What is "hexadecimal"

The system hexadecimal is a positional numbering system that represents the numbers in base 16, therefore employing 16 symbols.

It is linked to computer science, because computers use the byte or Octete as the basic unit of memory; and, due to a byte representing 2⁸ = 256 possible values, and this can be represented as 2⁸ = 2⁴ * 2⁴ = 16 * 16 = 1 * 16² + 0 * 16¹ + 0 * 16⁰, which, according to the general positional numbering theorem, equates to the base number 16.

Hexadecimal system symbol set:

S = {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, A, B, C, D, E and F.}

It is widely used to represent binary numbers in a more compact way, as it is very easy to convert binaries to hexadecimal and vice versa. Thus, this system is widely used in computer and microprocessor applications (programming, printing and displays).

For more information, visit: Hexadecimal numbering system.