.\" This manual page is derived from Linux sources.
.\"
.\" Devin Reade, 1997
.\"
.\" $Id: ecvt.3,v 1.1 1997/09/16 00:11:29 gdr Exp $
.\"
.TH ECVT 3 "15 September 1997" GNO "Library Routines"
.SH NAME
.BR ecvt ,
.BR fcvt
\- convert a floating-point number to a string
.SH SYNOPSIS
#include <stdlib.h>
.sp 1
char *\fBecvt\fR (double \fInumber\fR, size_t \fIndigits\fR, int *\fIdecpt\fR, int *\fIsign\fR);
.br
char *\fBfcvt\fR (double \fInumber\fR, size_t \fIndigits\fR, int *\fIdecpt\fR, int *\fIsign\fR);
.SH DESCRIPTION
The 
.BR ecvt
function converts
.IR number
to a NULL terminated string of
.IR ndigits
digits, and returns a pointer to the string. The string itself does not
contain a decimal point; however, the position of the decimal point relative
to the start of the string is stored in 
.IR decpt .
A negative value for
.IR decpt
means that the decimal point is to the left of the start of the string.
If the sign of
.IR number
is negative,
.IR sign
is set to a non-zero value, otherwise it's set to 0.
.LP
The
.BR fcvt
function is identical to
.BR ecvt ,
except that
.IR ndigits
specifies the number of digits after the decimal point.
.SH RETURN VALUE
Both the 
.BR ecvt
and 
.BR fcvt
functions return a pointer to a static string containing the ASCII
representation of
.IR number .
The static string is overwritten by each call to
.BR ecvt
or
.BR fcvt .
.SH SEE ALSO
.BR gcvt (3),
.BR sprintf (3)