Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!husc6!im4u!ut-sally!nather
From: nather@ut-sally.UUCP (Ed Nather)
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: Re: negative addresses (really unsigned arithmetic)
Message-ID: <11571@ut-sally.UUCP>
Date: 11 May 88 17:23:39 GMT
References: <2393@uvacs.CS.VIRGINIA.EDU> <9485@apple.Apple.Com>
Organization: U. Texas CS Dept., Austin, Texas
Lines: 19

In article <9485@apple.Apple.Com>, bcase@Apple.COM (Brian Case) writes:
> In article <2393@uvacs.CS.VIRGINIA.EDU> wulf@uvacs.CS.VIRGINIA.EDU (Bill Wulf) writes:
> 
> >...as far as I can tell, the primary (only?) use
> >of unsigned arithmetic is for address computations.
> 
> Yeah, same here, unless it's for some obscure purpose or is supported
> directly by the source language.

Your CS background is showing, gentlemen.  When I gather data from stars, I
count the precious photons one at a time, and use unsigned arithmetic to
massage them, since there are no negative photons (unlike negative addresses).
I wouldn't classify this as an obscure purpose, but someone else might.

-- 
Ed Nather
Astronomy Dept, U of Texas @ Austin
{allegra,ihnp4}!{noao,ut-sally}!utastro!nather
nather@astro.AS.UTEXAS.EDU