Float Format

The float format consists of two parts:

The value of a floating-point field is the result of multiplying the mantissa by 10 raised to the power of the exponent. For example, if 1.2345 is the mantissa and 5 is the exponent then the value of the floating-point field is: 

   1.2345 * (10 ** 5) = 123450

You define a floating-point field by specifying F in the data type entry of the appropriate specification.

The decimal positions must be left blank. However, floating-point fields are considered to have decimal positions. As a result, float variables may not be used in any place where a numeric value without decimal places is required, such as an array index, do loop index, etc.

The default initialization and CLEAR value for a floating point field is 0E0.

The length of a floating point field is defined in terms of the number of bytes. It must be specified as either 4 or 8 bytes. The range of values allowed for a floating-point field are:

4-byte float (8 digits)
-3.4028235E+38 to -1.1754944E-38, 0.0E+0, +1.1754944E-38 to +3.4028235E+38
8-byte float (16 digits)
-1.797693134862315E+308 to -2.225073858507201E-308, 0.0E+0, +2.225073858507201E-308 to +1.797693134862315E+308
Note:
Float variables conform to the IEEE standard as supported by the IBM i operating system. Since float variables are intended to represent "scientific" values, a numeric value stored in a float variable may not represent the exact same value as it would in a packed variable. Float should not be used when you need to represent numbers exactly to a specific number of decimal places, such as monetary amounts.

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