Problem with math in maxscript

[bobandoug]

Why does this return a zero rather than the expected value?

(3*8*10^(7-7.5))

Maxscript gives me a zero, but I'm expecting 7.5894663844

many thanks

Bob

[Steve_Curley]

Because it is calculating (3*8*10) ^ (7-7.5) rather than 3*8*(10^(7-7.5)). Generally safer, in any language, to be explicit (parenthesize the calculation to force what you need) rather than relying on built-in rules of operator precedence (which may or may not be correct - school was a long, long time ago... ;))

[Edit]Actually, it's wrong anyway - shouldn't 0 but 0.064549722[/Edit]

[bobandoug]

Hello Steve_Curley

I thought that too. When I try what you suggested I still get a zero rather than the correct answer.

I think I'm not using math correctly in max script.

Thank you

edit google gets it right, but maxscript doesn't. click here to see Google get the correct answer

[Steve_Curley · Accepted solution]

It's a quirk of Maxscript. If the number being raised to a power (not the power itself) is an integer then the result is a truncated integer. Try again with 10.0 instead of 10.
(3*8*10.0^(7-7.5)) gives the correct answer. 10^(7-7.5) was being truncated to 0 and anything ^ 0 is 0 so the entire result was 0.

Look up "number values" in the Maxscript help - I had to do that to work out what was wrong.

[Steve_Curley]

Note - this should have been in the Maxscript forum. Once you've replied I'll move it there.

[bobandoug]

Steve_Curley thank you for the answer. I guess putting the .0 in forces maxscript to evaluate it as a float and not as an integer.

Thanks for the help!

I did look for a maxscript forum here, but I couldn't see a section about maxscript. I must need new glasses 🙂

[Steve_Curley]

Programming. Maxscript and the SDK used to be separate forums, now they aren't (and I keep forgetting that...).