[Gcl-devel] Re: printing IEEE 754 special values (inf, nan)

[Paul F. Dietz]

Robert Dodier wrote:

> Well, I'm not sure that anyone actually expects the
> input string "NaN" to read the same as the floating point
> object of which it is a representation.

One property that is important: if *PRINT-READABLY* is true,
then either NaN should print in a readable form (that is,
in a form that, when read back in with the other reader/printer
variables bound to the same values, produces a 'similar' value,
similarity meaning = on numbers), or it should signal
a PRINT-NOT-READABLE error.

The form printed when *PRINT-READABLY* is true need not be
the same as that printed when it is false.

        Paul