Binary OR is one of several binary operations, which are numerical operations designed specifically to work on the bit level, where all information is represented by binary strings of 1s and 0s. Binary OR works by combining two provided binary strings into one binary string where the digits of the resulting string are based on if either of the original strings have a 1 bit in a given positions. Binary OR is often used when bitpacking information, which is a technique some programs use to store information directly as binary strings. This technique can be an effective way to compress data into a smaller space, and is used by programs like file zipping software. Binary OR in particular is useful for constructing the binary strings used in bitpacking because it can set individual or groups of bits to a new nonzero value without altering the rest of the existing binary string.