printB

printB is a function name used in various programming libraries and educational materials. It denotes a utility that outputs a numeric value as a binary sequence, or more generally prints a representation in base B. Because there is no single standard for printB, its exact behavior depends on the language and the library, but the core idea is to provide a human-readable binary form.

Typical signatures vary, but common forms include printB(value, width=None, pad_char='0', group_size=None). The function returns either the string representation or the number of characters printed, depending on environment. The primary task is to emit a string of bits corresponding to value, padded and optionally grouped for readability.

Examples: printB(13) -> "1101"; printB(13, width=8) -> "00001101"; printB(10, width=8, group_size=4) -> "0000 1010".

In practice, printB can be implemented as a wrapper around a base conversion routine or as a direct printer to the console. Some languages offer built-in binary formatting; printB is then used as a convenience to write output immediately.

Considerations include how to handle negative values and width. For unsigned values, width governs padding; for signed values, the chosen representation (such as two's complement) affects the output. Grouping choices, prefixing, and locale can influence readability and portability across environments.

See also: binary numeral system, base conversion, formatting, printf, sprintf.