Digital is relating to or being a device that can generate, record, process, receive, transmit, or display information that is represented in discrete numerical form.
As a technology, analog is the process of taking an audio or video signal (in most cases, the human voice) and translating it into electronic pulses. Digital on the other hand is breaking the signal into a binary format where the audio or video data is represented by a series of "1"s and "0"s. Simple enough when it's the device—analog or digital phone, fax, modem, or likewise—that does all the converting for you.
The newer of the two, digital technology breaks your voice (or television) signal into binary code—a series of 1s and 0s—transfers it to the other end where another device (phone, modem or TV) takes all the numbers and reassembles them into the original signal. The beauty of digital is that it knows what it should be when it reaches the end of the transmission. That way, it can correct any errors that may have occurred in the data transfer. What does all that mean to you? Clarity. In most cases, you'll get distortion-free conversations and clearer TV pictures.
The word DIGITAL describes any system based on discontinuous data or events. The important word here is discontinuous, which means not continuous or having breaks. The opposite of digital is analog.
ANALOG processes information more or less in a continuous stream. The difference can be easily seen in a clock. An analog clock is one with hands that move around the clock continuously producing a stream of time. Any minute and any fraction of a minute can be represented. For instance, you could look at an analog clock and say with some degree of accuracy that it is one and one half minutes past one o'clock. You could see that the minute hand was half way between one and two minutes. The average digital clock, which shows the time by flashing the hour and the minute, produces distinct minutes but cannot represent a half of a minute or a quarter of a minute. The digital clock will show that it is one minute past one or two minutes past one. You cannot tell from looking at the clock if it is one and one half minutes past one or one and a quarter minutes past one.
From the above description, you may surmise that analog is more detailed than digital, but that assumption would be incorrect. Although the normal digital clock will show only minutes, a more detailed digital clock could show fractions of minutes – even a thousandth or millionth of a second, something that an analog clock could not do as accurately. Digital equipment can accurately produce minute details. In addition, digital processing is important because a computer or other digital piece of equipment can store and manipulate digital signals quickly and easily. In addition, digital signals can be converted to analog signals to create a very high quality reproduction.
http://telecom.hellodirect.com/docs/Tutorials/AnalogVsDigital.1.051501.asp
www.dictionary.com
http://electronics.howstuffworks.com/question7.htm
http://www.cellphonecarriers.com/compare-digital-analog.html
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
This is very informative. When I think of digital and analog I always think in terms of clocks- so your post made a lot of sense to me.
ReplyDeleteI also think that you raise a very valid point in regards to clocks when it comes to digital verses analog. We were discussing this in one of my classes and I thought that some very interesting points were made. I think analog clocks often lead to inaccuracies. Although I do not think of analog clocks as a representative for analog technologies on a whole, I do think that digital technologies can be often seen as superior. How many times, when it comes to an analog clock, instead of someone saying it's 5:13, say it's a quarter after five? Or even 5:10? I find that people often round their numbers to the closest :05, sometimes even the closest quarter. However, when it comes to digital watches, if I ask someone for the time, I find that the person rarely ever rounds, seeing as the exact time is presented to them to easily and effectively. Maybe it's just me, but I am starting to rely and trust digital technologies more and more.
ReplyDeleteIs the official time clock an analog one? I highly doubt it. Digital technology is far more superior than analog and is recognized as such by the vast majority of our society. Digital cable (or even FiOs) is superior to analog (and now obsolete) and the DVD is superior to VHS. What is interesting to think about is what will replace this "digital" age?
ReplyDeleteI really like this post, it very straight forward and concise in explaining analog versus digital technology. The clock example is a great way to illustrate the difference between the two.
ReplyDeleteAuthor Douglas Adams makes an interesting point that a pie chart visually represents a part-whole relationship in a way that is immediately obvious. He says that the hands of an analog clock form wedges that look like a pie chart, and like a pie chart, they represent a sort of part-whole relationship. Digital timepieces, on the other hand are very precise but say nothing about the relationship of one time of day to another.
I agree with everyone else, nice post well organized and easy to understand. Go digital!
ReplyDeleteYes, yes, yes, an excellent post and example. And certainly, continuity and discontinuity are key characteristics that distinguish the digital from the analog.
ReplyDeleteDevon, kudos both for mentioning one of my favorite authors, and for making an excellent point about the downside of digital time.