- digital
- digital dig"i*tal (d[i^]j"[i^]*tal), a. [L. digitals.]
1. Of or pertaining to the fingers; done with the fingers;
as, digital compression; digital examination.
[1913 Webster]
2. of or pertaining to digits[3]; expressed in digits[3], or using digits[3]; as, a digital display; a digital clock. [PJC]
3. (Computers) performing internal logical and arithmetic operations by means of digits, usually represented as binary numbers. Contrasted to {analog}, wherein variables are represented as coninuous physical quantities such as voltages or the position of a pointer on a continuous scale; as, a digital computer. [PJC]
Note: In digital computers, physical quantities in analog form, such as images, sounds, distances, voltages, etc., must first be converted to an internal digital representation before calculations can be performed on them. The conversion may be done by the data enterer, by approximation, in the case of numerical values, or by analog-to-digital conversion in the case of light or sound intensities. The latter case uses special equipment to convert the physical impulses into a digital value, using a pre-defined encoding system. [PJC]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.
