Computers are full of zillions of binary numbers, i.e., lots and lots of 1s and 0s. In fact, there are so many and it takes us humans so long for us to manipulate them that we group bunches of binary numbers together to makes things easier. As an example, the letter 'A' in a computer has the binary representation: 01000001. But, when we express this as an octal number, where three binary ones/zeroes are grouped together to form an octet, 'A' is 101. 101 is much easier to read, write, and manipulate than 01000001. 
As you explore how computers work, you'll hear more about numbers expressed in octal and hexadecimal; these are just more manageable representations of binary information. 
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