Code: The Hidden Language of Computer Hardware and Software, 2nd Edition

Chapter Twelve

Bytes and Hexadecimal

Individual bits can make big statements: yes or no, true or false, pass or fail. But most commonly, multiple bits are grouped together to represent numbers and, from there, all kinds of data, including text, sound, music, pictures, and movies. A circuit that adds two bits together is interesting, but a circuit that adds multiple bits is on its way to becoming part of an actual computer.

For convenience in moving and manipulating bits, computer systems often group a certain number of bits into a quantity called a word. The length or size of this word—meaning the number of bits that compose the word—becomes crucial to the architecture of the computer because all the computer’s data moves in groups of either ...