What is a radix in a number system?

Radix is the number of digits utilized in a positional number system before "rolling over" to the next digit's place. For example, in the base 10 number system, there is a total of 10 digits used (zero through nine), therefore, its radix is 10. In the base 2 number system, there are two numbers used (zero and one), so its radix is two.

Why do I need a radix?

You might not always want to parse the integer into a base 10 number, so supplying the radix allows you to specify other number systems. The radix is the number of values for a single digit. Hexidecimal would be 16. Octal would be 8, Binary would be 2, and so on...

What is the difference between radix and 100?

For example, (100)10 is equivalent to 100 (the decimal system is implied in the latter) and represents the number one hundred, while (100) 2 (in the binary system with base 2) represents the number four. Radix is a Latin word for "root". Root can be considered a synonym for base, in the arithmetical sense.

What is radix b?

In contrast to decimal, or radix 10, which has a ones' place, tens' place, hundreds' place, and so on, radix b would have a ones' place, then a b1 s' place, a b2 s' place, etc. Used internally by nearly all computers. The two digits are "0" and "1", expressed from switches displaying OFF and ON, respectively.