CACS/Glossary/Binary

Binary is a number system in the base 2, which contains only the digits 0 and 1. Since computer memory is made up of off-on switches, all computer programs and data are ultimately encoded in binary.

Binary refers to a program that has been compiled into an executable module. When the module is stored, the .BIN file extension is used. Some development platform compilers produce a binary module that must still be linked with other modules to produce an executable program.