Introducing Binary Clock: Your Nerdy Mobile Timepiece
Meet Binary Clock, the new nerdy app for telling time on Android/iOS!
How does it work?
A binary clock works just like a standard digital clock, showing the current time in hours, minutes, and seconds.
However, instead of showing decimal numbers the binary clock shows the corresponding binary numbers as a series of bright and dim colored dots.
Let’s go through an example.
Consider the time 08:47:13. To show that time on a binary clock, we have to convert the numbers 08, 47, and 13 to binary.
| Decimal Number | Binary Number |
|---|---|
| 08 | 001000 |
| 47 | 101111 |
| 13 | 001101 |
If you don’t know how to convert decimal numbers into binary check out Khan Academy’s 3 minute video explaining the process.
With those binary numbers in hand, the only step remaining to display the binary clock is to show each 1 as a bright dot, and each 0 as a dim dot (shown vertically for aesthetics).
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0 1 0 ⚪ 🟢 ⚪
0 0 0 ⚪ ⚪ ⚪
1 1 1 🟢 🟢 🟢
0 1 1 --> ⚪ 🟢 🟢
0 1 0 ⚪ 🟢 ⚪
0 1 1 ⚪ 🟢 🟢
08 :47 :13
As you can see, the result is the vertical version of the binary clock shown in the picture at the beginning of this article.
Alternatively, converting each decimal digit into a separate binary number will yield the horizontal version of the clock.
| Decimal Number | Binary Number |
|---|---|
| 0 | 0000 |
| 8 | 1000 |
| 4 | 0100 |
| 7 | 0111 |
| 1 | 0001 |
| 3 | 0011 |
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0 1 0 0 0 0 ⚪ 🟢 ⚪ ⚪ ⚪ ⚪
0 0 1 1 0 0 ⚪ ⚪ 🟢 🟢 ⚪ ⚪
0 0 0 1 0 1 --> ⚪ ⚪ ⚪ 🟢 ⚪ 🟢
0 0 0 1 1 1 ⚪ ⚪ ⚪ 🟢 🟢 🟢
0 8 : 4 7 : 1 3
Why did you make it?
Two reasons: nostalgia and practice.
Nostalgia
One of my elementary school teachers kept a binary clock on her desk, and I felt so brilliant once I finally figured out how to read it. Recreating a binary clock as a mobile app has given me the opportunity to relive the elementary school excitement that accompanied my first experiences with the mathematics that power modern computers.
Practice
Binary Clock is my first venture into the world of mobile app development, and I wanted to start with a relatively simple project before tackling my more ambitious ideas for fun/useful mobile apps.
Where can I get it?
Currently, Binary Clock is only available on the Google Play Store.
Binary Clock is compatible with iOS and iPad OS, but listing it on the Apple App Store requires me, the developer, to pay a $99/year subscription.
If you really want to see Binary Clock on the App Store, consider sponsoring my open-source development or sending a monetary gift via PayPal.
Can I contribute? If so, how?
The code behind Binary Clock is open-source on GitHub. That means there are lots of ways you can contribute. For example, you can request new features, report issues, offer new code, or donate money to support continued development.
You can find the full contribution guidelines here.
Enjoy!
Thanks for reading to the end of this article! I hope you enjoyed learning about binary clocks, and I look forward to hearing what you think of the app!
Tick, tock, tick, tock, the Binary Clock is here.
Just on, off, on, off, the numbers have disappeared.
The moment has come to have some fun,
with this one-of-a-kind timepiece!
– Joseph Hale