tldr/pages/common/bc.md

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bc

An arbitrary precision calculator language. See also: dc, qalc. More information: https://manned.org/bc.

  • Start an interactive session:

bc

  • Start an [i]nteractive session with the standard math [l]ibrary enabled:

bc --interactive --mathlib

  • Calculate an expression:

echo '{{5 / 3}}' | bc

  • Execute a script:

bc {{path/to/script.bc}}

  • Calculate an expression with the specified scale:

echo 'scale = {{10}}; {{5 / 3}}' | bc

  • Calculate a sine/cosine/arctangent/natural logarithm/exponential function using mathlib:

echo '{{s|c|a|l|e}}({{1}})' | bc --mathlib

  • Execute an inline factorial script:

echo "define factorial(n) { if (n <= 1) return 1; return n*factorial(n-1); }; factorial({{10}})" | bc