March 5, 2014

Printing Floating-Point Numbers - Part 3: Formatting

We have written an implementation of the Dragon4 algorithm that can be used with both 32-bit and 64-bit floating-point numbers. However, the inputs and output to Dragon4 are not as user friendly as we need. Thus, we're going to create two user facing functions. One will print a supplied 32-bit float to a buffer and the other will print a supplied 64-bit float to a buffer.

This is the third part of a four part series. If you just want to hear about performance and download the code, skip ahead to part four.

License

All code samples are released under the following license.

/******************************************************************************
  Copyright (c) 2014 Ryan Juckett
  http://www.ryanjuckett.com/

  This software is provided 'as-is', without any express or implied
  warranty. In no event will the authors be held liable for any damages
  arising from the use of this software.

  Permission is granted to anyone to use this software for any purpose,
  including commercial applications, and to alter it and redistribute it
  freely, subject to the following restrictions:

  1. The origin of this software must not be misrepresented; you must not
     claim that you wrote the original software. If you use this software
     in a product, an acknowledgment in the product documentation would be
     appreciated but is not required.

  2. Altered source versions must be plainly marked as such, and must not be
     misrepresented as being the original software.

  3. This notice may not be removed or altered from any source
     distribution.
******************************************************************************/

Code Integration

In order to integrate this into your codebase, see part 2 for definitions of the assertion macro and basic types.

Interface

This is the high-level interface to the formatted floating-point printing functions. As with most implementations, two formatting modes are supported to allow for positional and scientific notation. Unlike other implementations, there is a version optimized for 32-bit numbers in addition to the standard 64-bit version. These functions can also intelligently manage the output string overflowing the size of the buffer.

//******************************************************************************
//******************************************************************************
enum tPrintFloatFormat
{
    PrintFloatFormat_Positional,	// [-]ddddd.dddd
    PrintFloatFormat_Scientific,	// [-]d.dddde[sign]ddd
};

//******************************************************************************
// Print a 32-bit floating-point number as a decimal string.
// The output string is always NUL terminated and the string length (not
// including the NUL) is returned.
//******************************************************************************
tU32 PrintFloat32
(
    tC8 *				pOutBuffer,		// buffer to output into
    tU32				bufferSize,		// size of pOutBuffer
    tF32				value,			// value to print
    tPrintFloatFormat	format,			// format to print with
    tS32				precision		// If negative, the minimum number of digits to represent a
                                        // unique 32-bit floating point value is output. Otherwise,
                                        // this is the number of digits to print past the decimal point.
);

//******************************************************************************
// Print a 64-bit floating-point number as a decimal string.
// The output string is always NUL terminated and the string length (not
// including the NUL) is returned.
//******************************************************************************
tU32 PrintFloat64
(
    tC8 *				pOutBuffer,		// buffer to output into
    tU32				bufferSize,		// size of pOutBuffer
    tF64				value,			// value to print
    tPrintFloatFormat	format,			// format to print with
    tS32				precision		// If negative, the minimum number of digits to represent a
                                        // unique 64-bit floating point value is output. Otherwise,
                                        // this is the number of digits to print past the decimal point.
);

Integer Math

We reuse the 32-bit LogBase2 function from part 2 and add the following 64-bit overload.

//******************************************************************************
// Get the log base 2 of a 64-bit unsigned integer.
//******************************************************************************
inline tU32 LogBase2( tU64 val )
{
    tU64 temp;

    temp = val >> 32;
    if (temp)
        return 32 + LogBase2((tU32)temp);

    return LogBase2((tU32)val);
}

Floating-Point to Integer Conversion

In order to safely decompose a floating-point number into its integer parts without aliasing problems, we use a union.

//******************************************************************************\
// Helper union to decompose a 32-bit IEEE float.
// sign:      1 bit
// exponent:  8 bits
// mantissa: 23 bits
//******************************************************************************
union tFloatUnion32
{
	tB   IsNegative() const  { return (m_integer >> 31) != 0; }
	tU32 GetExponent() const { return (m_integer >> 23) & 0xFF; }
	tU32 GetMantissa() const { return m_integer & 0x7FFFFF; }

	tF32 m_floatingPoint;
	tU32 m_integer;
};

//******************************************************************************
// Helper union to decompose a 64-bit IEEE float.
// sign:      1 bit
// exponent: 11 bits
// mantissa: 52 bits
//******************************************************************************
union tFloatUnion64
{
	tB   IsNegative() const  { return (m_integer >> 63) != 0; }
	tU32 GetExponent() const { return (m_integer >> 52) & 0x7FF; }
	tU64 GetMantissa() const { return m_integer & 0xFFFFFFFFFFFFFull; }

	tF64 m_floatingPoint;
	tU64 m_integer;
};

Positional Formatting

This helper function is used by PrintFloat32 and PrintFloat64 to call Dragon4 and output the result using positional notation. This results in a normal looking number with a decimal point (e.g. 123000 or 456.78).

//******************************************************************************
// Outputs the positive number with positional notation: ddddd.dddd
// The output is always NUL terminated and the output length (not including the
// NUL) is returned.
//******************************************************************************
tU32 FormatPositional
(
	tC8 * 	pOutBuffer,			// buffer to output into
	tU32	bufferSize,			// maximum characters that can be printed to pOutBuffer
	tU64	mantissa,			// value significand
	tS32	exponent,			// value exponent in base 2
	tU32	mantissaHighBitIdx,	// index of the highest set mantissa bit
	tB		hasUnequalMargins,	// is the high margin twice as large as the low margin
	tS32	precision			// Negative prints as many digits as are needed for a unique
								//  number. Positive specifies the maximum number of
								//  significant digits to print past the decimal point.
)
{
	RJ_ASSERT(bufferSize > 0);

	tS32 printExponent;
	tU32 numPrintDigits;
		
	tU32 maxPrintLen = bufferSize - 1;

	if (precision < 0)
	{
		numPrintDigits = Dragon4(	mantissa,
									exponent,
									mantissaHighBitIdx,
									hasUnequalMargins,
									CutoffMode_Unique,
									0,
									pOutBuffer,
									maxPrintLen,
									&printExponent );
	}
	else
	{
		numPrintDigits = Dragon4(	mantissa,
									exponent,
									mantissaHighBitIdx,
									hasUnequalMargins,
									CutoffMode_FractionLength,
									precision,
									pOutBuffer,
									maxPrintLen,
									&printExponent );
	}

	RJ_ASSERT( numPrintDigits > 0 );
	RJ_ASSERT( numPrintDigits <= bufferSize );

	// track the number of digits past the decimal point that have been printed
	tU32 numFractionDigits = 0;
				
	// if output has a whole number
	if (printExponent >= 0)
	{
		// leave the whole number at the start of the buffer
		tU32 numWholeDigits = printExponent+1;
		if (numPrintDigits < numWholeDigits)
		{
			// don't overflow the buffer
			if (numWholeDigits > maxPrintLen)
				numWholeDigits = maxPrintLen;

			// add trailing zeros up to the decimal point
			for ( ; numPrintDigits < numWholeDigits; ++numPrintDigits )
				pOutBuffer[numPrintDigits] = '0';
		}
		// insert the decimal point prior to the fraction
		else if (numPrintDigits > (tU32)numWholeDigits)
		{
			numFractionDigits = numPrintDigits - numWholeDigits;
			tU32 maxFractionDigits = maxPrintLen - numWholeDigits - 1;
			if (numFractionDigits > maxFractionDigits)
				numFractionDigits = maxFractionDigits;

			memmove(pOutBuffer + numWholeDigits + 1, pOutBuffer + numWholeDigits, numFractionDigits);
			pOutBuffer[numWholeDigits] = '.';
			numPrintDigits = numWholeDigits + 1 + numFractionDigits;
		}
	}
	else
	{
		// shift out the fraction to make room for the leading zeros
		if (maxPrintLen > 2)
		{
			tU32 numFractionZeros = (tU32)-printExponent - 1;
			tU32 maxFractionZeros = maxPrintLen - 2;
			if (numFractionZeros > maxFractionZeros)
				numFractionZeros = maxFractionZeros;

			tU32 digitsStartIdx = 2 + numFractionZeros;
					
			// shift the significant digits right such that there is room for leading zeros
			numFractionDigits = numPrintDigits;
			tU32 maxFractionDigits = maxPrintLen - digitsStartIdx;
			if (numFractionDigits > maxFractionDigits)
				numFractionDigits = maxFractionDigits;

			memmove(pOutBuffer + digitsStartIdx, pOutBuffer, numFractionDigits);

			// insert the leading zeros
			for (tU32 i = 2; i < digitsStartIdx; ++i)
				pOutBuffer[i] = '0';

			// update the counts
			numFractionDigits += numFractionZeros;
			numPrintDigits = numFractionDigits;
		}

		// add the decimal point
		if (maxPrintLen > 1)
		{
			pOutBuffer[1] = '.';
			numPrintDigits += 1;
		}

		// add the initial zero
		if (maxPrintLen > 0)
		{
			pOutBuffer[0] = '0';
			numPrintDigits += 1;
		}
	}
			
	// add trailing zeros up to precision length
	if (precision > (tS32)numFractionDigits && numPrintDigits < maxPrintLen)
	{
		// add a decimal point if this is the first fractional digit we are printing
		if (numFractionDigits == 0)
		{
			pOutBuffer[numPrintDigits++] = '.';
		}

		// compute the number of trailing zeros needed
		tU32 totalDigits = numPrintDigits + (precision - numFractionDigits);
		if (totalDigits > maxPrintLen)
			totalDigits = maxPrintLen;

		for ( ; numPrintDigits < totalDigits; ++numPrintDigits )
			pOutBuffer[numPrintDigits] = '0';
	}

	// terminate the buffer
	RJ_ASSERT( numPrintDigits <= maxPrintLen );
	pOutBuffer[numPrintDigits] = '\0';

	return numPrintDigits;
}

Scientific Formatting

This helper function is used by PrintFloat32 and PrintFloat64 to call Dragon4 and output the result using scientific notation. This results in a compressed number containing the significant digits and a base-10 exponent (e.g. 123e+005 or 45678e+002).

//******************************************************************************
// Outputs the positive number with scientific notation: d.dddde[sign]ddd
// The output is always NUL terminated and the output length (not including the
// NUL) is returned.
//******************************************************************************
tU32 FormatScientific
(
	tC8 * 	pOutBuffer,			// buffer to output into
	tU32	bufferSize,			// maximum characters that can be printed to pOutBuffer
	tU64	mantissa,			// value significand
	tS32	exponent,			// value exponent in base 2
	tU32	mantissaHighBitIdx,	// index of the highest set mantissa bit
	tB		hasUnequalMargins,	// is the high margin twice as large as the low margin
	tS32	precision			// Negative prints as many digits as are needed for a unique
								//  number. Positive specifies the maximum number of
								//  significant digits to print past the decimal point.
)
{
	RJ_ASSERT(bufferSize > 0);

	tS32 printExponent;
	tU32 numPrintDigits;
		
	if (precision < 0)
	{
		numPrintDigits = Dragon4(	mantissa,
									exponent,
									mantissaHighBitIdx,
									hasUnequalMargins,
									CutoffMode_Unique,
									0,
									pOutBuffer,
									bufferSize,
									&printExponent );
	}
	else
	{
		numPrintDigits = Dragon4(	mantissa,
									exponent,
									mantissaHighBitIdx,
									hasUnequalMargins,
									CutoffMode_TotalLength,
									precision + 1,
									pOutBuffer,
									bufferSize,
									&printExponent );
	}

	RJ_ASSERT( numPrintDigits > 0 );
	RJ_ASSERT( numPrintDigits <= bufferSize );

	tC8 * pCurOut = pOutBuffer;

	// keep the whole number as the first digit
	if (bufferSize > 1)
	{
		pCurOut += 1;
		bufferSize -= 1;
	}

	// insert the decimal point prior to the fractional number
	tU32 numFractionDigits = numPrintDigits-1;
	if (numFractionDigits > 0 && bufferSize > 1)
	{
		tU32 maxFractionDigits = bufferSize-2;
		if (numFractionDigits > maxFractionDigits)
			numFractionDigits =  maxFractionDigits;

		memmove(pCurOut + 1, pCurOut, numFractionDigits);
		pCurOut[0] = '.';
		pCurOut += (1 + numFractionDigits);
		bufferSize -= (1 + numFractionDigits);
	}

	// add trailing zeros up to precision length
	if (precision > (tS32)numFractionDigits && bufferSize > 1)
	{
		// add a decimal point if this is the first fractional digit we are printing
		if (numFractionDigits == 0)
		{
			*pCurOut = '.';
			++pCurOut;
			--bufferSize;
		}

		// compute the number of trailing zeros needed
		tU32 numZeros = (precision - numFractionDigits);
		if (numZeros > bufferSize-1)
			numZeros = bufferSize-1;

		for (tC8 * pEnd = pCurOut + numZeros; pCurOut < pEnd; ++pCurOut )
			*pCurOut = '0';
	}

	// print the exponent into a local buffer and copy into output buffer
	if (bufferSize > 1)
	{
		tC8 exponentBuffer[5];
		exponentBuffer[0] = 'e';
		if (printExponent >= 0)
		{
			exponentBuffer[1] = '+';
		}
		else
		{
			exponentBuffer[1] = '-';
			printExponent = -printExponent;
		}

		RJ_ASSERT(printExponent < 1000);
		tU32 hundredsPlace	= printExponent / 100;
		tU32 tensPlace		= (printExponent - hundredsPlace*100) / 10;
		tU32 onesPlace		= (printExponent - hundredsPlace*100 - tensPlace*10);

		exponentBuffer[2] = (tC8)('0' + hundredsPlace);
		exponentBuffer[3] = (tC8)('0' + tensPlace);
		exponentBuffer[4] = (tC8)('0' + onesPlace);

		// copy the exponent buffer into the output
		tU32 maxExponentSize = bufferSize-1;
		tU32 exponentSize = (5 < maxExponentSize) ? 5 : maxExponentSize;
		memcpy( pCurOut, exponentBuffer, exponentSize );

		pCurOut += exponentSize;
		bufferSize -= exponentSize;
	}

	RJ_ASSERT( bufferSize > 0 );
	pCurOut[0] = '\0';

	return pCurOut - pOutBuffer;
}

Infinities and NaNs

These helper functions are used by PrintFloat32 and PrintFloat64 to handle the special case values. There isn't a consistant standard for printing infinities and NaNs. I've settled on outputting an infinity as "Inf" and a NaN as "NaN" followed by the hexadecimal representation of the mantissa (e.g. "NaNab03f1").

//******************************************************************************
// Print a hexadecimal value with a given width.
// The output string is always NUL terminated and the string length (not
// including the NUL) is returned.
//******************************************************************************
static tU32 PrintHex(tC8 * pOutBuffer, tU32 bufferSize, tU64 value, tU32 width)
{
	const tC8 digits[] = "0123456789abcdef";

	RJ_ASSERT(bufferSize > 0);

	tU32 maxPrintLen = bufferSize-1;
	if (width > maxPrintLen)
		width = maxPrintLen;

	tC8 * pCurOut = pOutBuffer;
	while (width > 0)
	{
		--width;
			
		tU8 digit = (tU8)((value >> 4ull*(tU64)width) & 0xF);
		*pCurOut = digits[digit];

		++pCurOut;
	}

	*pCurOut = '\0';
	return pCurOut - pOutBuffer;
}

//******************************************************************************
// Print special case values for infinities and NaNs.
// The output string is always NUL terminated and the string length (not
// including the NUL) is returned.
//******************************************************************************
static tU32 PrintInfNan(tC8 * pOutBuffer, tU32 bufferSize, tU64 mantissa, tU32 mantissaHexWidth)
{
	RJ_ASSERT(bufferSize > 0);

	tU32 maxPrintLen = bufferSize-1;

	// Check for infinity
	if (mantissa == 0)
	{
		// copy and make sure the buffer is terminated
		tU32 printLen = (3 < maxPrintLen) ? 3 : maxPrintLen;
		::memcpy( pOutBuffer, "Inf", printLen );
		pOutBuffer[printLen] = '\0';
		return printLen;
	}
	else
	{
		// copy and make sure the buffer is terminated
		tU32 printLen = (3 < maxPrintLen) ? 3 : maxPrintLen;
		::memcpy( pOutBuffer, "NaN", printLen );
		pOutBuffer[printLen] = '\0';
				
		// append HEX value
		if (maxPrintLen > 3)
			printLen += PrintHex(pOutBuffer+3, bufferSize-3, mantissa, mantissaHexWidth);
								
		return printLen;
	}
}

Printing Functions

These are the final two functions to complete our floating-point to string conversion. They handle prefixing the output with a negative sign and using the formulas we derived in part 1 to convert the IEEE floating point number into a set of integers consumable by Dragon4. Control is then passed onto the appropriate formatting function.

//******************************************************************************
// Print a 32-bit floating-point number as a decimal string.
// The output string is always NUL terminated and the string length (not
// including the NUL) is returned.
//******************************************************************************
tU32 PrintFloat32
(
	tC8 *				pOutBuffer,		// buffer to output into
	tU32				bufferSize,		// size of pOutBuffer
	tF32				value,			// value to print
	tPrintFloatFormat	format,			// format to print with
	tS32				precision		// If negative, the minimum number of digits to represent a
										// unique 32-bit floating point value is output. Otherwise,
										// this is the number of digits to print past the decimal point.
)
{
	if (bufferSize == 0)
		return 0;

	if (bufferSize == 1)
	{
		pOutBuffer[0] = '\0';
		return 0;
	}

	// deconstruct the floating point value
	tFloatUnion32 floatUnion;
	floatUnion.m_floatingPoint = value;
	tU32 floatExponent = floatUnion.GetExponent();
	tU32 floatMantissa = floatUnion.GetMantissa();
	tU32 prefixLength = 0;
		
	// output the sign
	if (floatUnion.IsNegative())
	{
		pOutBuffer[0] = '-';
		++pOutBuffer;
		--bufferSize;
		++prefixLength;
		RJ_ASSERT(bufferSize > 0);
	}

	// if this is a special value
	if (floatExponent == 0xFF)
	{
		return PrintInfNan(pOutBuffer, bufferSize, floatMantissa, 6) + prefixLength;
	}
	// else this is a number
	else
	{				
		// factor the value into its parts
		tU32 mantissa;
		tS32 exponent;	
		tU32 mantissaHighBitIdx;
		tB hasUnequalMargins;
		if (floatExponent != 0)
		{
			// normalized
			// The floating point equation is:
			//  value = (1 + mantissa/2^23) * 2 ^ (exponent-127)
			// We convert the integer equation by factoring a 2^23 out of the exponent
			//  value = (1 + mantissa/2^23) * 2^23 * 2 ^ (exponent-127-23)
			//  value = (2^23 + mantissa) * 2 ^ (exponent-127-23)
			// Because of the implied 1 in front of the mantissa we have 24 bits of precision.
			//   m = (2^23 + mantissa)
			//   e = (exponent-127-23)
			mantissa		    = (1UL << 23) | floatMantissa;
			exponent		    = floatExponent - 127 - 23;
			mantissaHighBitIdx  = 23;
			hasUnequalMargins	= (floatExponent != 1) && (floatMantissa == 0);
		}
		else
		{
			// denormalized
			// The floating point equation is:
			//  value = (mantissa/2^23) * 2 ^ (1-127)
			// We convert the integer equation by factoring a 2^23 out of the exponent
			//  value = (mantissa/2^23) * 2^23 * 2 ^ (1-127-23)
			//  value = mantissa * 2 ^ (1-127-23)
			// We have up to 23 bits of precision.
			//   m = (mantissa)
			//   e = (1-127-23)
			mantissa		   = floatMantissa;
			exponent		   = 1 - 127 - 23;
			mantissaHighBitIdx = LogBase2(mantissa);
			hasUnequalMargins	= false;
		}

		// format the value
		switch (format)
		{
		case PrintFloatFormat_Positional:
			return FormatPositional(	pOutBuffer,
										bufferSize,
										mantissa,
										exponent,
										mantissaHighBitIdx,
										hasUnequalMargins,
										precision ) + prefixLength;

		case PrintFloatFormat_Scientific:
			return FormatScientific(	pOutBuffer,
										bufferSize,
										mantissa,
										exponent,
										mantissaHighBitIdx,
										hasUnequalMargins,
										precision ) + prefixLength;

		default:
			pOutBuffer[0] = '\0';
			return 0;
		}
	}
}

//******************************************************************************
// Print a 64-bit floating-point number as a decimal string.
// The output string is always NUL terminated and the string length (not
// including the NUL) is returned.
//******************************************************************************
tU32 PrintFloat64
(
	tC8 *				pOutBuffer,		// buffer to output into
	tU32				bufferSize,		// size of pOutBuffer
	tF64				value,			// value to print
	tPrintFloatFormat	format,			// format to print with
	tS32				precision		// If negative, the minimum number of digits to represent a
										// unique 64-bit floating point value is output. Otherwise,
										// this is the number of digits to print past the decimal point.
)
{
	if (bufferSize == 0)
		return 0;

	if (bufferSize == 1)
	{
		pOutBuffer[0] = '\0';
		return 0;
	}

	// deconstruct the floating point value
	tFloatUnion64 floatUnion;
	floatUnion.m_floatingPoint = value;
	tU32 floatExponent = floatUnion.GetExponent();
	tU64 floatMantissa = floatUnion.GetMantissa();
	tU32 prefixLength = 0;
		
	// output the sign
	if (floatUnion.IsNegative())
	{
		pOutBuffer[0] = '-';
		++pOutBuffer;
		--bufferSize;
		++prefixLength;
		RJ_ASSERT(bufferSize > 0);
	}

	// if this is a special value
	if (floatExponent == 0x7FF)
	{
		return PrintInfNan(pOutBuffer, bufferSize, floatMantissa, 13) + prefixLength;
	}
	// else this is a number
	else
	{
		// factor the value into its parts
		tU64 mantissa;
		tS32 exponent;	
		tU32 mantissaHighBitIdx;
		tB hasUnequalMargins;
		
		if (floatExponent != 0)
		{		
			// normal
			// The floating point equation is:
			//  value = (1 + mantissa/2^52) * 2 ^ (exponent-1023)
			// We convert the integer equation by factoring a 2^52 out of the exponent
			//  value = (1 + mantissa/2^52) * 2^52 * 2 ^ (exponent-1023-52)
			//  value = (2^52 + mantissa) * 2 ^ (exponent-1023-52)
			// Because of the implied 1 in front of the mantissa we have 53 bits of precision.
			//   m = (2^52 + mantissa)
			//   e = (exponent-1023+1-53)
			mantissa		    = (1ull << 52) | floatMantissa;
			exponent		    = floatExponent - 1023 - 52;
			mantissaHighBitIdx  = 52;
			hasUnequalMargins	= (floatExponent != 1) && (floatMantissa == 0);
		}
		else
		{
			// subnormal
			// The floating point equation is:
			//  value = (mantissa/2^52) * 2 ^ (1-1023)
			// We convert the integer equation by factoring a 2^52 out of the exponent
			//  value = (mantissa/2^52) * 2^52 * 2 ^ (1-1023-52)
			//  value = mantissa * 2 ^ (1-1023-52)
			// We have up to 52 bits of precision.
			//   m = (mantissa)
			//   e = (1-1023-52)
			mantissa		    = floatMantissa;
			exponent		    = 1 - 1023 - 52;
			mantissaHighBitIdx  = LogBase2(mantissa);
			hasUnequalMargins	= false;
		}

		// format the value
		switch (format)
		{
		case PrintFloatFormat_Positional:
			return FormatPositional(	pOutBuffer,
										bufferSize,
										mantissa,
										exponent,
										mantissaHighBitIdx,
										hasUnequalMargins,
										precision ) + prefixLength;

		case PrintFloatFormat_Scientific:
			return FormatScientific(	pOutBuffer,
										bufferSize,
										mantissa,
										exponent,
										mantissaHighBitIdx,
										hasUnequalMargins,
										precision ) + prefixLength;

		default:
			pOutBuffer[0] = '\0';
			return 0;
		}
	}
}

Results

Next, we will see how the resulting implementation compares with others and discuss some of the benefits and drawbacks. You can also download a functional demo of the presented code. Click here to read part 4..

License

Code Integration

Interface

Integer Math

Floating-Point to Integer Conversion

Positional Formatting

Scientific Formatting

Infinities and NaNs

Printing Functions

Results

You should also read:

Printing Floating-Point Numbers - Part 4: Results

Printing Floating-Point Numbers - Part 2: Dragon4

Printing Floating-Point Numbers

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