Information Representation - Codes
Representing Numerical Values - Unsigned integers


As you go from right to left in a binary number each bit of 0 or 1 represents an ascending power of 2. So a 4 bit number can go up to a maximum of 1111 = 15 decimal, an 8 bit number can go up to 11111111 = 255, and a 16 bit number can go up to 65535. Any larger numbers than this would need 32 bits. Computers will have a limit as to how many bits they can handle.

So far we have only worked with whole numbers that are also positive numbers. We could call them Unsigned Integers.