Exploring Computer Hardware

Binary Fractions

You can express factions using the binary number system. You can express these fractions using fixed point or floating point. In fixed point, the binary point is set in a fixed position. With floating point, the location of the point moves around.

Fixed Point

In decimal, the digit immediately to the right of the decimal point is worth one tenth (1/10), then a hundredth (1/100), a thousandth (1/1000), and so on.

In binary, it’s the same idea, except the first digit to the right of the point is a half, the next is a quarter, then ...