I used to write/maintain compilers for a language with fixed point arithmetic built in (Coral 66). For some jobs much better than floating point, such as storing angles as a fraction of a circle, so that if you add/subtract two angles together you don't have to do mod 360 or 2Pi as it automatically overflows and gives you the correct answer. Not so useful for describing spirals and helixes though. Roger Holmes Ex employee of Elliott Brothers (London) Ltd / Marconi Elliott Avionic Systems Ltd / GEC Avionics in the 1970s