Software program using the BinHex format facilitates the encoding of binary information into ASCII textual content. This course of permits for the handy transmission of recordsdata throughout programs and platforms the place binary information is probably not immediately supported or simply dealt with. A typical manifestation is an utility that converts a Macintosh file, containing each information and useful resource forks, right into a text-based illustration.
This encoding methodology gained prominence through the early period of on-line file sharing, significantly throughout the Macintosh neighborhood. It addressed the challenges of transferring recordsdata by way of e mail programs and bulletin board companies that had been primarily designed for textual content material. The profit was guaranteeing information integrity and preserving file attributes throughout transmission, regardless of limitations within the underlying communication protocols.