Automatic Formatting of Arithmetic

Often, both uses of "-" appear in one calculation. Examine the following:

-25 + 10        negative 25 plus 10      =  -15
-5.2 - 3.1      negative 5.2 minus 3.1   =  -8.3
18.4 - 2.4      18.4 minus 2.4           =  16.0
-12/6           minus 12 divided by 6    =  -2

The QBasic system makes this less confusing by adjusting what you type. QBasic adjusts what you type so that:

• When "-" means "negative number" it is placed right up against the number it is for.
• When "-" means "subtraction" it is separated from the numbers to be subtracted by one space on each side.

For example, if you type:

PRINT -  25
END

QBasic adjusts this to:

PRINT -25
END

(The adjustment is not done until after the cursor has left the line.)

PRINT -  25-4