The Maniac III arithmetic system
Robert L. Ashenhurst · 1962
Unlike most computers, for which there is a formal distinction between "fixed-point" and "floating-point" numbers, the University of Chicago Maniac III computer handles all numbers in a single format (exponent and coefficient, with the coefficient in general not normalized). This permits several types of arithmetic to be defined, which differ in that results are adjusted (coefficient scaled) according to different rules. These rules are classified in terms of "significant-digit," "normalized," "specified point" or "basic" characteristics. Since the operand format in all cases is the same, numbers can be processed by the various arithmetics without intermediate conversion, thus adding a dimension of flexibility to the computing process.