By regular numbers I mean 1234, hex etc...which you can just right a short program to convert...it's not like that with Roman Numerals tho.

Roman Numerals present a problem for comps... like VI and IV etc.

binary, octal, decimal, hex are just diff base numbering systems...there are normal computer functions (equations) to convert them....with Roman Numerals you can't do it that simply.

/e Try multiplying XIV x VIII on a piece of paper, showing all the work.

This post was edited by Ghot on Sep 14 2013 06:56pm

you are right for binary, octal and hex because those align closely to the basically binary architecture
but while representation/conversion for roman numerals (or greek, or hebrew) is more difficult than for decimal ones
for decimal numbers a conversion is necessary as well (as said before language libraries provide for it but it is still done)
while there have been computer architectures around storing numbers as decimal strings, standard computer architecture does not know decimal numbers, so a conversion is always necessary
since this is the hardware section i would have expected that that would be fully appreciated

let me end with the suggestion: ponder over what a number really is

a quantity ?

edit:
or value?

This post was edited by noob_whacker on Sep 14 2013 06:57pm

That's just it, we ALL agree they are all diff numbering systems...but I can add, subtract, multiply and divide...lets say binary...try doing it with Roman Numerals

They question is not whether Roman Numerals are numbers...ofc they are...the problem is...comps can't deal with them as they would with normal numbering systems.

/e Hell, Roman Numerals don't even HAVE a ZERO

This post was edited by Ghot on Sep 14 2013 07:00pm

they did it for centuries

no they didn't they just added like I said...Roman Numerals don't even have a ZERO for gawd's sake lol

/e and they didn't add or subtract them like we do with normal number systems...they did them like a 1st grader and bundles of sticks lol

/ee Another way to think of it...is you can count to 100 in all modern numbering systems, just by incrementing the number before by 1 unit...can't do that with Roman Numerals.

This post was edited by Ghot on Sep 14 2013 07:05pm

have a guess how they did calendar calculations prior to receiving the indian number system through the arabs?

or movement of the stars
or construction engineering
or whatever science they were able to do

They got it wrong, that's how lol

/e Why don't you show me the Pythagorean theorem with roman numerals then ...and I don't mean 3, 4, 5 ..... I mean a^2 + b^2 = c^2

/ee ..or even easier how about 7^2 in Roman numerals...In code that a comp will understand.

/eee see, I can do this...

Input 'What number do you want Squared'; x
x*x =y
Print y

...now do that with Roman Numerals ^^

This post was edited by Ghot on Sep 14 2013 07:16pm

actually pythagoras used the greek numeral system in his texts
but the pthagorean theorems were used in that part of the world using latin and the roman numeral system for centuries
there are plenty examples in libraries
but don't forget that the pythagorean theorems are independent of the numerical presentation system used

let me repeat: ponder over what a number really is

/edit

and what do you do when you do "input=x / x*x=y / print y?
you nothing (or very little at least), but what does the computer hardware do?

This post was edited by brmv on Sep 14 2013 07:17pm

Let me repeat...what did the OP ask for ^^

/e he didn't ask if Roman Numerals were numbers...he asked (in short) how to manipulate them with a computer.

/ee ...and just link me to the Pythagorean Theorem done in Roman Numerals lol

This post was edited by Ghot on Sep 14 2013 07:22pm