Path: csiph.com!v102.xanadu-bbs.net!xanadu-bbs.net!feeder.erje.net!1.eu.feeder.erje.net!fu-berlin.de!uni-berlin.de!individual.net!not-for-mail From: "Bill Davy" Newsgroups: comp.lang.c Subject: Re: The Metric system (Was: Problems with va_list & friends...) Date: Wed, 22 Apr 2015 14:31:32 +0100 Lines: 68 Message-ID: References: <5536191c.4629765@news.xs4all.nl> X-Trace: individual.net t3uS6a57ILVUz1exrO7NLgbKhb8FeLGXR09jSptn2qcGlzEmRi Cancel-Lock: sha1:FQYk0siM25ll3YFvj595o2XDdAU= X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Newsreader: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2900.5931 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.6157 X-RFC2646: Format=Flowed; Response Xref: csiph.com comp.lang.c:60729 "Bartc" wrote in message news:mh7tai$rde$1@dont-email.me... > On 22/04/2015 09:47, David Brown wrote: >> On 21/04/15 19:09, Bartc wrote: >>> On 21/04/2015 16:58, Greg Martin wrote: >>>> On 2015-04-21, Kenny McCormack wrote: >>> >>>>> Incidentally, Canada almost succeeded in switching, but failed >>>>> because of >>>>> the great influence US practice has on their policies. The result is >>>>> an >>>>> ugly mishmash, where some things are quoted in metric and other >>>>> things are >>>>> quoted in US units. It must be very confusing for them... >>>>> >>>> >>>> We did switch and a long time ago. I can't think of any area where >>>> imperial measurements are used though some of us of a certain age may >>>> have mentally flip-flopped at times. If you are under 40 and Canadian I >>>> doubt you would have used imperial measure for anything. >>> >>> What do you ask for in a Subway, a foot-long sub or a 30.48cm-long one? >>> >>> What size screen are you looking at now, a 23" (or whatever), or a 58 cm >>> one? >>> >>> Do people still join the mile-high club, is it now the 1.61km-high one? >>> Etc. Imperial is still around. >>> >> >> People in most countries use imperial measurements for some rough >> descriptions - but they /measure/ in metric. Even in thoroughly metric >> Norway, there are some things that are described in imperial units, >> especially things which came from (or used to come from) the USA or the >> UK. So screens are classified in inches, and small boats are given in >> feet. >> >> Even in the UK, where people still buy beer in pints and the older >> generation use Fahrenheit for warm days (but Celsius when it is below >> freezing), measurements are almost always metric unless they are dealing >> with Americans. >> > > In the UK they still use a mixture even though officially we are supposed > to be metric. > > Miles for road signs and speed limits (offically). Feet/inches for height > (informally). Stone(s) for weight. Inches for waist size. Pounds and > ounces are less used but still hanging on (with products still coming as > 227g or 454g sizes!). Milk is also sold by the pint as well as in litres. > > And there are many, many things which are marked as metric, but are > obviously an imperial size: a 1.8m by 0.6m board is clearly 6 x 2 feet > (that reminds me I still have to fit that bath panel!). > > (The fact is that imperial can be better for everyday life, it's not just > because we're used to them. The units are often just right, and sub-units > (inches, feet and yards for example) have different proportions will stops > them getting mixed up.) > > -- > Bartc In Scotland, signs for walkers seem to be in km. Round here (in Cheltenham) foor/cycle signs are in minutes which is absurd. I'm not sure if the council is stupid, or assumes we are. Perhaps both.