42
The Answer
Douglas Adams' Answer to the Ultimate Question of Life, the Universe, and Everything. A perennial placeholder and test value in developer culture.
Similar magic numbers
| value | name | category |
|---|---|---|
| 42 4D | Bitmap image | file-signature |
| 42 5A 68 | bzip2 compressed archive / Mac Disk image (BZ2 compressed) | file-signature |
| 42 41 41 44 | NTFS MFT (BAAD) | file-signature |
| 42 50 47 FB | Better Portable Graphics | file-signature |
| 42 44 69 63 | Google Chrome dictionary file | file-signature |