[ELI5] How computers work using only 1s and 0s?
In:
Ones and zeros are combined to count numbers. It’s best shown as an example:
* 1 = 1
* 10 = 2
* 11 = 3
* 100 = 4
* etc
A computer uses one number to describe the operation (e.g., add = 1, subtract = 2, etc.), and then two other numbers for the operands of the operation. The computer has memory and a fourth number is used to tell the computer which memory address gets the result. When you tell a computer what to do, you feed it these four numbers, all in binary. This group of four numbers (operation, operand, operand, result) is called an ‘instruction’. A program is made up of a series of these instructions.
It is, of course, a little more complicated than this but these are the basics.
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