What Is Binary Code?
Binary code is the most basic programming language. Consisting only of 1s and 0s, binary code was created to transform human-written code (in apps like Java and C++) into machine code (code understood by processors) or vice versa.
In other words, the binary code is the core language of computers. It forms the basic layer of all computing systems and is the primary transmitter of data for all digital technologies.
How Does Binary Code Work?
A computer represents and understands every letter or number bigger than 1 in binary code. Devices typically arrange the code into information packs called “bits” or “bytes.” The “bits” are single digits, 1s, and 0s, and they are never used without grouping them.
A group of eight bits is called a byte.
Bytes can already contain information like letters or two-digit numbers. For example, the letter “A” in binary code would be 01000001.
For more complex information, a computer stacks those bits, getting information stored in 16, 32, 64, 128, and 256 bits.
The more bits, the bigger the data stored and transmitted with binary code.
Machine code is formed only with these bits stacked together. They pass through a computer’s hardware and software, transmitting data at insane speeds. For example, a regular processor has a bit rate (the speed at which bits are processed and transmitted from one place to another) of 15Mbits/second.
15Mbits/second equals 15 million bits transmitted per second or 1.85 million bytes per second. One byte is a string of 8 bits that usually represents a letter, which means that normal computers today can transmit 1.85 million letters per second.
Applications of Binary Code
Computers use binary code in almost all of their daily activities. Central processing units (CPUs) use it to execute logical and arithmetical operations within the computer. Here are three examples of how the binary code is used:
Calculations
To make even the easiest calculations using normal digits, the computer transforms them into binary code, uses Boolean algebra to calculate, and then transforms the result back into human-readable formats.
File Compression and Decompression
Compression algorithms, like the ones used by Gmail when users want to send a big file, use binary code to represent data in more compact formats.
This transition saves storage space and time when sending large files through applications that have the ability to compress and decompress them.
Blockchain Technology
The data stored on blockchains ( e.g., transactions, wallet balances, addresses, and more) can be transformed into binary code and analyzed by computers.
Then, the computers can transform it into human-readable text and display it in a crypto wallet or a decentralized application.
