There are six bitwise operators used in the C programming language.
AND Operator &
Truth Table
0 & 0 = 0
1 & 0 = 0
0 & 1 = 0
1 & 1 = 1
OR Operator |
Truth Table
0 | 0 = 0
1 | 0 = 1
0 | 1 = 1
1 | 1 = 1
XOR Operator ^
Truth Table
0 ^ 0 = 0
1 ^ 0 = 1
0 ^ 1 = 1
1 ^ 1 = 0
NOT Operator ~
Truth Table
~0 = 1
~1 = 0
Right Shift Operator >>
Left Shift Operator <<
Note:
A unary operator is one which operates on a single operand where as a binary operator is one which operates on two operands
Mask
A mask is a bit pattern with some bits set to on (1) and some bits set to off (0)
Turning Bits On
number = number | MASK;
OR
number |= MASK;
This sets on all the bits that are 1 in the MASK
Turning Bits Off
number = number & ~MASK;
OR
number &= ~MASK;
This sets off all the bits that are 1 in the MASK
Toggling Bits
number = number ^ MASK;
OR
number ^= MASK;
This toggles values corresponding to 1s in the MASK
Comparing a Bit value
Checking if the value of bit at position p is set or not
number = 9
binary = 1 0 0 1
position = 1
mask = 1 0 0 0
if( ( number & mask ) == mask ) printf(" bit is set ");
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