Byte variable in Arduino

In this topic we will see how to use byte variable in Arduino. Generally we use base 10 in our daily life for computing/counting, but microcontrollers and/or processors do computing using base 2 or Binary number system. For an example 255 (2⁷ + 2⁶ + 2⁵ + 2⁴ + 2³ + 2² + 2¹ + 2⁰ = 128 + 64 + 32 + 16 + 8 + 4 + 2 + 1) of decimal will be written as (11111111)₂

Way to store a binary number is by using Byte variable in same manner we use data types such as int, float, char

Syntax:                 byte var_name = B11111111;

This B prefix tells the arduino to read the number in binary form not in decimal number system because

(11111111)₂ ≠ (11111111)₁₀

PROGRAMMING CODE – BYTE VARIABLE

byte a;
void setup() {
  Serial.begin(9600);
}
void loop() {
  for (int i = 0 ; i <= 15 ; i++) {
    a = i;
    Serial.print("Base 10 : ");
    Serial.print(a, DEC);    // DEC is use to print value of a in DECIMAL Number
    Serial.print("  Base 2 : ");
    Serial.println(a, BIN);    // BIN is use to print value of a in BINARY Number
    delay(1000);
  }
  while (1);
}

OUTPUT

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SHIFT REGISTER IC 74HC595