Size and Unit Specifications

“Space,” remarked Ford Prefect, “is big. Really big. You just won’t believe how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is.” Bits, on the other hand, are quite small. Fortunately, LFE lets you specify exactly how many of them you’d like to use at any given moment.

The Fundamental Problem of Bit Accounting

When working with binary data, one quickly encounters what philosophers call “the problem of exactly how many bits we’re talking about here.” Is that integer taking up 8 bits? 16? 42? The default answer, much like the answer to life, the universe, and everything, depends entirely on context—and unlike that famous answer, this one is actually useful.