Posted by Genghis [130.15.126.81 - webproxy.QueensU.CA] on 29 January 2002 at 05.07.43 ZuluTime:
In Reply to: Notice how 'ff' isn't a colour.... posted by Hunter on 28 January 2002 at 19.22.06 ZuluTime:
Haven't been around in a while. Doesn't look like I missed much. Let's do this slowly and methodically. 'Deka' is Greek for 'ten'; derived from this is the English word 'decimal', denoting a base-ten mathematical system. 'Hexkaidexa' is Greek for 'sixteen'; from this is derived the English word 'hexadecimal', which describes a base-sixteen mathematical system. Waitaminute -- base sixteen? Why, there are only ten numerical digits in use in the English-speaking world! Why, whatever are we to do? Well, we appropriate letters is what we do -- specifically, 'A', 'B', 'C', 'D', 'E', and 'F' which, added to the aforementioned ten digits, equals . . . let's see . . . sixteen 'digits' with which to work with. Therefore, in hexidecimal terms, there are 'FF' shades of grey. That equals, in decimal terms, 255 shades of grey. When you add '00' that makes a grand total of, in decmial terms, 256 shades of grey. Chris's other merits of intelligence (or lack thereof) aside, he's right here. -The Genghis Formerly Known as The Host