BINARY WATCHES 101 01010 TUTORIAL
GEEK GADGET ALERT - TELLING TIME WITH BINARY WATCHES
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I am a Computer Geek at Heart. So much so that I work on, Repair and Custom Build my own Rigs.
Needless to say, me and Binary are one, two, four, eight… ;)
So, when I can mesh Binary into my Love and Passion for Jewelry, what do I get?
A Binary Watch!
Of course! :)
Binary is breaking a Computer down into it’s Most Elementary State of 1’s and 0’s (really On and Off).
Hence the old Binary Joke: There are only 10 types of people in the world; those who understand Binary, and those who don’t. HA! :)
The basic Binary Layout is shown below with an Example of a Problem and its Solution.
As you can see, the Binary Number 00010011 breaks down into the number 19. It doesn’t get any easier than that.
To find a certain number, all you have to do is add up all the digits below the “ONs” or “1’s”. Which in the example above is 16 + 2 + 1, which is 19.
Another Example
So this code: 01001011 (as shown below totaling the ON slots), would give you these binary numbers: 64 + 8 + 2 + 1, which then totals 75.
If you want to break this down even farther and take it step by step, go here: Steve Harrell breaks it down so it’s simple and easy to follow. I haven’t seen a better explanation yet! :)
Still with me? Good! Let’s get into Time… For Watches to tell Time, you don’t need to go up to 128 or 64 because Hours and Minutes don’t go that high. I mean, there are only so many different Minutes (59) and Hours (12) to use… So the code you’ll need is limited! :)
Minutes and Hours
Hours only need the Binary Numbers: 8, 4, 2, and 1.
Minutes need: 32, 16, 8, 4, 2, 1. That’s it!
Binary Watch Time
Let’s look at Examples of Binary Time. Below are Diagrams of the Face of a Binary Watch. Now picture two rows. One row is for Hours, the other for Minutes. What ever Number is Lit up (represented here by red dots for Hours and blue dots for Minutes) means it’s ON. Count them to get the Grand Total.
The thing you’ll find that makes Telling Time with LED lights on Watches so Fun, is the fact that almost all Watch Manufacturers put the Binary Numbers right on the Watches (Cheat), so you don’t need to know what they are, they tell you. All you have to do is Add. Like so…
Some Watches that you find on the market also show markers for AM and PM, as well as the Day, Date and even Seconds! (as shown below) Sweet! :)
You can’t get any Geekier than this when someone asks you for the Time and you show off your Watch Full of Bright LED lights. HA! The Eyes will Roll…
Note: Some Watches have Different Colored LED Lights for Hours and Minutes so it’s easy to tell them apart… While other Watches don’t! They may be all Red lights, all Blue, or whatever color of lights they use. Every Watch and Manufacturer is different! :)
No Help!
Some Manufacturers get Geekier and don’t Display the Binary Numbers at all, just the ON Slots that are Lit up by LED lights. That makes things much more Difficult, because you have to know what the Numbered Slots are, and of course the order of them: 32, 16, 8, 4, 2, 1.
It’s just you and your Brain to figure out the Correct Time as seen below…
lol (That’s LOL not 101) That’s for the TRUE Binary Geek!
Guesstimate Time
You can quickly Guesstimate Time as well. Just glancing at the first two Digits in the Minutes Slot will allow you to Round up the Time to the Nearest 15 Minutes. i.e. Quarter Til, Half Past… Whether the slots are ON or OFF will Dictate what the Guesstimation is.
- 00 (OFF and OFF) means On the Hour
- 01 (OFF and ON) means Quarter Past
- 10 (ON and OFF) means Half Past, or 30 minutes-ish
- 11 (ON and ON) means Quarter Til
So this example shown below (ON and ON) means it’s close to a Quarter Til…
You just have to realize that it doesn’t mean it’s close to a Quarter to 6, it’s actually a Quarter to 7. :)
We’re Guesstimating Time. Not doing Exact Rocket Science here! :)
Cool Binary Watches
Take a look at some of the Cool Binary Watches on the market today…
Plus, Amazon also sells tons of Cool Gadgets, Binary Watches and Clocks for the Geek at heart. Binary Heaven…
I would so wear a Watch like this. But you know what? My inner geek takes it one step further… It also grabs my Crazy Love for Sci-Fi! :)
I give you the Ultimate Binary Watch:
The Predator LED Binary Watch
I’m Drooling!
Seriously, if that isn’t the Coolest, Geekiest Watch that I have ever laid eyes on. :) Ahhh, it was meant for me!
If you are a Geek, you need a Binary Watch… Just because!
If you know a Geek, Christmas is coming and they will absolutely LOVE this Gift to Death!
And if you want more Fun, check out these other Cool Electronics, Gadgets and Gifts from ThinkGeek.
So What time is it?
Who cares? But look at this Kick Ass Watch of mine! HA! :)
To Check any Hour, Minutes or Time… See the FULL, Complete Table below… Enjoy!
Binary Time Minute by Minute:
Now, what time is it again? :)
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