NAME abs - absolute value SYNOPSIS abs(x [,eps]) TYPES If x is an object of type xx, the function xx_abs has to have been defined; this will determine the types for x, eps and the returned value. For non-object x and eps: x number (real or complex) eps ignored if x is real, nonzero real for complex x, defaults to epsilon(). return non-negative real DESCRIPTION If x is real, returns the absolute value of x, i.e. x if x >= 0, -x if x < 0. For complex x with zero real part, returns the absolute value of im(x). For other complex x, returns the multiple of eps nearest to the absolute value of x, or in the case of two equally near nearest values, the the nearest even multiple of eps. In particular, with eps = 10^-n, the result will be the absolute value correct to n decimal places. EXAMPLE > print abs(3.4), abs(-3.4) 3.4 3.4 > print abs(3+4i, 1e-5), abs(4+5i, 1e-5), abs(4+5i, 1e-10) 5 6.40312 6.4031242374 LIMITS none LIBRARY NUMBER *qqabs(NUMBER *x) SEE ALSO cmp, epsilon, hypot, norm, near, obj