Simply put, binary is a system that uses two digits (0 and 1), while BCD uses ten digits (0 through 9). The main difference between the two systems is that binary is more efficient when it comes to storage and processing, while bcd offers more flexibility.
What is binary?
Binary is a system of two digits, usually 0 and 1. In digital electronics, binary numbers are used to represent all numbers, both positive and negative. For example,
the number 12 can be represented as 1100
The number -5 can be written as -101
The number 3/4 can also be expressed in binary form: 0.11
Binary numbers have many applications in electronic devices and computer programming. For example, computer memory is often organized into eight-bit words, so that a byte (eight bits) can store one character of text. Similarly, 24-bit colours are often used to represent images on a computer screen.
What is BCD?
Binary-coded decimal (BCD) is a class of digital encodings in which each decimal digit is represented by a fixed number of bits. BCD is used in electronic systems where a small space is available for encoding data, such as on ROM chips.
The most common form of BCD is the 8421 code. In this code, each decimal digit is represented by a four-bit binary value. For example, the decimal digit “3” is represented as “0011” in binary form.
BCD can be used to represent other numbers besides decimal digits. For example, it can be used to represent hexadecimal values or octal values. It can also be used to represent fractional values.
For example,
the number 12 can be represented as 00010010
And the number 3/4 can be expressed in BCD form as: 0000.01110101
One advantage of using BCD is that it is easy to convert back and forth between decimal and binary form. This can be helpful when performing mathematical operations
The difference between binary and BCD
The main difference between the two systems is that BCD uses more bits to represent each digit, while binary uses fewer. As a result, BCD is more efficient when representing large numbers, while binary is more efficient when representing small numbers.
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