A byte is a unit of storage as well as processing of digital data. In computing systems, one byte is equal to eight bits. As a result, it takes one of 256 values. To denote a word containing 8 bits, there is the concept of "octet".
Instructions
Step 1
The English word byte comes from the phrase binary term, which means "binary term". For the first time the concept of "byte" was used in 1956 during the design of the IBM 7030 computer. Initially, one byte was equal to 6 bits, but then its size was expanded to 8 bits.
Step 2
Some of the computers built in the 1950s and 1960s used 6-bit characters. Computers manufactured by Burroughs Computer Corporation used a 9-bit byte.
Step 3
The IDM System / 360 was the first to use byte addressing. Its advantage over addressing a whole machine word is that it is easier to process textual information. This system also used bytes consisting of 8 bits.
Step 4
In the 1970s, the 8-bit byte size became the de facto standard.
Step 5
The use of multiple prefixes, which make it possible to form derived units, is not done in the usual way for a byte. Firstly, diminutive prefixes are not used, and secondly, prefixes for magnification are multiples of 1024 (not 1000). One kilobyte is equal to 1024 bytes, one megabyte is equal to 1024 kilobytes (1048576 bytes), etc.
Step 6
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) approved binary prefixes for bytes in 1999, as the use of standard decimal places is incorrect. The binary prefix name is formed by replacing the last syllable in the decimal prefix with “bi”. Those. 1024 bytes - 1 kibibyte, 1024 kibibytes - 1 mebibyte, etc.
Step 7
In Russian GOST 8.417-2002, which is called "Units of quantities", the Cyrillic capital letter "B" is used to denote a byte. It is also pointed out that the use of decimal prefixes to form derived units is widely used, but is incorrect.