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- ======================================================================
- Microsoft(R) Product Support Services Application Note (Text File)
- WW1138: UPDATED CALCULATOR ACCESSORY FOR WINDOWS(TM)
- ======================================================================
- Revision Date: 1/95
- 1 Disk
-
- The following information applies to Microsoft Windows and Windows for
- Workgroups, versions 3.10 and 3.11.
-
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------
- | INFORMATION PROVIDED IN THIS DOCUMENT AND ANY SOFTWARE THAT MAY |
- | ACCOMPANY THIS DOCUMENT (collectively referred to as an Application |
- | Note) IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER |
- | EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE IMPLIED |
- | WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND/OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR |
- | PURPOSE. The user assumes the entire risk as to the accuracy and |
- | the use of this Application Note. This Application Note may be |
- | copied and distributed subject to the following conditions: 1) All |
- | text must be copied without modification and all pages must be |
- | included; 2) If software is included, all files on the disk(s) |
- | must be copied without modification (the MS-DOS(R) utility |
- | diskcopy is appropriate for this purpose); 3) All components of |
- | this Application Note must be distributed together; and 4) This |
- | Application Note may not be distributed for profit. |
- | |
- | |
- | Copyright (C) 1995 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved. |
- | Microsoft and MS-DOS are registered trademarks and Windows is a |
- | trademark of Microsoft Corporation. Intel and Pentium are |
- | registered trademarks of Intel Corporation. |
- ---------------------------------------------------------------------
-
- Introduction
- ------------
-
- The WW1138 disk included with this Application Note contains an
- updated version of the Calculator accessory that is shipped with
- Microsoft Windows 3.1x and Windows for Workgroups 3.1x. Previous
- versions of Calculator display simple subtraction errors when you
- subtract two numbers that include values to the right of the decimal
- point. While Calculator is determining how to display the solution, it
- encounters a loss of precision and shows an incorrect answer.
-
- This rounding error is not related to the floating-point unit (FPU) in
- the Intel(R) Pentium(R) chip. This problem occurs only in Calculator
- and does not affect Windows, other components in Windows, or other
- Windows-based applications.
-
- In addition to correcting the problem described above, the new
- rounding algorithm in Calculator causes it to perform more like most
- hand-held calculators. For example, if you enter the following
- equation in the updated Calculator accessory or in a hand-held
- calculator
-
- [(1/3 + 10 - 10) x 3]
-
- the result is 0.9999. The result in previous versions of Calculator is
- 1.0. The value 0.9999 is generated because significant digits are lost
- by adding and subtracting 10. This is a secondary effect of the
- changes made in Calculator to correct the precision errors.
-
- To install the updated files
- ----------------------------
-
- 1. Quit Windows, or open an MS-DOS command prompt within Windows.
-
- 2. Rename the existing CALC.EXE file in your Windows directory. For
- example, if Windows is installed in a directory on drive C called
- WINDOWS, type the following commands, pressing ENTER after each
- line:
-
- cd\windows
- ren calc.exe calc.old
-
- NOTE: If you received this Application Note electronically, skip
- steps 3 and 4, and continue with step 5.
-
- 3. At the MS-DOS command prompt, type the following to create a
- new directory, then press ENTER
-
- md <drive>:\<dirname>
-
- where <drive> is your hard disk and <dirname> is the name of the
- directory you want to create. For example, type:
-
- md c:\tempdir
-
- 4. Insert the enclosed WW1138 disk in the appropriate floppy disk
- drive, and copy WW1138.EXE from the WW1138 disk included with this
- Application Note to the newly created directory as follows
-
- copy <drive>:\ww1138.exe <destination>
-
- where <drive> is the floppy disk drive containing the WW1138 disk
- and <destination> is the drive and newly created directory. For
- example, if the directory is called TEMPDIR and is located on drive
- C and the WW1138 disk is in drive A, type the following command,
- then press ENTER:
-
- copy a:\ww1138.exe c:\tempdir
-
- 5. Change to the newly created directory (or, if you received this
- Application Note electronically, the directory to which you
- downloaded WW1138) by typing the following, then press ENTER
-
- cd\<tempdir>
-
- where <tempdir> is the directory containing WW1138.EXE.
-
- 6. Type the following, then press ENTER:
-
- ww1138
-
- 7. Copy CALC.EXE to the Windows directory. For example, if Windows is
- installed in a directory on drive C called WINDOWS, type the
- following command, then press ENTER:
-
- copy calc.exe c:\windows
-
- You are now ready to restart Windows (if necessary) and run the
- updated Calculator accessory.
-
- Steps to Reproduce Problem Using Previous Versions of Calculator
- ----------------------------------------------------------------
-
- 1. To perform this test, choose two numbers that include values to the
- right of the decimal point (for example, 12.52 and 12.51).
-
- 2. Double-click the Calculator icon in the Accessories group.
-
- 3. Enter the larger number first (for example, 12.52).
-
- 4. Press the MINUS SIGN (-).
-
- 5. Enter the smaller number (for example, 12.51).
-
- 6. Press the EQUAL SIGN (=).
-
- Note that in this example you do not receive .01, the expected result.
- Instead, you receive one of the following:
-
- 0.00
- 0.0099999999
- 0.010000001
-
- The updated Calculator accessory displays the correct result, which is
- .01.
-
-
-
-