static protected boolean highBit(int val){
  if ((val & (~0xFF)) != 0) {
    log.error("highBit called with too large value: 0x" + Integer.toHexString(val));
  }
  return (0 != (val & 0x80));
}

static protected boolean highBit ( int val ) { if ( ( val & ( ~ 0xFF ) ) != 0 ) { log . error ( "highBit called with too large value: 0x" + Integer . toHexString ( val ) ) ; } return ( 0 != ( val & 0x80 ) ) ; }
check if a high bit is set , usually used to store it in some other location ( loconet does not allow the high bit to be set in data bytes )
