Difference between revisions of "Binary bit"
m (DavidB4 moved page Bit to Binary bit: I'm not sure if this is the best name, but it's better that what it was before) |
m (removed move request, though I welcome any better move suggestions for this page) |
||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| − | |||
'''''This page refers to the binary bit. This is not to be confused with a [[drill bit]] or portion (bit) of something.''''' | '''''This page refers to the binary bit. This is not to be confused with a [[drill bit]] or portion (bit) of something.''''' | ||
Revision as of 05:25, July 19, 2016
This page refers to the binary bit. This is not to be confused with a drill bit or portion (bit) of something.
A bit is a single binary character. it is either a zero or a one. This is because data is stored in a "yes/no" format. On a magnetic drive, a point it magnetized as north or south. If it is recorded as north, this means 0, if South, then 1. In all other cases, a pulse or change is a one. A lack of signal or change means a zero. Optical drives have the foil backing melted in points to make these ones—gaps are zeros. Flash memory uses physical switches, which are set to "yes" or "no" (one or zero) by electric impulses. As a computer works and "thinks," it sends pulses through its various systems for ones, and pauses for zeros.[1]
Regardless of the storage method, there is always a one or a zero. For ease of use, bits are often grouped together by eights, into what is known as a byte.[2]