Multiply Function [x]

[Thomas Puettmann]

Hello Gamo,

nice to see that you are interested in programming elementary arithmetics! Maybe you would also enjoy to take a look into the history of computing? The book "Computing before Computers" is a very nice starting point. It is available for free http://ed-thelen.org/comp-hist/CBC.html.

One comment regarding your initial post: I know that some textbooks all over the world teach that 7 x 4 is defined to be 7 + 7 + 7 + 7. But, morally, this is wrong. 7 x 4 should always be defined to be 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4.

If you go seven times running, you do it seven times. If you have seven times a cake, you have seven cakes. And if you have seven times four cakes, you have 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 + 4 cakes by definition, not the other way around.

We are lucky that multiplication of natural or even real numbers is commutative. But to fully appreciate this fact, it is good to be precise and consistent with the basic definitions. Of course, you did not state that you wanted to use the definition. So this comment is just a comment and not criticism.
Thomas