Character Encoding / Set

Character encoding is the way that letters, digits and other symbols are expressed as numeric values that a computer can understand. An HTML document, for instance, is saved with a particular character encoding. Information about the form of encoding that the file uses is sent to browsers and other user agents, so that they can interpret the bits and bytes properly. If the declared encoding doesn't match the encoding that has actually been used, browsers may render your precious web page as gobbledygook.

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