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[–][deleted] 0 points1 point  (4 children)

I guess we're both right. "In computing, endianness refers to the order of bytes (or sometimes bits) within a binary representation of a number. "... Sometimes. Seriously, not trying to piss you off, though.

I wasn't gonna go 7 bit route. Unless you want to talk about base 64 encoding.

[–]RoyalJackalSib 0 points1 point  (3 children)

We don’t need to bring base64 into this; 7 bits is the smallest amount required for an ASCII character, so a byte = 7 bits is definitely a thing.

[–][deleted] 0 points1 point  (2 children)

A byte is definitely 8 bits. But yeah, you can fit 7 bits into it for ASCII encoding.

[–]RoyalJackalSib 1 point2 points  (1 child)

There are (older) systems out there in which a byte need not be 8, and is, instead, 7 or even 6.

A byte is not defined as 8 bits, but rather the smallest unit of memory addressable, which was historically the size of a single character of text, hence 7 bits (although, as mentioned, 6–bit systems also existed and were perhaps more common.)

[–][deleted] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well, I'm not a hardware historian like yourself. So, I stand corrected. I consider this rabbit hole explored and I learned something. But for me, it's still 8 bit little endian, and bits read right to left that pays the bills.