Tap code: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|Encoding for text messages}}

{| class="wikitable" align=right style="width:100%; width:200px; text-align:center;"

|+ '''Latin alphabet tap code table'''

!

! 1 !! 2 !! 3 !! 4 !! 5

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== Design ==

The tap code is based on a [[Polybius square]] using a 5×5 grid of letters representing all the letters of the [[Latin alphabet]], except for K, which is represented by C.<ref name="pbs"/>

Each letter is communicated by tapping two numbers, the first designating the row and the second (after a pause) designating the column. For example, to specify the letter "B", one taps once, pauses, and then taps twice. The listener only needs to discriminate the timing of the taps to isolate letters.

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== History ==

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|+ colspan=7| '''Russian alphabet tap code'''<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://faroutliers.blogspot.com/2005/04/russian-prison-tapping-code.html|title=Far Outliers: Russian Prison Tapping Code|date=April 14, 2005|access-date=August 8, 2014|archive-date=August 15, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140815063344/http://faroutliers.blogspot.com/2005/04/russian-prison-tapping-code.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

|-

! !! 1 !! 2 !! 3 !! 4 !! 5 !! 6

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== In popular culture ==

In the 1990 video game ''[[Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake]]'', the tap code is used by Dr. Drago Pettrovich Madnar to communicate to ''[[Solid Snake]]'' through a cell wall.

{| class="wikitable" align=right style="width:100%; width:200px; text-align:center;"

| colspan=7| '''''[[Breaking Bad]]'' alphanumeric tap code'''

|-

! !! 1 !! 2 !! 3 !! 4 !! 5 !! 6

|-

! 1

| А || B || C || D || 1 || 2

|-

! 2

| E || F || G || H || 3 || 4

|-

! 3

| I || J || K || L || M || N

|-

! 4

| O || P || Q || R || S || T

|-

! 5

| U || V || W || X || Y || Z

|-

! 6

| 5 || 6 || 7 || 8 || 9 || 0

|}

In the video game ''[[Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake]]'', the tap code is used by Dr. Drago Pettrovich Madnar to communicate to ''[[Solid Snake]]'' through a cell wall.

In Season 2 Episode 2 of ''[[Person of Interest (TV series)|Person of Interest]]'', the tap code is used by Harold Finch to discreetly leave breadcrumbs of his ___location to John Reese by encoding his ___location as tap code on a telephone.

In the video game ''[[Her Story (video game)|Her Story]]'', the main characters use the tap code to surreptitiously communicate.

In Season 2 Episode 142 of ''[[ThePerson Flashof (2014Interest (TV series)|ThePerson Flashof Interest]]'' in 2012, the maskedtap prisonercode inis Zoom'sused lairby usesHarold theFinch tapto codediscreetly toleave breadcrumbs of his try___location to communicateJohn withReese theby encoding his ___location as tap code on a otherstelephone.

In the film2015 video game ''[[TheHer IceStory Road(video game)|Her Story]]'', the tapmain codecharacters isuse usedthe ontap acode metalto pipe conduit by trapped miners tosurreptitiously communicate. with executives of the mining company.

In theSeason television2 showEpisode 14 of ''[[BreakingThe BadFlash (2014 TV series)|The Flash]]'' in 2016, the charactermasked [[Hectorprisoner Salamanca]]in Zoom's lair uses the version of a tap code shown in thisto sectiontry to communicate afterwith sufferingthe a [[stroke]]others.

In anthe ARG2021 forfilm ''[[CoolThe MathIce GamesRoad]]'', (Seethe Gametap Theorycode foris moreused information),on a tapmetal codepipe wasconduit usedby twice,trapped onceminers into paircommunicate with another cypher toexecutives solveof andthe discovermining lorecompany.

==See also==