The Right-Shift Operator
As implied from its name, the right-shift operator >> shifts the bits of a value to the right. Bits shifted out of the low-order bit of the value are lost. Right-shifting an unsigned value always results in 0s being shifted in on the left—that is, through the high-order bits. What is shifted in on the left for signed values depends on the sign of the value that is being shifted and also on how this operation is implemented. If the sign bit is 0 (meaning the value is positive), 0s will be shifted in no matter what machine is used. However, if the sign bit is 1, on some machines 1s will be shifted in, and on others 0s will be shifted in. This former type of operation is known as an arithmetic right shift, while the latter ...
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