README.md
1Boost Multiprecision Library
2============================
3
4 The Multiprecision Library provides integer, rational, floating-point, complex and interval number types in C++ that have more range and
5 precision than C++'s ordinary built-in types. The big number types in Multiprecision can be used with a wide selection of basic
6 mathematical operations, elementary transcendental functions as well as the functions in Boost.Math. The Multiprecision types can
7 also interoperate with the built-in types in C++ using clearly defined conversion rules. This allows Boost.Multiprecision to be
8 used for all kinds of mathematical calculations involving integer, rational and floating-point types requiring extended range and precision.
9
10Multiprecision consists of a generic interface to the mathematics of large numbers as well as a selection of big number back ends, with
11support for integer, rational and floating-point types. Boost.Multiprecision provides a selection of back ends provided off-the-rack in
12including interfaces to GMP, MPFR, MPIR, TomMath as well as its own collection of Boost-licensed, header-only back ends for integers,
13rationals, floats and complex. In addition, user-defined back ends can be created and used with the interface of Multiprecision
14, provided the class implementation adheres to the necessary concepts.
15
16Depending upon the number type, precision may be arbitrarily large (limited only by available memory), fixed at compile time
17(for example 50 or 100 decimal digits), or a variable controlled at run-time by member functions. The types are expression-template-enabled
18for better performance than naive user-defined types.
19
20The full documentation is available on [boost.org](http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/release/libs/multiprecision/index.html).
21
22## Support, bugs and feature requests ##
23
24Bugs and feature requests can be reported through the [Gitub issue tracker](https://github.com/boostorg/multiprecision/issues)
25(see [open issues](https://github.com/boostorg/multiprecision/issues) and
26[closed issues](https://github.com/boostorg/multiprecision/issues?utf8=%E2%9C%93&q=is%3Aissue+is%3Aclosed)).
27
28You can submit your changes through a [pull request](https://github.com/boostorg/multiprecision/pulls).
29
30There is no mailing-list specific to Boost Multiprecision, although you can use the general-purpose Boost [mailing-list](http://lists.boost.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/boost-users) using the tag [multiprecision].
31
32
33## Development ##
34
35Clone the whole boost project, which includes the individual Boost projects as submodules ([see boost+git doc](https://github.com/boostorg/boost/wiki/Getting-Started)):
36
37 git clone https://github.com/boostorg/boost
38 cd boost
39 git submodule update --init
40
41The Boost Multiprecision Library is located in `libs/multiprecision/`.
42
43### Running tests ###
44First, make sure you are in `libs/multiprecision/test`.
45You can either run all the tests listed in `Jamfile.v2` or run a single test:
46
47 ../../../b2 <- run all tests
48 ../../../b2 test_complex <- single test
49
50