Representation of Characters in Binary
Each character on a keyboard is assigned a unique binary code. This binary representation allows computers to store and manipulate text data efficiently.
Binary Codes for Representing Characters
In computer systems, characters such as letters, numbers, and symbols are represented using binary codes. Understanding how these characters are encoded in binary, particularly using the ASCII standard, is a fundamental concept in computer science.
ASCII Encoding Using 8-bit Binary Codes
The American Standard Code for Information Interchange (ASCII) is a character-encoding standard that uses binary codes to represent text in computers. In GCSE exams, ASCII characters are represented using 8-bit (1 byte) binary codes.
For example, the ASCII code for the uppercase letter 'A' is 01000001.
ASCII Table Reference
An ASCII table maps each character to its corresponding binary code. For instance:
- 'A' - 01000001
- 'B' - 01000010
- '1' - 00110001
- '$' - 00100100
Note: ASCII codes range from 00000000 to 01111111, representing 128 standard characters.
Practice Exercise
Question: What is the 8-bit ASCII binary code for the lowercase letter 'b'?
Answer: The 8-bit ASCII code for 'b' is 01100010.