Android Question [B4X] check Number1 is further away from 0 than number2 whether minus or plus

[Alexander Stolte]

I want to check if number1 is more away from 0 than number2.

Example:

Number1=10
Number2=-12
Number2 is further away from 0 than Number1 Return False

How can i check this?

Solution:

Public Sub isNumberOneCloserToZero (numberOne As Int, numberTwo As Int) As Boolean
    Return (Abs(numberOne) >= Abs(numberTwo))
End Sub

 

[Sandman]

Something like this (not tested)

Public Sub isNumberOneCloserToZero (numberOne as Int, numberTwo as Int) as Boolean
    return (abs(numberOne) < abs(numberTwo))
End Sub

I imagine it's the negative number that's throwing you off, the math isn't very difficult if they are both positive. So the solution is to use abs() to get the absolute value of both, which in effect makes them both positive and simple to compare.

 

[Alexander Stolte]

return (abs(numberOne) < abs(numberTwo))

< changed to > and it works, thanks!

 

[Mahares]

What happens when both are equal. Shouldn't you add: Or (Abs(numberOne) = Abs(numberTwo)) to the function

 

[Alexander Stolte]

What happens when both are equal.

>=

Public Sub isNumberOneCloserToZero (numberOne As Int, numberTwo As Int) As Boolean
    Return (Abs(numberOne) >= Abs(numberTwo))
End Sub

 

[Mahares]

Return (Abs(numberOne) >= Abs(numberTwo))

That's my point. You need the >= like you have or the notation I showed above (both are equivalent)

 

[William Lancee]

Not to be nitpicky, but @Sandman solution in #2 is correct for "isNumberOneCloserToZero"

The subsequent postings answer the question "isNumberTwoCloserToZero"

 

[Mahares]

Not to be nitpicky,

Nobody said, Sandman is wrong. Read post #3. Scolte wants > not <

 

[William Lancee]

Just to be clear, nobody's is wrong. As stated in #7, the OP's solution (see #1) is the answer to "isNumberTwoCloserToZero".
Miss-naming a Sub could become a problem for future debugging.

 

[OliverA]

What happens when both are equal

>=

Interesting. This changes the semantics(?) of the function (beyond @William Lancee's observation), since neither number is closer to zero (and therefore a false would seemingly be correct).

 

[William Lancee]

I saw that too, but then I thought...

‘such quibbling over semantics may seem petty stuff’ - Oxford Dictionary - example

At least for some. A more recent example:

"They are officially designated as the Russian Olympic Committee rather than Russia, but that’s semantics".— Rachel Axon, USA TODAY, 30 July 2021

 

[OliverA]

I saw that too, but then I thought...

‘such quibbling over semantics may seem petty stuff’ - Oxford Dictionary - example

In programming though, such things can introduce subtle bugs that a) seem to show up randomly and b) seem to be hard to trace.