The current version of ISO8601 requires 4 digit years, and most Americans will understand an ISO8601 date; certainly many more than will understand a European-style date. They may not do as well if you attach a time string.
________________________________ From: Han Maenen <[email protected]> To: U.S. Metric Association <[email protected]> Sent: Sun, April 3, 2011 2:50:35 PM Subject: [USMA:50270] Re: iPhone & Fahrenheit Here is another example: Google Maps and Bing Maps. When I want to use Google maps to work out a route in metric countries I am forced to accept a default scale in miles, yards or feet with metric as the supplemental unit; I want a metric-only scale, but Google only offers maps without a scale as an alternative. Bing Maps made me 'happy' with a scale in thousans of yards only on a map of a region near Nijmegen.I could not find a button allowing me to set preferences. So I boycott these products. That is proof of the ongoing war against pure metric and the drive to force the entire world into metrological medievalism or Napoleonism with what in fact are second hand metric units. I work at the Nijmegen Regional Office of Records and I translate text and letters between Dutch and English. I only use metric and our own pre-metric units in these translations where appropriate. Using our own pre-metric units (with conversions to metric), is sometimes necessary when answering historical questions. This week I translated a text which was to go as an email to the USA. There was a number of dates in the text, for which I used the international standard, which happens to be compatible with the US notation for 66%. For instance, July 4 is the same in both, only the place of the year differs. ----- Original Message ----- >From: Kilopascal >To: [email protected] ; U.S. Metric Association >Sent: Saturday, 2011, April 02 15:34 >Subject: [USMA:50193] Re: iPhone & Fahrenheit > > >Whenever I install software, such as Adobe products, the default is always to >non-SI, even though I have my windows settings to SI. Even windows when it >installs defaults to non-SI. This also pertains to AutoCAD, Weatherbug, Open >Office and Google Earth. All of these programs have to be manually configured >to metric and even when upgraded don't pick up the previous settings. > >When Windows is installing it should ask the country the software is to be >used >in and default to SI for all locations outside of the US. It would be nice if >it would do so for the US too but that would only result in complaints. For >the >time being we have to accept that the US default will have to be USC. > > >When the default is SI or there is a change to SI manually, then all software >that is installed or upgraded would install itself in SI mode including ISO >standards, such as date/time formats. But such an easy system to implement >won't happen unless there are sufficient complaints. It seems that English >defaults are geared towards American standards and the rest of the English >speaking world has to suffer by manually changing, unless the default is >metric >in other languages and only when English (no matter where in the world) it is >the chosen language, then non-SI standards are the default. > >John Frewen-Lord, do you know what the default settings are on computers >defaulted to the French language in Canada? What about the UK and Australia? >I've used computers configured for Brazilian Portuguese, Spanish in Mexico and >English in India. I checked the regional settings on each computer and the >non-English was in metric, but the English was set to US units (imperial is >not >a choice) and date/time format. But I don't know if the non-English defaulted >that way or the user changed them. > > >I would assume that what I saw were the defaults as more than likely people >don't bother to change unless it causes them problems. > > >[USMA:50193] Re: iPhone & Fahrenheit >Pat Naughtin >Fri, 25 Mar 2011 13:58:33 -0700 >> On 2011/03/25, at 23:15 , John Frewen-Lord wrote: > >> Sadly, the comment >> that >>Remek makes, "Why adjust our product to the >> world--let's make the world >>adjust to it." is the American way. I come >> cross it so often. Take >>Windows >>- those of us in other countries have to >> spend quite some time adjusting >>our >>settings to measurement and date formats >> from the default US way (which >>virtually no-one else in the world uses). Dear John, It is worse than just >>weather default settings. In the Optimal School document at >>http://metricationmatters.com/docs/OptimalSchool.pdf I wrote as part of a >>mythical report: ## Another insight I gained from a seventh grade teacher is >>that she will not use the "Pages" program from the Apple computer company >>because they divide centimetres into quarters and not into decimal fractions >>or >>into millimetres. She says: In fact, the Apple Company will not even let us >>choose millimetres to layout our pages. Children might be doing an >>assignment >>on the history of the metric system and, according to Apple, when they want >>to >>layout their pages they have to work either in inches and fractions of >>inches, >>or in centimetres divided into halves and quarters. Then she added: … and >>the >>Microsoft Company is no better – all of their defaults in Microsoft Word are >>in >>inches and fractions of inches. To be fully metric, all students in all >>schools >>have to fight daily against these two major software companies and their >>backward looking attitude to modern measurement. Their attitude is pre Simon >>Stevin, so they are pre 1585! ## Cheers, Pat Naughtin Geelong, Australia >>On >>2011/03/25, at 23:15 , John Frewen-Lord wrote: > Sadly, the comment that >>Remek >>makes, "Why adjust our product to the > world--let's make the world adjust >>to >>it." is the American way. I come cross > it so often. Take Windows - those >>of >>us in other countries have to spend > quite some time adjusting our settings >>to >>measurement and date formats from > the default US way (which virtually >>no-one >>else in the world uses). > > And it can work for the US. On my last trip >>to >>Canada, I noticed a > provincial document that used the US MM-DD-YYYY date >>format. I was visiting > a friend who still works for the Province, and >>over >>our 2nd or 3rd beer asked > him why that document appeared like that, when >>the >>official way in Canada was > the international YYYY-MM-DD format (it used to >>be >>DD-MM-YYYY format, which > is what my kids were taught in school in Ontario >>in >>the 1970s). He replied > that so many computers were now operated by the >>province which came with the > default US MM-DD-YYYY format, that there was >>wholesale confusion over dates, > and that far too few people changed their >>format to the international one. > So the province took the easy option, >>and >>now uses the default US one. > > I have to say that annoys me, but only >>because I think the US date format is > illogical and stupid. > > John >>F-L > >>> > ----- Original Message ----- > From: Remek Kocz > To: U.S. Metric >>Association > Sent: Friday, March 25, 2011 11:55 AM > Subject: [USMA:50188] >>iPhone & Fahrenheit > > I find it quite amazing that in their infinite >>wisdom, >>Apple markets the > iPhone/iPod with that weather app pictured with a sunny >>day >>and 73 degrees > (unidentified, but we know which scale). From a cursory >>glance at sites > outside the US, it looks like they're marketing it like >>this >>to the rest of > the world. This really flips the software development >>concept >>of > internationalization on its head. Why adjust our product to the >>world--let's > make the world adjust to it. I know that the app can be >>switched to Celsius, > but Fahrenheit by default, that's just hard to >>believe. >>> > Remek Pat Naughtin LCAMS Author of the ebook, Metrication Leaders >>> Guide, >>see http://metricationmatters.com/MetricationLeadersGuideInfo.html Hear Pat >>speak at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lshRAPvPZY PO Box 305 Belmont >>3216, >>Geelong, Australia Phone: 61 3 5241 2008
