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*Technical Briefs*
ROHAN help Files

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binary

A binary file contains non-text characters that can only be read and processed by the program that created the file. Binary files can be executable programs, image files, or formatted text files (such as a Word document).

Binary files use all the bits in an 8-bit byte as opposed to an ascii (text only) file that uses only 7 of the bits in an 8-bit byte. In UNIX, ascii is the default setting for transferring files from one computer to another. If a binary file is transferred as ascii, the 8th bit is ignored and much of the file information is lost in the transfer. To send a binary file, at the ROHAN prompt type: 

rohan%  bin

This will change the file type to binary and all 8 bits will be included in the transfer.

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This page last modified: December 11, 2002
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