pi

Display 100 decimal digits of Archimedes' constant Pi

$ pi

$ pi [number]

$ pi --bibliography

$ pi --help

$ pi --version

pi [OPTIONS]

-p
    Specifies the number of decimal places for Pi's output. Defaults to a reasonable standard precision if not specified.

-r
    Outputs the raw numerical value of Pi without additional formatting (e.g., newline).

-h, --help
    Displays a help message and exits.

-v, --version
    Displays version information and exits.

The `pi` command, while not a standard utility found in most Linux distributions, is conceptualized as a simple command-line tool dedicated to outputting the numerical value of the mathematical constant Pi (π). Its primary function would be to provide this constant readily for various computational, scripting, or educational purposes. Users would likely have the option to specify the desired precision, allowing for a wide range of decimal places, from a few for quick checks to hundreds or thousands for high-precision calculations. The command could also offer formatting options, such as raw numerical output, scientific notation, or potentially unit-aware representations. Its existence would streamline accessing Pi compared to using general-purpose calculators like bc or awk with specific mathematical functions, offering a direct and focused utility. This type of functionality is often achieved via custom shell scripts or aliases.

The `pi` command is not a standard or commonly pre-installed utility in most mainstream Linux distributions. Users typically calculate Pi using commands like bc -l (e.g.,
echo "scale=50; 4*a(1)" | bc -l) or by leveraging mathematical functions in programming languages or scripting environments. Any direct `pi` command would likely be a custom script, an alias, or part of a specialized mathematical software suite. Its availability and features would depend entirely on its specific implementation.

To obtain Pi with high precision using the standard bc command, you can use the formula
echo "scale=N; 4*a(1)" | bc -l,
where 'N' is the desired number of decimal places. The -l option loads the standard math library, which includes the arctangent function a().

Users often create simple shell scripts named pi in their personal ~/bin directory. These scripts typically accept a precision argument and then use bc internally to compute and print the value, making it appear as if a direct pi command exists in their environment.

The concept of a dedicated `pi` command stems from the frequent need for the constant Pi in various computations. While early Unix-like systems and modern Linux distributions provide powerful mathematical tools like bc and awk, a direct command for Pi streamlines access. Historically, users would often write small shell scripts or functions to wrap bc commands (e.g.,
pi() { echo "scale=$1; 4*a(1)" | bc -l; }) to achieve similar functionality. A standalone `pi` command would represent a specialization of this common computational task into a single, dedicated utility, reflecting a user-driven demand for simplicity in accessing fundamental mathematical constants.

bc(1), awk(1), printf(1), calc(1)