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BIT
A single binary digit.
More Detailed Definition:
Short for binary digit, the
smallest unit of information on a machine. The term was first used
in 1946 by John Tukey, a leading statistician and adviser to five
presidents. A single bit can hold only one of two values: 0 or 1.
More meaningful information is obtained by combining consecutive
bits into larger units. For example, a byte is composed of 8
consecutive bits.
Computers are sometimes classified by the number of bits they can
process at one time or by the number of bits they use to represent
addresses. These two values are not always the same, which leads
to confusion. For example, classifying a computer as a 32-bit
machine might mean that its data registers are 32 bits wide or
that it uses 32 bits to identify each address in memory. Whereas
larger registers make a computer faster, using more bits for
addresses enables a machine to support larger programs.
Graphics are also often described by the number of bits used to
represent each dot. A 1-bit image is monochrome; an 8-bit image
supports 256 colors or grayscales; and a 24- or 32-bit graphic
supports true color.
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