To store bits in one or more cells, an adaptive mapping of bits to ranges of a physical parameter of the cell(s) is provided, in accordance with respective initial values of the physical parameter, by steps including encoding the bits as a codeword by partitioning the bits into subsets and finding a factor bit string such that the codeword is a concatenation of the factor bit string and separate Galois field products of all the subsets with the factor bit string. The initial values of the physical parameter are adjusted accordingly as needed.