How to Change a Number to Binary

The number system we're most accustomed to using is known as the decimal system. It has 10 digits, ranging from 0 to 9, which can be organized to represent a number of any magnitude. Once we run out of digits to use, we represent the number in question by a combination of two digits. So, for example, going from 9 to 10 we don't have any digits to use beyond 9, so we start over with a combination of two existing digits--1 and 0--to represent the next number in line. Binary numbers work in exactly the same way but make use of only two digits, 0 and 1.

Instructions

1. Divide any decimal-system number by 2 and write down the quotient in one column and the remainder in another column.

2. Divide the quotient by 2 and write the new quotient underneath the previous quotient; write the new remainder underneath the previous remainder.

3. Continuing dividing by 2, and writing the quotients and remainders below each previous quotient or remainder in their respective columns, until you're left with a quotient of 1.

4. Write the final quotient--1--down first, then write every remainder after it, working from the bottom of the remainders column up to the top. The string of numbers thus produced is the representation of your original number in binary form.

References

• Help With PCs: Converting from Decimal to Binary