Dec/Hex/Octal/Binary megaConverter #22 
INFORMATION PAGE  

      In the simplest terms, computers can be described as a series of on/off switches. Data is fed in by an array of such switches. There are only two possible positions for each switch, on or off. Programmers represent these positions as 1 for on and 0 for off. Thus, information can be represented as binary numerals like 10110111. The number of digits corresponds to the number of switches. As computers have gotten larger, this information has grown from 8 bits (binary digits) to 16, 32, 64, and even 128 bits. Numerals this large become unwieldy, so we like to represent them by shorter numeral types like octal or hexadecimal. It is also useful to know the decimal equivalent of these numerals.  
      This converter is designed to allow the user to quickly convert between the various representations up to 32 bits. Enter the known numeral in its appropriate field and click the light blue = sign at the bottom edge of the converter. Equivalent numerals will then appear in their appropriate fields. Note that hexadecimal numerals are typically represented with 0x as a prefix although the converter will accept them input with or without the 0x. Octal numbers are typically shown with a leading 0.

      It is occasionally useful to know the decimal equivalent of a particular binary location N. This is the same as 2 to the power of N. The lower row of the converter is designed for this purpose. Enter the location (radix) into the first field and then click the "=" button.