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List:       kde-devel
Subject:    Re: How to configure konqueror to show KB and MB instead of KiB and
From:       Matthew Woehlke <mw_triad () users ! sourceforge ! net>
Date:       2009-07-10 16:07:37
Message-ID: h37p09$58q$1 () ger ! gmane ! org
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Michael Pyne wrote:
> On Thursday 09 July 2009 12:22:37 Michael Howell wrote:
>> By that logic, imperial measures should still be used worldwide.
> 
> Your analogy is flawed in that the definition of the mile didn't change after 
> kilometers were introduced.

Your argument is flawed. "KB" /did/ change the definition of an existing 
unit [prefix], "kilo", which was established prior to 1800.

You also wrote:
> It would be nice of these people to name it like a new unit instead 
> of stealing a perfectly good, working unit name, in current use by
> millions around the world.

...and I agree. Unfortunately, the people that decided to misuse "kilo" 
didn't decide to name it like a new unit and instead stole a perfectly 
good, working unit name*, in current use by millions around the world.

(*well, okay, unit prefix, but same difference.)

>> The people designing computers were largely mathematicians. As
>> mathematicians, they knew better than to do something as confusing as that.
>> Laziness had everything to do with it.
> 
> Or maybe they felt it wasn't confusing (because it's not)?

SI says "kiloXXX" = "1000 XXX". CS says "kilobyte = 1024 bytes".

<sarcasm>Nope, not confusing at all</sarcasm>.

> ... that's my point.  When people get interested they will look up KB and see 
> that "it means 1024 hur hur hur".

...or they've had high school science (in the U.S.) and "know" that 
"kilo" = 1000. Except - surprise! - that's wrong in this case.

(In sensible countries - i.e. those not using imperial - they probably 
learn SI even earlier, since it is relevant to every day life. Reminds 
me of English, really. 'Always put the "i" before the "e" when the 
letters occur together... except, you know, <list of excaptions>'. 
Likewise, '"kilo" always means "1000"... except, you know, if you are 
talking about computers; then it means 1024'.)

> KDE is supposed to be innovative. See Plasma, KIO, KParts, and Nepomuk. Why 
> not be innovative again, and lead the way with unambiguous measures.
> [T]hat's why I haven't once proposed changing away from kibibytes by 
> default.

I'm confused. On the one hand you support KiB, but you don't think KB is 
ambiguous?

> My proposal for KdB was in that regard half-snarky and only a little bit 
> serious.  Do I mind if we have an option that makes KB == 1000?  No, but I 
> want it to be non-default and I really do think it's a better idea to have 
> specific units for the same reason it was a good idea to come up with KiB.  

Was anyone asking for "KB = 1000 B" to be default? I thought we mostly 
agreed KiB should stay default... (And anyway "KB = 1000 B" is wrong, it 
should be "kB = 1000 B" :-) ...note lower case 'k'.)

-- 
Matthew
Please do not quote my e-mail address unobfuscated in message bodies.
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