What Is Hexadecimal?

Hexadecimals. Oh, hexadecimals. They're the base/positional number system used in mathematics and computer science that we must explain every time we talk about computers or math. It's a simple concept: Hexadecimal is another way of representing binary. It has a base of 16 and uses 16 unique alpha-numeric symbols, with the numbers zero through nine to express themselves and the letters A through F to represent the values 10 through 15. Hexadecimals are used diligently in computer science and digital electronics to describe binary code as a human-readable form. Hexadecimals are used to represent numbers in the computer world. They are composed of 16 numbers, similar to how we use ten digits (0-9) to describe our base-ten system. The hexadecimal system is an exponential system that uses powers of 16 instead of 10, like our decimal system. You can use a calculator or math program to convert a number from binary or decimal into hexadecimal. You need to find the value of each digit and multiply it by its power of 16 (16^n), add them up, and then divide that sum by two raised to the power of 16 minus n (16^n - 1). Once you have done this for all digits in your number, you will be left with your final hexadecimal result! The number progression in hexadecimal is the same as in decimal, except they're just reversed. In hex, the first number is 0, and the last number is F. The counting system is also different—instead of being based on 10s, it's based on 16s (hence "hex"!). This means that a single hexadecimal digit represents four binary bits called a nibble, which is half an octet (8 bits). So, when you reach F on your keyboard, it's time to move left—the place value becomes zero again! This means that after 09 is 10 in decimal, and after 0F is 10 in hexadecimal. That's it! Easy peasy! It's easier to represent binary values in computer systems because they significantly shorten the number of digits, as one hexadecimal digit is equivalent to four binary digits.