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It appears that there is some usage as far as linux is
concerned.
Discussion
Before these binary prefixes were introduced, it
was fairly common to use k=1000 and K=1024, just like b=bit, B=byte.
Unfortunately, the M is capital already, and cannot be capitalized to indicate
binary-ness.
At first that didn't matter too much, since memory modules and disks came in sizes that were powers of two, so everyone knew that in such contexts "kilobyte" and "megabyte" meant 1024 and 1048576 bytes, respectively. What originally was a sloppy use of the prefixes "kilo" and "mega" started to become regarded as the "real true meaning" when computers were involved. But then disk technology changed, and disk sizes became arbitrary numbers. After a period of uncertainty all disk manufacturers settled on the standard, namely k=1000, M=1000k, G=1000M. The situation was messy: in the 14k4 modems, k=1000; in the 1.44MB diskettes, M=1024000; etc. In 1998 the IEC approved the standard that defines the binary prefixes given above, enabling people to be precise and unambiguous. Thus, today, MB = 1000000B and MiB = 1048576B. In the free software world programs are slowly being changed to conform. When the Linux kernel boots and says
the MB are megabytes and the KiB are kibibytes.
http://www.cofc.edu/~frysingj/binprefixes.html It seems the IEEE will make some official requirement to use the binary prefixes or the decimal prefixes after 2004-12-10 but not a mixture of the two.
The solution:A new global standard has been developed and published as an accepted standard. It was first proposed by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) to the International Organization for Standards (ISO) for acceptance as an ISO standard, which would provide wider approval. The IEC reference is IEC 60027-2, Letters symbols to be used in electrical technology, Part 2: Telecommunications and electronics, Amendment 2, 1999-01. Since then the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) has provided a standard of their own for these prefixes, IEEE Std 1541-2002, IEEE Trial-Use Standard for prefixes for Binary Multiples. This standard was developed by a working group within the IEEE Standards Coordinating Committee 14, which was the sponsoring committee. The IEEE standard is nearly identical to the IEC standard but the two standards do differ a little, as noted below. This trial-use standard is effective for 24 months and the IEEE invites those having comments to send them to
no later than 10 December 2004. After the comment period, IEEE 1541 will be revised as necessary and submitted before the Standards Board as a full-use standard. The author of this web page is the chair of the working group (SCC 14.3) that drafted this standard and he may be contacted at the links below by those wishing to ask questions or to comment informally.
But to get industry to use the binary prefixes where they apply may have to have the backing of the force of law if certain elements in the industry refuse to adopt the binary prefixes.
Euric
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