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Editorial Team
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Asked: 2026-06-04T00:39:31+00:00

MSDN : Int32 values are represented in 31 bits, with the thirty-second bit used

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MSDN:

Int32 values are represented in 31 bits, with the thirty-second bit used as a sign bit. Positive values are represented by using sign-and-magnitude representation. Negative values are in two’s complement representation.

Isn’t it true that the representation of positive values using sign-and-magnitude system is identical to the representation of positive values using two’s complement system?

So shouldn’t it have been rewritten as: “Int32 values (regardless of positive or negative) are represented in two’s complement representation”,

Or am I misunderstanding something?

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1 Answer

  1. Editorial Team

    Yes, you are correct. They should have said it uses a two’s complement system, and then given the definition about using 31 bits and, rather than explaining negatives as "two’s complement", just explain the bit representation for negatives. Then give their warning about bitwise operators.

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