26. The apparatus of claim 22 , wherein said means for determining said relationship between said first and second numerical values further comprises: means for subtracting at least a portion of said first binary string from at least a portion of said second binary string; and means for determining said relationship based, at least in part, on a result of said subtraction.
27. The apparatus of claim 26 , wherein said first character expression represents a first quantity and said second character expression represents a second quantity, and wherein said means for determining said relationship further comprises means for determining whether said first quantity is greater than said second quantity based, at least in part, on said result of said subtraction.