What is an unsigned char?

Question

In C/C++, what an unsigned char is used for? How is it different from a regular char?

Answer 1

char and unsigned char aren't guaranteed to be 8-bit types on all platforms—they are guaranteed to be 8-bit or larger. Some platforms have 9-bit, 32-bit, or 64-bit bytes. However, the most common platforms today (Windows, Mac, Linux x86, etc.) have 8-bit bytes.