Digital

In the field of computing, information can be conveyed in digital or analog formats. Continuity is the differentiating factor between the two. For example, digital devices are only able to display information in finite units (10 degrees versus 10.0625 degrees), while analog devices display information that corresponds more precisely to real world phenomena. Digital watches display time in measured increments while analog watches show time unfold continuously through the circular movement of mechanical hands.

Although analog computers are used for simulating real-word conditions in a variety of fields, including nuclear power and electronics, the majority of computers, including those used for e-commerce, are digital machines. They process information in a binary format of zeroes and ones (0, 1, 10, 11, 100, 111, and so on). Accordingly, while the software programs used during e-commerce—including Web browsers and database programs—are written in high-level programming languages like C++ and Java that closely resemble human grammar, they eventually are converted to commands consisting of ones and zeroes that a computer's hardware can accept and understand. Digital computers function through four essential components: an input-output device; a control unit; main memory; and an arithmetic-logic unit.

The difference between analog and digital information can be shown in the audio recording process. Analog devices record sound waves directly onto magnetic tape, whereas digital devices take the same wave, convert it to a sequence of ones and zeroes, and store it for future use. When played back, the numbers are converted into electronic signals resembling the original sound wave. Digital information, including computer software programs, word processing documents, digital audio, and digital video, can be duplicated an infinite number of times without a loss in quality or integrity; the numeric expressions of zeroes and ones remain the same throughout time. In comparison, the quality of analog information, such as songs recorded on magnetic tape, deteriorates with successive generations as copies are made.