Editing Binary prefix (section)

=== Current practice ===
[[File:Elixir M2U51264DS8HC3G-5T 20060320.jpg|left|thumb|The {{val|536870912}}-byte capacity of these RAM modules is stated as "512&nbsp;MB" on the label.]]
[[File:GParted 0.3.5 -- 2008, 06.png|right|thumb|[[GNOME]]'s partition editor uses IEC prefixes to display partition sizes. The total capacity of the 120&nbsp;×&nbsp;10<sup>9</sup>-byte disk is displayed as "111.79&nbsp;GiB".]]
[[File:GNOME System Monitor memory size and network rate.png|right|thumb|GNOME's system monitor uses IEC prefixes to show memory size and networking data rate.]]

Some computer industry participants, such as Hewlett-Packard (HP),<ref name="hpen2009" /> and IBM<ref name="resp2011" /><ref name="IBMaxxxx" /> have adopted or recommended IEC binary prefixes as part of their general documentation policies.

As of 2023, the use of SI prefixes with the binary meanings is still prevalent for specifying the capacity of the [[main memory]] of computers, of [[random access memory|RAM]], [[read-only memory|ROM]], [[EPROM]], and [[EEPROM]] [[semiconductor chip|chips]] and [[memory module]]s, and of the [[cache memory|cache]] of [[computer processor]]s.  For example, a "512-megabyte" or "512&nbsp;MB" memory module holds 512&nbsp;MiB; that is, 512&nbsp;×&nbsp;2<sup>20</sup> bytes, not 512&nbsp;×&nbsp;10<sup>6</sup> bytes.<ref name="customxxxx" /><ref name="HP2012" /><ref name="sony2017" /><ref name="forall2012" />

JEDEC continues to include the customary binary definitions of "kilo", "mega", and "giga" in the document ''Terms, Definitions, and Letter Symbols'',<ref name="JEDEC-terms" /> and, {{as of|2010|lc=yes}}, still used those definitions in their [[JEDEC memory standards|memory standards]].<ref name="JEDEC-ddr3" /><ref name="JEDEC-ddr2" /><ref name="JEDEC-configs" /><ref name="JEDEC-configs-toc" /><ref name="JEDEC-configs-terms" />

On the other hand, the SI prefixes with powers of ten meanings are generally used for the capacity of external storage units, such as [[disk drives]],<ref name="hita2009" /><ref name="sams2011" /><ref name="seag2017" /><ref name="toshi2009" /><ref name="WDC2005" /> [[solid state drives]], and [[USB flash drives]],<ref name="sd-cap-disclaimer" /> except for some [[flash memory]] chips intended to be used as [[EEPROM]]s. However, some disk manufacturers have used the IEC prefixes to avoid confusion.<ref name="toshi2017" /> The decimal meaning of SI prefixes is usually also intended in measurements of data transfer rates, and clock speeds.{{citation needed|date=August 2023}}

Some operating systems and other software use either the IEC binary multiplier symbols ("Ki", "Mi", etc.)<ref name="linux2001" /><ref name="ESR2012" /><ref name="ubuntu2012" /><ref name="ubuntu2012b" /><ref name="snow2009" /><ref name="apple2018" /> or the SI multiplier symbols ("k", "M", "G", etc.) with decimal meaning. Some programs, such as the [[GNU]] [[ls]] command, let the user choose between binary or decimal multipliers. However, some continue to use the SI symbols with the binary meanings, even when reporting disk or file sizes. Some programs may also use "K" instead of "k", with either meaning.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://man7.org/linux/man-pages/man1/ls.1.html | title=Ls(1) – Linux manual page }}</ref>