ASCII·GS
29
GS
0x1D · 0011101

ASCII 29 — the GS character

Not a visible character

GS is control code 29, hex 1D. 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

Group 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.

0011101

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

Kind
Control
Decimal
29
Hexadecimal
0x1D
Octal
035
Binary
0011101
HTML entity

URL encoding
%1D
CSS escape
\1D
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 GS?

Decimal 29, hex 1D, octal 035, binary 0011101.

Q. How do I write GS in HTML?

As .

Q. How does it go in a URL?

It is encoded as %1D.

Q. How do I type GS?

^].