Bits and Bytes
- Smallest directly accessible datum is the byte
- Byte = 8 bits
- Byte range of values:
- 00000000 … 11111111 (base 2 binary)
- 000 … 377 (base 8 octal)
- 0 … 255 (base 10 decimal)
- 00 … FF (base 16 hexadecimal)
- Byte also size of ascii char
- C and C++ provide access to individual bits via bit operations
- Use these bit operations to manipulate individual bits
- C++, but not C, provides a way to descend to the bit level inside a class
implementation while remaining at a more abstract level for applications: the
class
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