JavaScript numeric compare function - comparison vs subtraction

Question

There is the possibility of integer overflow when you try to compare numbers using subtraction in Java. See Q: Java Integer compareTo() - why use comparison vs. subtraction?

But, unlike Java, JavaScript handles overflows and underflows.

The question is Does the following implementation of compareNumeric() work correctly in JavaScript?

// compareNumeric() one-liner
function compareNumeric(a, b) {
    return a - b;
}

EDIT. The compareNumeric function should return

negative value when a < b;
0 when a = b;
positive value when a > b.

a and b are Numbers.

Please define "*correctly*". Or at least what you expect it to do. Otherwise we can only tell you that the function does what you said it should do. — Bergi, Aug 12 '15 at 09:11

score 1 · Accepted Answer · answered Aug 12 '15 at 09:30

Does the following implementation of compareNumeric() work as expected in JavaScript?

Yes. As you've already figured out, there are no integer overflows or underflows in javascript (because all the number values are floats). If your values are getting too large or too small, you'll end up with Infinity or -Infinity, which are positive and negative respectively.

JavaScript numeric compare function - comparison vs subtraction

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