Wordsmith.org: the magic of words

Wordsmith Talk

About Us | What's New | Search | Site Map | Contact Us  

Previous Thread
Next Thread
Print Thread
Page 2 of 3 1 2 3
#5674 08/28/00 05:23 AM
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
B
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
B
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
In reply to:

just for the record, "oh" is a letter and "zero" is a number...


Is this another transatlantic difference? When reading out a number digit by digit,I would definitely say oh rather than zero.

Bingley



Bingley
#5675 08/28/00 10:45 AM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 460
P
addict
Offline
addict
P
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 460
< how will we refer to this decade in the future>

I notice that some people have already dubbed it "the naughties"!


#5676 08/28/00 11:07 AM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027
old hand
Offline
old hand
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,027
>I notice that some people have already dubbed it "the naughties"!<

Oh, I like that! but watch out, we still have most of it before us. It could become a self-fulfilling prophecy..






#5677 08/28/00 09:11 PM
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,094
J
old hand
Offline
old hand
J
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,094
how will we refer to this decade in the future

The first decade of the 20th century was referred to as the "aughts", but I'd have to say that this sounds a little awkward and somewhat antiquated now. I think "the ohs" flows best, but we could just as soon call the decade "the goose eggs".


#5678 08/28/00 09:45 PM
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 3,409
M
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
M
Joined: Aug 2000
Posts: 3,409

#5679 08/29/00 09:50 AM
Joined: Jun 2000
Posts: 444
B
addict
Offline
addict
B
Joined: Jun 2000
Posts: 444
Is this another transatlantic difference? When reading out a number digit by digit,I would definitely say oh rather than zero.

Bingley, as one expat Brit to another, I agree! Yet I have to admit that distinguishing 0s and Os is more and more important as we have more and more alphanumeric passwords and codes. So I think the American way does in fact make sense.


#5680 08/29/00 04:57 PM
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,094
J
old hand
Offline
old hand
J
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,094
distinguishing 0s and Os is more and more important as we have more and more alphanumeric passwords and codes

Because of this fact, I don't think companies ever use the letter "O" in serial numbers. I've been working with computers all summer and have yet to see one with that letter in it's serial number. If ever the letter is in a serial number, it is when numbers and letters are clearly sectioned off.


#5681 08/29/00 06:40 PM
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 10,542
the same caution should apply to those who insist on spelling out clever words for their tele-marketing efforts.


#5682 08/30/00 04:27 AM
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
B
Carpal Tunnel
Offline
Carpal Tunnel
B
Joined: Apr 2000
Posts: 3,065
In reply to:

I don't think companies ever use the letter "O" in serial numbers


If I remember rightly, don't the year letters on number plates omit I and O for the same reason?

Note for non-Brits: in Britain car registration numbers end or begin with a letter of the alphabet to show what year the car was made and so how old it is.

Bingley



Bingley
#5683 08/31/00 07:15 AM
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,981
J
jmh Offline
Pooh-Bah
Offline
Pooh-Bah
J
Joined: Mar 2000
Posts: 1,981
I have just checked out a site which sells old UK registration numbers – http://www.regtransfers.co.uk It appears that the only letter that does not appear anywhere in a registration is “Q”.

I would have said that for letters which signify the year - O and I are omitted, as are Q U and Z. I imagine Z is usually omitted because no-one wants to buy the last of the old series, they would rather wait until it starts with A again. Suprisingly, there seem to be plenty of registrations issued with all of these letters in the body of the registration sequence. As far as I can see the one with the least number of appearances is “Z”.

The system has recently changed and the letters are changed twice each year, rather than once.



Page 2 of 3 1 2 3

Moderated by  Jackie 

Link Copied to Clipboard
Forum Statistics
Forums16
Topics13,913
Posts229,580
Members9,187
Most Online3,341
Dec 9th, 2011
Newest Members
Karin, JeffMackwood, artguitar, Jim_W, Rdbuffalo
9,187 Registered Users
Who's Online Now
0 members (), 332 guests, and 0 robots.
Key: Admin, Global Mod, Mod
Top Posters(30 Days)
Top Posters
wwh 13,858
Faldage 13,803
Jackie 11,613
wofahulicodoc 10,713
tsuwm 10,542
LukeJavan8 9,931
AnnaStrophic 6,511
Wordwind 6,296
of troy 5,400
Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site. Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.

Home | Today's Word | Yesterday's Word | Subscribe | FAQ | Archives | Search | Feedback
Wordsmith Talk | Wordsmith Chat

© 1994-2024 Wordsmith

Powered by UBB.threads™ PHP Forum Software 7.7.5