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Text Vs. Binary Files: Understanding the Key Differences & Use Cases

A file is essentially data stored on a computer, and that particular data can be created, read, written, and modified by applications surrounding the file. Most files may be categorized as either text files, which represent a set of readable characters, or binary files, which represent data that is internally encoded in a completely different manner.

In this article, we will explore the difference between text and binary files, understand how they function, and examine their use cases to help you choose the right format for your programming needs.

What Is A Text File?

The file, usually referred to as a text file, serves the same purpose as a sheet of paper, carrying raw text data written by a user in electronic text format. It is, in essence, a digital equivalent of a written piece of content.

Essentially, these files are stored with a .txt file extension on a user's device, which can be accessed through numerous text editors such as Notepad, Gedit (Linux), TextEdit (Mac); code editors like Visual Studio Code, PyCharm, or word processors such as LibreOffice Writer, Google Docs-or even modern web browsers like Google Chrome, Safari, Mozilla Firefox, etc.

What Is A Binary File?

Binary files, on the other hand, are digital files of another kind, and they hold information that is not in a human-readable file format.

Whereas text files store data as plain text and are opened and read in an ordinary text editor, binary files store data in binary (0s and 1s) and require a particular software or program for interpretation and manipulation of the data.

Key Differences Between Text File & Binary File

Property	Text File	Binary File
Data Storage	Stores data as plain text, usually readable by humans.	Stores data in binary format, which is not human-readable
Method of Encoding	Usually encoded in the ASCII or UTF-8 standard format.	Encoded in binary formats, often specific to the application.
Ease of Editability	Easy to edit with basic text editors.	Only edit with specific tools or software.
Readability	Human-readable content	Non-human-readable content
Error handling	Errors are easier to spot and rectify.	Errors are more difficult to identify, and mishandling can result in file corruption.
System Compatibility	Highly compatible across different platforms.	Compatibility may vary depending on the file format and system.
Size of File	Generally smaller due to simpler data.	Comparatively larger due to complex data structures.
Extensions	mainly use .txt file extension, but also includes .csv, .md, and .json	Some popular file extensions include .jpg, .png, .mp3, .mp4, etc.
Memory Space	Text files are lightweight and occupy minimal space in memory	Comparatively heavier as they store data in compressed or encoded formats.
Compression	Typically not compressed; remains in plain text format.	Often compressed to save space, especially for multimedia files.
Portability	Highly portable across different platforms and operating systems	Portability can be limited and may require specific software or hardware to interpret.
Saving Method	Saves data in a simple, sequential manner in plain text	Saves data in binary form; can include complex data structures and formats
Use of Special Characters	Contains readable characters; uses special characters like newline (\n) for formatting	Contains all types of data, including non-readable characters; no specific formatting characters
Opening Mode	Opened and saved in text mode, ensuring the content remains plain text	Opened and saved in binary mode, allowing for complex data representation
Examples	Configuration files, source code files, and log files	Executable files, image files, video files, compiled program files

Characteristics of a Text File

Plain text storage: Text files are used for data storage in plain text, where the characters are readable without any special formatting.

Readable by Humans: The text file contents are easily read and understood by a reader using any simple text editor.

Standard File Extensions: The .txt extension is typically assigned to text files, while alternatives such as .md and .csv can also be used to store text data.

Editable Using Simple Text Editors: Text files can be opened and edited using simple text editors like Notepad (Windows), TextEdit (Mac), and Gedit (Linux), as well as advanced ones like Visual Studio Code and Sublime Text.

Standard Encoding: Text files are typically encoded with standard character encodings, such as ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) or UTF-8 (Unicode Transformation Format).

Simplicity of Data Formats: They are mostly unformatted text but can also include simple data structures, such as text lines, paragraphs, or lists.

Multi-Platform: Text files are generally considered highly compatible across numerous operating systems and platforms, making them universally recognized for data exchange.

Smaller Files: Text files are typically smaller in file size because they don't contain complex formatting or multimedia content, as compared to binary files.

Easy Searching and Parsing: Since text files are in plain text format, searching for specific strings or programming a parser to parse their content is a straightforward task.

Error Detection and Correction: Errors in text files can be identified and corrected with greater ease because their contents are human-readable and do not rely on specific software for viewing.

Configuration and Script Usage: Text files are commonly used to store configuration and script settings for various applications, including software development and system administration.

Characteristics of a Binary File

Non-Human Readable Format: Binary files store data in a form unrecognizable to human reading. They require specialized software to accurately interpret their data and present it for viewing.

Storage of Binary Data: The data in binary files is stored as a collection of bytes, which are sequences of 0s and 1s (i.e., binary code). This makes it easy for the computer to process, but it requires the right software for any human to understand.

Specific File Extensions: The specific file extensions for binary files can vary depending on the type of data they contain. Common extensions include .exe for executable files, .bin for binary data, .jpg for image files, .mp3 for audio files, and .pdf for document files.

Actioned on Binary Files: To read or write a binary file, specialized applications must be used. For instance, in the case of an .exe file, it requires an operating system that can run the program. Likewise, a .jpg file requires an image viewer.

Great Data Representation: Binary files are a very efficient way to represent data. This is the presentation that we give to them

How To Use A Text File?

Using a text file involves a few basic steps:

Creation: To create a text file, one can use some of the programming languages, like writing initial content with Python or the command line, or any number of general-purpose text editors.

Opening: Opening a text file would open access to its contents for reading or adding new data.

Reading: Reading from a text file typically refers to processing its contents line by line, while writing to a text file typically means appending or modifying the contents.

Let’s look at the programmatic approach for operating on a text file in everyone’s favorite language:

Python ->

Text file creation: We use an open() function to create and open a text file with w(write) mode named as an example .txt. Then, use the write() function to add string values to it to save in the text file.

# Create a text file and write some content to it
with open('example.txt', 'w') as file:
file.write("Hello, world!\n")
file.write("This is a text file example.")

Opening a text file : A text file can be opened with the same open() function, but this time it is opened in read mode simply by passing "r" as mode. read(): This function performs operations to read from a text file and assigns the contents to the content variable.

# Open a text file and read its contents
with open('example.txt', 'r') as file:
content = file.read()
print(content)

Reading from a text file: We can also read line by line from a text file by going through a for loop, going over the lines in a file.

# Read and process each line from a text file
with open('example.txt', 'r') as file:
for line in file:
print(line.strip()) # strip() removes the newline character

Writing to a Text File: To append any content to a text file, we open the file in append mode by passing the mode parameter as “a” and then specifying the content of the file into the write function.

# Append new content to an existing text file
with open('example.txt', 'a') as file:
file.write("\nAppending a new line to the text file.")

How To Use A Binary File?

Once again, binary files are invoked when opening, creating, and performing read and write operations.

A binary file can be created using a programming language such as Python or C for writing the actual raw binary data when creating binary files.
Opening a binary file allows me to read or append some binary content within the file.
Reading a binary file involves chunking or processing byte by byte, whereas writing a binary file essentially involves appending new or modifying existing binary data.
Operations that are a crucial component of multimedia file management, the execution of computer programs, and data serialization, such as binary as a file format, very much justify its use in storing and working with complex forms of data.

Let’s look at an example with Python for binary files too ->

Creating a Binary File: To create a binary file, open the file in "wb" mode, which stands for write binary. The open() function creates a file with the name provided and opens it for processing according to the given mode. The binary data is passed to the write() function, similar to the case of any ordinary text file.

# Create a binary file and write some binary data to it
with open('example.bin', 'wb') as file:
file.write(b'\x48\x65\x6C\x6C\x6F') # Writing binary data (Hello)

Opening a binary file: The system of opening a file for reading binary data has not changed in any way for us--it's just that now we have to specify the mode parameter using "r" for "read" first, followed by "b" (for binary) as in an expression "rb."

# Open a binary file and read its contents
with open('example.bin', 'rb') as file:
content = file.read()
print(content) # Output will be in bytes

Reading from a binary file: The byte must be stored in a variable while the file is being read. This involves writing it from one end to the other, bit by bit, through the inode cache.

# Read and process each byte from a binary file
with open('example.bin', 'rb') as file:
byte = file.read(1)
while byte:
print(byte)
byte = file.read(1)

Writing to a binary file: In order to write data to a binary file, we open the file in “ab” mode, which stands for append binary. We can pass the desired binary data in the write function called on our file.

# Append new binary data to an existing binary file
with open('example.bin', 'ab') as file:
file.write(b'\x20\x57\x6F\x72\x6C\x64') # Appending binary data ( World)

Conclusion

Having seen all the discrepancies between text and binary files, one shouldn't be too blown away by their differences (after all, that was a long-winded descriptive read). We have also seen how to create both types of files in the Python programming language. Just take it up as a task and try to create some files using bash or the command prompt to make things look more geeky and experience the process of creation and manipulation firsthand.

You can also refer to the below FAQs in case your doubt or question was not addressed. Thank you for reading. We hope you learned something new. #BeUnstoppable

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. Why choose a text file over a binary file?

Text files are typically chosen over binary files for several reasons:

Human Readability: Text files store data in a human-readable format, which makes it easier for people to read and edit the contents using any text editor.

Portability: Text files are more portable across different systems and platforms. They can be opened and edited on almost any device without needing specialized software.

Ease of Debugging: When errors occur, text files are easier to debug because the contents are readable. You can quickly identify and fix issues without needing specialized tools.

2. Can I convert a binary file to a text file?

Yes, you can convert a binary file to a text file, but the process depends on the nature of the binary data and the desired output format. Tools and techniques vary based on the type of data:

Hex Editors: You can use a hex editor to view the binary file and manually interpret the data.

Custom Scripts: Write scripts in programming languages (e.g., Python, Java) to parse and convert the binary data to a text-based format like CSV or JSON.

Specialized Software: Use software designed for specific types of binary-to-text conversions, such as audio or image processing tools that can extract metadata or convert formats.

3. What are the common use cases for text and binary files?

Common usgae of Text Files:

Configuration Files: Used to store settings and preferences for software applications.

Log Files: Contain records of events, errors, and transactions that occur within software systems.

Scripts and Code: Source code files for programming and scripting languages (e.g., Python, HTML).

Common usage of Binary Files:

Executable Files: Contain compiled code that can be directly executed by a computer's CPU.

Multimedia Files: Include images (JPEG, PNG), audio (MP3, WAV), and video files (MP4, AVI).

Database Files: Store data in a format optimized for quick access and efficient storage by database management systems.

4. How do text editors handle different text file encodings?

Text editors handle different text file encodings by recognizing and correctly interpreting the character encoding used in the file. Common encodings include ASCII, UTF-8, and UTF-16:

Automatic Detection: Many modern text editors automatically detect the encoding of a text file when it is opened.

Manual Selection: Users can manually specify the encoding if the editor does not automatically detect it correctly.

Conversion: Text editors often provide options to convert files from one encoding to another, ensuring compatibility with different systems and applications.

5. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using binary files?

Advantages of using binary files:

Efficiency: Binary files are typically more efficient in terms of storage and speed, as they do not require conversion to and from human-readable formats.

Security: Binary files are less human-readable, which can provide a layer of security through obscurity, protecting sensitive data from casual observation.

Precision: Binary files can store complex data structures, such as floating-point numbers, with high precision and without loss of data.

Disadvantages of using binary files:

Readability: Binary files are not easily readable by humans, making them harder to inspect and debug.

Compatibility: Different systems may use different binary formats, which can lead to compatibility issues.

Editing: Binary files require specialized software for viewing and editing, making them less convenient for simple modifications.

This article was contributed by Johns Joseph, Unstop Intern and Campus Ambassador.