Re: About "set bits"

[Barry Margolin <barmar@alum.mit.edu>]

In article <mailman.23883.1365607222.855.help-gnu-emacs@gnu.org>,
 Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org> wrote:

> > Date: Wed, 10 Apr 2013 21:46:27 +0800
> > From: Xue Fuqiao <xfq.free@gmail.com>
> > 
> > In (info "(elisp) Bindat Spec"):
> > 
> >   `bits LEN'
> >      List of set bits in LEN bytes.  The bytes are taken in big endian
> >      order and the bits are numbered starting with `8 * LEN - 1' and
> >      ending with zero.  For example: `bits 2' unpacks `#x28' `#x1c' to
> >      `(2 3 4 11 13)' and `#x1c' `#x28' to `(3 5 10 11 12)'.
> > 
> > I don't know what "set bits" means here.
> 
> It means bits that are set, i.e. their value is 1.

Xue's questions about documentation often seem to suggest that he 
doesn't know how to parse English. He frequently tries to interpret 
phrases as computer or Emacs jargon, when they just have the meaning the 
words imply.

-- 
Barry Margolin, barmar@alum.mit.edu
Arlington, MA
*** PLEASE post questions in newsgroups, not directly to me ***