Bit String Lexicographic Compare
Compare bit strings lexicographically as text, not by numeric magnitude; differing widths and leading zeros remain significant.
Description
Compare bit strings lexicographically as text, not by numeric magnitude; differing widths and leading zeros remain significant.
Bitstrings can be ordered as text or as numbers, and the results can differ. This comparator uses literal lexicographic order.
When to use this tool
Compare bit strings lexicographically as text, not by numeric magnitude; differing widths and leading zeros remain significant.
- Prepare the supplied left, right fields for this operation.
- Compare the complete example with the representation used by your own input before carrying the result into another step.
How to use the tool and how it works
- Enter left, right. Use the exact text syntax, units and index conventions explained below.
- Run the tool. If input validation fails, correct the supplied fields before interpreting any result.
- Read result.order. Interpret false, null and empty lists using the distinctions below; they can be valid outputs.
Validate left and right as binary strings of at most 128 characters. Compare them lexicographically and return -1, 0 or 1; an equal initial segment sorts before its longer extension.1
| Input field | Meaning and representation | Accepted input |
|---|---|---|
| left | left. | Binary text containing only 0 and 1; at most 128 characters |
| right | right. | Binary text containing only 0 and 1; at most 128 characters |
| Output field | Interpretation |
|---|---|
| result | Object containing the named outputs below. |
| result.order | Comparison result under the exact convention above; -1 means left before right, 0 equal, +1 after. |
{
"input": {
"left": "1",
"right": "01"
},
"output": {
"result": {
"order": 1
}
}
}Limitations and assumptions
- Lengths need not match. Leading zeros are significant, and no numeric magnitude comparison is performed.
- Every bitstring is at most 128 characters and contains only literal zero and one.
- All declared input fields are required and unexpected top-level fields are rejected. Numbers must be finite; lists are limited to 128 entries and ordinary text fields to 8,192 UTF-16 code units, with tighter limits where stated.
- JSON text inputs must parse within bounded nesting and size limits. Numeric outputs outside the safe finite range are rejected; large exact integer results use decimal strings. Indexes and half-open spans are zero-based unless a rank is explicitly described as one-based.
Alternative or Complementary methods
Choose a packed-integer or textual-bit representation deliberately before combining operations. Preserve the documented index direction, width and exclusive boundaries; do not substitute a rank query for select.
References
Similar or alternative tools
- Bit String Circular One Runs
Inventory circular one-bit runs with modular starting positions and lengths; all-ones has one full-cycle run and empty/all-zero strings have none.
- Bit String Contained Mask Check
Check exact equal-width bit-mask left containment in right at each string position; no implicit padding or integer coercion.