You are now entering the PC Anatomy portal

In computing, "binary" refers to the base-2 numeral system that uses only two digits—0 and 1—to represent all data and instructions. It's the fundamental language of computers, with each 0 or 1 being a bit that signifies an "off" or "on" electrical state in a circuit. Combinations of these bits form more complex data, allowing computers to store and process text, images, sound, and programs.

How Binary Works

Two-Valued System: Unlike the decimal (base-10) system, which uses ten digits (0-9), binary uses only two. One can be thought of as "on" and zero as "off".

Bits and Bytes: The smallest unit of data in a computer is a bit. A group of eight bits is called a byte.

Positional Value: Just as in decimal, the position of a binary digit is important. Each position represents a power of two, starting with 2? (1) for the rightmost digit and increasing to the left.

Data Representation: Binary digits are used to represent any form of information a computer can process, including:

Numbers: Simple calculations can be performed by adding binary numbers, similar to how decimal addition works but with only two digits.

Text: Characters are converted into their binary equivalents through standards like ASCII.

Images and Sound: Images are broken down into pixels, and sound into waveforms, both of which are assigned numerical values represented in binary.