Thread: Does anyone know how to do exponent with just addition?

I am working on a program to create a calculator with only addition. I still need subtraction, division, and exponent. I am having trouble with this if anyone could help it would be greatly appreciated.

Multipication with addition is easy enough (which you seem to have gotten already).

Exponent is simply repeated multiplication.

a^2 = a * a
a^3 = a * a * a

Why not simply have a loop to call your multiplication code, while holding the current product?

Fractional exponents and negative exponents may be a little more difficult.

do I need a nested loop or just do my multiplication then get that sum and multiply it again

Code:

while the iterator is less than the exponent
        total = base * total
        iterator++
end loop

except obviously replace the multiply with whatever you are using to multiply (hopefully a function, as that would make sense).

Originally Posted by cowboyz209

do I need a nested loop or just do my multiplication then get that sum and multiply it again

Don't nest them... use one loop to get your first product then a second loop to do exponentiation on the product.
There should be no reason to repeatedly calculate the same number...

i am trying to do this with using only addition so far i have

insert

Code:

for (i = 0; i < num2; i++){
sum = sum + num1;
sum++;

alright so i have
insert

Code:

     for(i = 0; i < num1; i++){
           sum = sum + num2;
     for(i = 0 ; i < num1 ; i++){
           sum = sum + num1;
}
}

That's a joke, isn't it?

Did you compile it? Do you not see what happens to i if you reuse it like that?

Where's your respectful use of my suggestion to use descriptive variable names?

its not a joke...just change the names to exponent and base same thing.

insert

Code:

  for (i = 0; i < exponent ; i++){
            sum = sum + exponent; }
  for(i = 0; i < exponent; i++){
            sum = sum + base;
)

okay well i was just needing help with the for loop for the exponential function everything else complies right