A byte is composed of how many bits?

A byte is composed of how many bits?

• A. Four bits
• B. Sixteen bits
• C. Eight bits
• D. Thirty-two bits

Answer: (C)

Eight bits. That is the standard unit of data in modern computers, allowing 2^8 = 256 distinct values, which is enough to encode characters and many small data pieces. Four bits is a nibble, sixteen bits is two bytes or a 16-bit word in some contexts, and thirty-two bits is four bytes or a 32-bit word. The byte itself is eight bits, which is why the correct answer is eight bits.

Eight bits. That is the standard unit of data in modern computers, allowing 2^8 = 256 distinct values, which is enough to encode characters and many small data pieces. Four bits is a nibble, sixteen bits is two bytes or a 16-bit word in some contexts, and thirty-two bits is four bytes or a 32-bit word. The byte itself is eight bits, which is why the correct answer is eight bits.