Binary fileA binary file is a that is not a . The term "binary file" is often used as a term meaning "non-text file". Many binary s contain parts that can be interpreted as text; for example, some containing formatted text, such as files, contain the text of the document but also contain formatting information in binary form. Binary files are usually thought of as being a sequence of bytes, which means the binary digits (bits) are grouped in eights. Binary files typically contain bytes that are intended to be interpreted as something other than text characters.
Media typeA media type (formerly known as a MIME type) is a two-part identifier for file formats and format contents transmitted on the Internet. Their purpose is somewhat similar to file extensions in that they identify the intended data format. The Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) is the official authority for the standardization and publication of these classifications.
Binary-to-text encodingA binary-to-text encoding is encoding of data in plain text. More precisely, it is an encoding of binary data in a sequence of printable characters. These encodings are necessary for transmission of data when the communication channel does not allow binary data (such as email or NNTP) or is not 8-bit clean. PGP documentation () uses the term "ASCII armor" for binary-to-text encoding when referring to Base64.
MarkdownMarkdown is a lightweight markup language for creating formatted text using a plain-text editor. John Gruber created Markdown in 2004 as a markup language that is easier to read in its source code form. Markdown is widely used for blogging and instant messaging, and also used elsewhere in online forums, collaborative software, documentation pages, and readme files. The initial description of Markdown contained ambiguities and raised unanswered questions, causing implementations to both intentionally and accidentally diverge from the original version.
