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Byte-Size Measurement
Measuring Disk Storage Capacity
Unit
Equivalent number of bytes
What you might measure
1 byte
8 bits*
a character
1 kilobyte
1,000 bytes
email message
1 megabyte
1,000,000 bytes
textbook
1 gigabyte
1,000,000,000 bytes
bookstore
1 terabyte
1,000,000,000,000 bytes
university library
1 petabyte
1,000,000,000,000,000 bytes
future WWW
1 exabyte
1,000,000,000,000,000,000 bytes
?
1 zettabyte
1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 bytes
?
1 yottabyte
1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 bytes
?
*bit (BInary digiT) The smallest element of computer storage. It is a single digit in a binary number (0 or 1). The bit is physically a transistor or capacitor in a memory cell, a magnetic domain on disk or tape, a reflective spot on optical media or a high or low voltage pulsing through a circuit. Groups of bits make up storage units in the computer, called characters, bytes, or words, which are manipulated as a group. The most common is the byte, made up of eight bits and equivalent to one alphanumeric character. [Source: TechEncyclopedia]
