Twenty-six different defined functions are permitted in addition to the twenty-six variable names.

The line:

define a(x){

begins the definition of a function with one argument. This line must be followed by one or more statements, which make up the body of the function, ending with a right brace (}). Return of control from a function occurs when a return statement is executed or when the end of the function is reached.

The return statement can take either of the two forms:

return

return(x)

In the first case, the returned value of the function is 0; in the second, it is the value of the expression in parentheses.

Variables used in functions can be declared as automatic by a statement of the form:

auto x,y,z

There can be only one auto statement in a function and it must be the first statement in the definition. These automatic variables are allocated space and initialized to zero on entry to the function and thrown away on return. The values of any variables with the same names outside the function are not disturbed. Functions can be called recursively and the automatic variables at each call level are protected. The parameters named in a function definition are treated in the same way as the automatic variables of that function, with the single exception that they are given a value on entry to the function.
An example of a function definition follows:

   define a(x,y){
   	auto z
   	z = x*y
   	return(z)
   }
The value of this function, when called, is the product of its two arguments.

A function is called by the appearance of its name, followed by a string of arguments enclosed in parentheses and separated by commas. The result is unpredictable if the wrong number of arguments is used.

If the function do_something is defined as shown above, then the line:

do_something(7,3.14)

prints the result:

   21.98
Similarly, the line:

x = do_something(do_something(3,4),5)

causes the value of x to become 60.

Functions without arguments can still perform useful operations or return useful results. Such functions are defined and called using parentheses with nothing between them. For example:

b ()

calls the function named b.

Using subscripted variables

A single lowercase letter variable name followed by an expression in brackets is called a subscripted variable and indicates an array element. The variable name is the name of the array and the expression in brackets is called the subscript. Only one-dimensional arrays are permitted in bc. The names of arrays are permitted to collide with the names of simple variables and function names. Any fractional part of a subscript is discarded before use. Subscripts must be greater than or equal to 0 and less than or equal to 2047.

Subscripted variables can be freely used in expressions, function calls and return statements.

An array name can be used as an argument to a function, as in:

f(a[])

Array names can also be declared as automatic in a function definition with the use of empty brackets:

   define f(a[ ])
   auto a[ ]
When an array name is so used, the entire contents of the array are copied for the use of the function, then thrown away on exit from the function. Array names that refer to whole arrays cannot be used in any other context.

Using control statements: if, while and for

The if, while, and for statements are used to alter the flow within programs or to cause iteration. The range of each of these statements is a following statement or compound statement consisting of a collection of statements enclosed in braces. They are written as follows:

if (relation) statement
while (relation) statement
for (expression1; relation; expression2statement

A relation in one of the control statements is an expression of the form:

expression1 rel-op expression2

where the two expressions are related by one of the six relational operators:

< > <= >= == !=

Note that a double equal sign (==) stands for ``equal to'' and an exclamation-equal sign (!=) stands for ``not equal to''. The meaning of the remaining relational operators is their normal arithmetic and logical meaning.

Beware of using a single equal sign (=) instead of the double equal sign (==) in a relational. Both of these symbols are legal, so no diagnostic message is produced. However, the operation will not perform the intended comparison.

The if statement causes execution of its range if and only if the relation is true. Then control passes to the next statement in the sequence.

The while statement causes repeated execution of its range as long as the relation is true. The relation is tested before each execution of its range and if the relation is false, control passes to the next statement beyond the range of the while statement.

The for statement begins by executing expression1. Then the relation is tested and, if true, the statements in the range of the for statement are executed. Then expression2 is executed. The relation is tested, and so on. The typical use of the for statement is for a controlled iteration, as in the statement:

for (i=1; i<=10; i=i+1)

which will print the integers 1 to 10.

The following are some examples of the use of the control statements:

   define f(n){
   	auto i, x
   	x=1
   	for(i=1; i<=n; i=i+1) x=x*i
   	return(x)
   }
The line:
   f(a)
prints a factorial if a is a positive integer.

The following is the definition of a function that computes values of the binomial coefficient (m and n are assumed to be positive integers):

   define b(n,m){
   	auto x, j
   	x=1
   	for(j=1; j<=m; j=j+1) x=x*(n-j+1)/j
   	return(x)
   }

The following function computes values of the exponential function by summing the appropriate series without regard to possible truncation errors:

   scale = 20
   define e(x){
   	auto a, b, c, d, n
   	a = 1
   	b = 1
   	c = 1
   	d = 0
   	n = 1
   	while(1==1) {
   		a = a*x
   		b = b*n
   		c = c + a/b
   		n = n + 1
   		if(c==d) return(c)
   		d = c
   	}
   }

Using other language features

Language features which are less frequently used but still essential to know about are listed below.
The following constructions work in bc in exactly the same manner as they do in the C language:

Construction Equivalent Notes
x=y=z x =(y=z)
x += y x = x+y
x -= y x = x-y
x *= y x = x*y
x /= y x = x/y
x %= y x = x%y
x ^= y x = x^y
x =+ y x = x+y obsolete
x =- y x = x-y obsolete
x =* y x = x*y obsolete
x =/ y x = x/y obsolete
x =% y x = x%y obsolete
x =^ y x = x^y obsolete
x++ (x=x+1)-1 result is value of x before incrementing
x-- (x=x-1)+1 result is value of x before decrementing
++x x = x+1 result is value of x after incrementing
--x x = x-1 result is value of x after decrementing

 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |Construction | Equivalent | Notes                                    |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x=y=z        | x =(y=z)   |                                          |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x += y       | x = x+y    |                                          |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x -= y       | x = x-y    |                                          |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x *= y       | x = x*y    |                                          |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x /= y       | x = x/y    |                                          |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x %= y       | x = x%y    |                                          |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x ^= y       | x = x^y    |                                          |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x =+ y       | x = x+y    | obsolete                                 |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x =- y       | x = x-y    | obsolete                                 |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x =* y       | x = x*y    | obsolete                                 |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x =/ y       | x = x/y    | obsolete                                 |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x =% y       | x = x%y    | obsolete                                 |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x =^ y       | x = x^y    | obsolete                                 |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x++          | (x=x+1)-1  | result is value of x before incrementing |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |x--          | (x=x-1)+1  | result is value of x before decrementing |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |++x          | x = x+1    | result is value of x after incrementing  |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
 |--x          | x = x-1    | result is value of x after decrementing  |
 +-------------+------------+------------------------------------------+
Note that some of the constructions above are marked obsolete. Although they are still supported, use of the alternative constructions is recommended.

If one of these constructions is used inadvertently, it is possible for something legal but unexpected to happen. There is a real difference between x=-y and x= -y. The first replaces x by x-y and the second by -y.

Some of these constructions are case-sensitive.

Language reference

This section is a comprehensive reference to the bc language. It contains a more concise description of the features mentioned in earlier sections.

Tokens

Tokens are keywords, identifiers, constants, operators, and separators. Token separators can be blanks, tabs or comments. Newline characters or semicolons separate statements.

Expressions

All expressions can be evaluated to a value. The value of an expression is always printed unless the main operator is an assignment. The precedence of expressions (that is, the order in which they are evaluated) is as follows:

Function calls
Unary operators
Multiplicative operators
Additive operators
Assignment operators
Relational operators

There are several types of expressions:

Function calls

A function call consists of a function name followed by parentheses containing a comma-separated list of expressions, which are the function arguments. The syntax is as follows:

function-name ( [expression [ , expression ... ] ] )

A whole array passed as an argument is specified by the array name followed by empty square brackets. All function arguments are passed by value. As a result, changes made to the formal parameters have no effect on the actual arguments. If the function terminates by executing a return statement, the value of the function is the value of the expression in the parentheses of the return statement, or 0 if no expression is provided or if there is no return statement. Three built-in functions are listed below:


sqrt(expr)
The result is the square root of the expression and is truncated in the least significant decimal place. The scale of the result is the scale of the expression or the value of scale, whichever is larger.

length(expr)
The result is the total number of significant decimal digits in the expression. The scale of the result is 0.

scale(expr)
The result is the scale of the expression. The scale of the result is 0.

Unary operators

The unary operators bind right to left.

-expr
The result is the negative of the expression.

++named_expr
The named expression is incremented by 1. The result is the value of the named expression after incrementing.

--named_expr
The named expression is decremented by 1. The result is the value of the named expression after decrementing.

named_expr++
The named expression is incremented by 1. The result is the value of the named expression before incrementing.

named_expr--
The named expression is decremented by 1. The result is the value of the named expression before decrementing.

Multiplicative operators

The multiplicative operators (*, /, and %) bind from left to right.

expr*expr
The result is the product of the two expressions. If a and b are the scales of the two expressions, then the scale of the result is:

min(a+b,max(scale,a,b))


expr/expr
The result is the quotient of the two expressions. The scale of the result is the value of scale.

expr%expr
The modulo operator (%) produces the remainder of the division of the two expressions. More precisely, a%b is a-a/b*b. The scale of the result is the sum of the scale of the divisor and the value of scale.

expr^expr
The exponentiation operator binds right to left. The result is the first expression raised to the power of the second expression. The second expression must be an integer. If a is the scale of the left expression and b is the value of the right expression, then the scale of the result is:

for b >= 0:
min(a*b,max(scale,a))

for b < 0:
scale

Additive operators

The additive operators bind left to right.

expr+expr
The result is the sum of the two expressions. The scale of the result is the maximum of the scales of the expressions.

expr-expr
The result is the difference of the two expressions. The scale of the result is the maximum of the scales of the expressions.

Assignment operators

The assignment operators listed below assign values to the named expression on the left side. The operators bind right to left.

named_expr=expr
This expression results in assigning the value of the expression on the right to the named expression on the left.

named_expr+=expr
named_expr=+expr (obsolete)
The result of this expression is equivalent to:

named_expr=named_expr+expr.


named_expr-=expr
named_expr=-expr (obsolete)
The result of this expression is equivalent to:

named_expr=named_expr-expr.


named_expr*=expr
named_expr=*expr (obsolete)
The result of this expression is equivalent to:

named_expr=named_expr*expr.


named_expr/=expr
named_expr=/expr (obsolete)
The result of this expression is equivalent to:

named_expr=named_expr/expr.


named_expr%=expr
named_expr=%expr (obsolete)
The result of this expression is equivalent to:

named_expr=named_expr%expr.


named_expr^=expr
named_expr=^expr (obsolete)
The result of this expression is equivalent to:

named_expr=named_expr^expr.

Relational operators

Unlike other operators, the relational operators are only valid as the object of an if or while statement, or inside a for statement.

These operators are listed below:

expr < expr
expr > expr
expr <= expr
expr >= expr
expr == expr
expr != expr

Storage classes

There are only two storage classes in bc: global and automatic (local). Only identifiers that are to be local to a function need to be declared with the auto command. The arguments to a function are local to the function. All other identifiers are assumed to be global and available to all functions.

All identifiers, global and local, have initial values of 0. Identifiers declared as auto are allocated on entry to the function and released on returning from the function. They, therefore, do not retain values between function calls. Note that auto arrays are specified by the array namer, followed by empty square brackets.

Automatic variables in bc do not work the same way as in C. On entry to a function, the old values of the names that appear as parameters and as automatic variables are pushed onto a stack. Until return is made from the function, reference to these names is only to the new values.

Statements

Statements must be separated by a semicolon or a newline. Except where altered by control statements, execution is sequential. There are four types of statements: expression statements, compound statements, quoted string statements, and built-in statements. Each kind of statement is discussed below:

Expression statements
When a statement is an expression, unless the main operator is an assignment, the value of the expression is printed, followed by a newline character.

Compound statements
Statements can be grouped together and used when one statement is expected by surrounding them with curly braces ({ and }).

Quoted string statements
For example ``string'' prints the string inside the quotation marks.

Built-in statements
Built-in statements include auto, break, define, for, if, quit, return, and while.
The syntax for each built-in statement is given below:

auto
The auto statement causes the values of the identifiers to be pushed down. The identifiers can be ordinary identifiers or array identifiers. Array identifiers are specified by following the array name by empty square brackets. The auto statement must be the first statement in a function definition. Syntax of the auto statement is:

auto identifier [, identifier]


break
The break statement causes termination of a for or while statement. Syntax for the break statement is:

break


define
The define statement defines a function; parameters to the function can be ordinary identifiers or array names. Array names must be followed by empty square brackets. The syntax of the define statement is:

define ([parameter [ , parameter ...]]) {statements}


for
The for statement is the same as:

first-expression
while ( relation ) {
statement
last-expression
}

All three expressions must be present. Syntax of the for statement is:

for (expression; relation; expression) statement


if
The if statement is executed if the relation is true. The syntax is as follows:

if (relation) statement


quit
The quit statement stops execution of a bc program and returns control to the operating system when it is first encountered. Because it is not treated as an executable statement, it cannot be used in a function definition or in an if, for, or while statement. Note that entering a <Ctrl>d at the keyboard is the same as entering ``quit''. The syntax of the quit statement is as follows:

quit


return
The return statement terminates a function, pops its auto variables off the stack, and specifies the result of the function. The result of the function is the result of the expression in parentheses. The first form is equivalent to ``return(0)''. The syntax of the return statement is as follows:

return(expr)


while
The while statement is executed while the relation is true. The test occurs before each execution of the statement. The syntax of the while statement is as follows:

while (relation) statement

Exit values

bc returns the following values:

0
all input files were processed successfully

>0
an error occurred

Limitations

A for statement must have all three E's.

quit is interpreted when read, not when executed.

Trigonometric values should be given in radians.

Files


/usr/lib/lib.bc
mathematical library

/usr/bin/dc
desk calculator proper

See also

dc(C)

Standards conformance

bc is conformant with:

ISO/IEC DIS 9945-2:1992, Information technology - Portable Operating System Interface (POSIX) - Part 2: Shell and Utilities (IEEE Std 1003.2-1992);
X/Open CAE Specification, Commands and Utilities, Issue 4, 1992.


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