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Extending Informix®Beyond standard relational database objects, HCL Informix® can be extended to handle specialized data types, access methods, routines, and other objects. Informix® includes many built-in extensions that are fully integrated in the database server. Informix® also provides DataBlade® modules, which are packages of extended database objects for a particular purpose and that are installed separately from the database server. Alternatively, you can create your own user-defined objects for Informix®.
Creating extensionsYou can create user-defined data types, routines, access methods, and other database objects to suit your needs. You can use application programming interfaces to write user-defined routines and applications that access data in Informix® databases.
DataBlade® API Programmer's GuideThe Informix® DataBlade® API Programmer's Guide describes information about the DataBlade® API, the C-language application programming interface (API) provided with HCL Informix®.
Data manipulation
Numeric data typesThis section describes these numeric data types and the functions that the DataBlade® API supports to process numeric data.
Floating-point dataA floating-point value is a large decimal value that is stored in a fixed field width. Because the field width is fixed, a floating-point number that is larger than the field width only retains its most significant digits. That is, digits that do not fit into the fixed width are dropped (rounded or truncated).
Floating-point binary representationsThe DataBlade® API provides data types to support the binary representations of floating-point values.
DECIMAL data type: Floating-point dataWhen you define a column with the DECIMAL(p) data type, the syntax of this definition specifies a floating-point value for the column. This value has a total of p (<= 32) significant digits (its precision). DECIMAL(p) has an absolute value range 10^-130 - 10¹²⁴.

DECIMAL data type: Floating-point data

When you define a column with the DECIMAL(p) data type, the syntax of this definition specifies a floating-point value for the column. This value has a total of p (<= 32) significant digits (its precision). DECIMAL(p) has an absolute value range 10^-130 - 10¹²⁴.

Tip: The DECIMAL data type can also declare a fixed-point value with the syntax DECIMAL(p,s)..

The mi_decimal data type stores floating-point DECIMAL values and fixed-point values. Therefore, information about mi_decimal in Fixed-point data also applies to mi_decimal when it contains a floating-point value. In particular, the following statements are true.


Decimal information	More information
The mi_decimal data type stores values in an internal (binary) format.	Internal fixed-point decimal format
All the Informix ESQL/C library functions that handle fixed-point values in mi_decimal can also handle mi_decimal when it contains floating-point values.	ESQL/C DECIMAL-type functions
All DataBlade® API functions that accept fixed-point values in mi_decimal also accept mi_decimal when it contains a floating-point value.	Transfer fixed-point data (Server) and Convert decimal data

Values of the mi_decimal data type cannot fit into an MI_DATUM structure. They must be passed by reference within C UDRs.

All data types, including mi_decimal, must be passed by reference within client LIBMI applications.

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