Docker Quick Start

The Docker image provides a ready-to-use C++ development environment with compilers, cmake, the Universal library headers pre-installed, and command-line tools (including ucalc) on the PATH.

docker pull stillwater/universal
docker run -it --rm stillwater/universal bash

Write and compile programs using Universal directly inside the container:

hello.cpp

#include <universal/number/posit/posit.hpp>
#include <iostream>
int main() {
    sw::universal::posit<16,2> p = 1.5;
    std::cout << p << '\n';
}

g++ -std=c++20 -o hello hello.cpp && ./hello

Try the Command-Line Tools

# Interactive mixed-precision calculator
ucalc
ucalc> type posit32; show 1.5
ucalc> compare 0.1
ucalc> type bfloat16; precision

# Inspect IEEE-754 floating-point values
ieee 1.5

# One-shot ucalc commands
ucalc "type fp16; sweep sin(x) for x in [0, 3.14, 6]"

See ucalc for the full interactive calculator documentation, or Command-Line Tools for the standalone inspection utilities.

Development Container

For a full development environment with both GCC and Clang pre-installed, use the VS Code Dev Container.

Prerequisites

• Docker
• VS Code with the Dev Containers extension

Getting started

1. Clone the repository and open it in VS Code.
2. When prompted, select Reopen in Container (or run the command Dev Containers: Reopen in Container).
3. Once the container builds, open the CMake Tools preset selector and choose a preset such as gcc-debug or clang-release.
4. Build and debug as usual with the CMake Tools extension.

Switching compilers

CMake presets handle compiler selection automatically. Choose gcc-* presets for GCC or clang-* presets for Clang — no manual toolchain configuration needed.