# Calculating Probabilities in C++

• Comp Sci

## Homework Statement

Working on a program that will calculate the results of a shootout between 3 people, each of whom have a different level of accuracy (one hits his mark 1/3 of the time, one hits his mark 1/2 of the time, one hits his mark 1/1 of the time).

## Homework Equations

What's a way to represent 1/3 as a float/double so that I can make my calculations as accurate possible? I'm sure there are multiple ways, but I'm curious what kind of options I have available to me.

Does anyone have some links to relevant reading material? Or some source code that addresses a similar problem that I might examine?

Anything welcome.

P.S. Is there any way to sage a post on the forum? i.e. respond but not bump the thread?

## Answers and Replies

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like this

Code:
double d = 1.0/3;
or

Code:
double d = 1/3.0;
or

Code:
double d = 1/3.;
or

Code:
double d = static_cast<double>(1)/3;
etc.

but not

Code:
double d = 1/3;
because the "1/3" part would evaluate to an integer with value zero

The important thing to know is that at least one of the operands (numerator or denominator) should be a floating point type.

Great. Thank you!