The most basic unit of binary is a bit, which is just a single 1 or 0. In binary, all data is represented in sequences of 1s and 0s. In order to store information, computers use a binary system. UTF-8 stands for “Unicode Transformation Format - 8 bits.” That’s not helpful to us yet, so let’s rewind to the basics. We’ll learn the basics of text storage and encoding, and discuss how it helps put engaging words across your site.īefore we begin, you should be familiar with the basics of HTML and ready to dive into some light computer science. In this post, I’ll explain the basics of one technology central to text on the web, UTF-8. The truth is, even something as basic as text requires a well-coordinated, clearly-defined system to appear in web browsers.

How do websites store and process all of this? Consider the thousands of languages spoken today, or all the punctuation and symbols we can add to enhance them, or the fact that new emojis are being created to capture every human emotion. But, web text might not actually be as simple as you think.

What is encoding in memory