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the number of bits describing the architecture of a CPU system define its maximum "word size", or how many bits it can process at one time. In an 8-bit system, a standard integer can hold a value of up to +127, and an unsigned integer can hold a value up to +255. In a 16-bit system, unsigned integers can hold values up to 2^16 - 1, or 65,535.

When speaking of 8-bit and 16-bit color, for 8-bit color you can either mean the palette size (256 colors, each of which can be assigned any color) where only 256 unique colors can be used at a time. The other meaning of 8-bit color is a different 256-color system (called 8-bit truecolor) where you define the color by attributing 3 bits to red, 3 to green, and 2 to blue. This system is less effective than the 8-bit palette system.

16-bit color (also called high-color or 16-bit truecolor) allows a total of 65,536 unique colors to be displayed, anywhere on screen at any time, by assigning 5 bits to the red and blue channels, and 6 bits to the green channel (our eyes are more sensitive to green).

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15y ago

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