Applicability & Efficiency

The VAL_ functions are designed primarily for ease of use and robustness, with efficiency being a secondary consideration. In fact, the overhead involved in invoking many of these functions exceeds the time required to actually perform the calculation. Consequently, VAL_ functions should not be used for processing large arrays of data. Rather, they are best used for relatively small numbers of calculations (up to a few thousand), when they can enhance the robustness and flexibility of applications by handling numerical errors and bad values with the minimum of programming effort.

The VEC_ routines (section ) should normally be used for processing larger arrays of data.