> | > | So, what *is* -5 MOD 3? > | > > -2
I hope not. If you are really serious about using modular arithmetic then you probably want to use something like PARI GP where -5 mod 3 is -5 mod 3, belonging to the data type of integers mod 3. -2 mod 3 and 1 mod 3 are alternate representations of the same value. If you aren't serious about modular arithmetic and want the result to be an integer then I think you are shooting yourself in the foot if you implement it as anything other than -5 mod 3 == 1. I want to be able to test whether n is odd with `if ( n % 2 == 1 ) ...' Of course, I'm a mathematician rather than a CS person, but I think the other convention has nothing to recommend it. -- John Stalker University of Dublin, Trinity College School of Mathematics
