The type <type>integer</type> is the common choice, as it offers
the best balance between range, storage size, and performance.
The <type>smallint</type> type is generally only used if disk
- space is at a premium. The <type>bigint</type> type should only
- be used if the range of the <type>integer</type> type is insufficient,
- because the latter is definitely faster.
- </para>
-
- <para>
- On very minimal operating systems the <type>bigint</type> type
- might not function correctly, because it relies on compiler support
- for eight-byte integers. On such machines, <type>bigint</type>
- acts the same as <type>integer</type>, but still takes up eight
- bytes of storage. (We are not aware of any modern
- platform where this is the case.)
+ space is at a premium. The <type>bigint</type> type is designed to be
+ used when the range of the <type>integer</type> type is insufficient.
</para>
<para>