javascript - What are my client-side options?

Question

I love javascript, don't get me wrong, but my problem is I currently want to develop open source web applications for scientific computations and javascript's arithmetic isn't exactly the most precise. I've scripted server-side, but I prefer client-side for the obvious reasons that the experience for the user is generally smoother and there is less load on the server.

What are my options as far as working around this issue? I've read somewhere that you can implement languages on top of javascript--would this be worth it and what does this look like? If I do, say, implement python on top of javascript, does that mean the client needs a python interpreter to use the site?

I just can't handle

0.1 + 0.2 == 0.3 // is False

Answer 1

Floating points operations are approximated calculations

This is not wrong see more about it

Weird programing behavior

THis is not specific to javascript but common in programming as a whole

Here is what i get on chrome:

0.1 + 0.2 = 0.30000000000000004;

And here is a simple but excellent read on the subject:

What Every Programmer Should Know About Floating-Point Arithmetic

Why don't my numbers, like 0.1 + 0.2 add up to a nice round 0.3, and instead I get a weird result like 0.30000000000000004?

Because internally, computers use a format (binary floating-point) that cannot accurately represent a number like 0.1, 0.2 or 0.3 at all.

When the code is compiled or interpreted, your “0.1” is already rounded to the nearest number in that format, which results in a small rounding error even before the calculation happens.

Answer 2

There are a few libraries that allow for much better mathematical operations:

• Big Number
• Big Js (Different library)

However, I would very strongly suggest doing this server side. You could easily do it via AJAX and not have to worry about responsiveness. Javascript just wasn't really built for numbers.