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50-year anniversary!
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A '''ZIP code''' is a five-[[digit]] [[numeric]] [[code]] used by the [[United States Postal Service]] in sorting [[mail]]. The first digit indicates a group of [[state]]s; the second and third, a region of a state or a large [[city]]; and the fourth and fifth, a small [[town]], a delivery area in a larger town or city, a particular postal facility, or a particular large mail recipient.  Extensions of the ZIP code include the nine-digit ZIP+4 code and the 11-digit ABC (Advanced Bar Coding) code.
 
A '''ZIP code''' is a five-[[digit]] [[numeric]] [[code]] used by the [[United States Postal Service]] in sorting [[mail]]. The first digit indicates a group of [[state]]s; the second and third, a region of a state or a large [[city]]; and the fourth and fifth, a small [[town]], a delivery area in a larger town or city, a particular postal facility, or a particular large mail recipient.  Extensions of the ZIP code include the nine-digit ZIP+4 code and the 11-digit ABC (Advanced Bar Coding) code.
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Zip codes were introduced by the Postal Service in 1963, with a massive advertising campaign feature "Mr. Zip," which encouraged Americans to use the numbers.<ref>http://www.thesmartset.com/article/article06121301.aspx</ref>  "ZIP" is an acronym for "Zone Improvement Plan."
    
ZIP codes are encoded into barcodes, using a redundant binary code with tall lines to represent the bit "1" and short lines to represent the bit "0," and printed on mail.  A "1" (tall line) starts and ends the ZIP code, and immediately before the final "1" comes a [[checksum]] digit which, when added to all of the digits of the ZIP code, adds to a multiple of 10.  The code scheme is chosen so that each digit's binary equivalent has exactly two "1"'s.  Digits are encoded as follows:
 
ZIP codes are encoded into barcodes, using a redundant binary code with tall lines to represent the bit "1" and short lines to represent the bit "0," and printed on mail.  A "1" (tall line) starts and ends the ZIP code, and immediately before the final "1" comes a [[checksum]] digit which, when added to all of the digits of the ZIP code, adds to a multiple of 10.  The code scheme is chosen so that each digit's binary equivalent has exactly two "1"'s.  Digits are encoded as follows:
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== References ==
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<references/>
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[[Category:United States Government]]
 
[[Category:United States Government]]
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