ASCII·FS
28
FS
0x1C · 0011100

ASCII 28 — the FS character

Not a visible character

FS is control code 28, hex 1C. You type it as ^\, and it draws nothing on screen.

Characters that draw nothing and instead tell the device to do something.

What this control code did

File separator

Separators · Four nested separators: file, group, record, unit.

Seven bits

ASCII is seven bits wide, which is why there are 128 of them. The eighth bit was long left for parity.

0011100

One bit — the sixth, worth 32 — separates the cases. Off gives a capital, on gives a lowercase letter.

Kind
Control
Decimal
28
Hexadecimal
0x1C
Octal
034
Binary
0011100
HTML entity

URL encoding
%1C
CSS escape
\1C
Ctrl key
^\

The chart

Eight columns for the top three bits, sixteen rows for the bottom four. The capitals column sits right beside the lowercase one — that is the shape of the table.

Codes either side

How to read this

  • Add 32 to a capital and you get the lowercase letter — one bit flips.
  • Digits start at 48, so subtracting 48 from the code gives the number.
  • Holding Ctrl clears the top three bits — that is why Ctrl+I is a tab.
  • Everything under 32, plus 127, draws nothing. Those show their abbreviation instead.

Frequently asked questions

Q. What is the ASCII code for FS?

Decimal 28, hex 1C, octal 034, binary 0011100.

Q. How do I write FS in HTML?

As .

Q. How does it go in a URL?

It is encoded as %1C.

Q. How do I type FS?

^\.