[Python-Dev] SIGCHECK() in longobject.c

[Mark Dickinson]

On Tue, Oct 20, 2009 at 11:49 AM, Nick Coghlan <ncoghlan at gmail.com> wrote:
> Mark Dickinson wrote:
>> This high-precision inefficiency could easily be fixed by
>> using a dedicated 'decimal natural number' extension
>> type for the Decimal coefficient, stored internally in base
>> a suitable power of 10. [...]
>
> Didn't you already start work on that concept with the deccoeff patch?

I did:  the code can be seen at:

http://svn.python.org/view/sandbox/trunk/decimal/decimal_in_c/

This code defines a Deccoeff type as above, providing base 10 natural
number arithmetic, along with a skeletal _Decimal type.  The work on
Deccoeff is pretty much complete, but the _Decimal type is only just
a beginning;  the original intent was to slowly translate the Decimal
code into C and move it into the _Decimal type.

The code was working a few months ago (with all Decimal tests
passing), but there have been some changes and bugfixes since
then.  I might try to resurrect that code, dropping the _Decimal type and
just concentrating on Deccoeff.

Mark