aue.txt ------- $Id: aue.txt,v 1.1 2000/03/15 18:29:52 ap1jjg Exp $ Some correspondance on alt.usage.english. I am curious as to what you should call the decimal point in a number qua symbol. The correspondance was inconclusive, and I decided to use "decimal symbol" and "group symbol" after all. --------------------------------------------------------------- Punctuation of numbers Hello all I need to refer to the punctation used in numbers, eg., 3.141,592,653 in a language-independant fashion. Specifically to * the "decimal separator" ("." or centered dot in English, "," in French) * the "digit-triple separator" ("," in English, "." in French) Would anyone have any suggestions or references? Thanks -j -- J.J.Green, Dept. Applied Math. University of Sheffield, UK http://www.arbs.demon.co.uk From: "Frank Peelo" Subject: Re: Punctuation of numbers Newsgroups: alt.usage.english Date: Tue, 14 Mar 2000 14:19:26 -0000 Xref: news.shef.ac.uk alt.usage.english:415923 john green wrote in message news:s8xpusxbud1.fsf@gold.cics.shef.ac.uk... > Hello all > > I need to refer to the punctation used in numbers, eg., > > 3.141,592,653 > > in a language-independant fashion. Specifically to > * the "decimal separator" ("." or centered dot in English, "," in French) > * the "digit-triple separator" ("," in English, "." in French) Do all languages group digits in threes? Windows, at least, allows you to specify the number of digits in a group, which suggests that some regions use different groupings. FP From: brahms@mindspring.com (Stan Brown) Subject: Re: Punctuation of numbers Newsgroups: alt.usage.english Date: Tue, 14 Mar 2000 15:46:36 -0500 Organization: Oak Road Systems Xref: news.shef.ac.uk alt.usage.english:416044 Said ap1jjg@gold.cics.shef.ac.uk (john green) in alt.usage.english: >Hello all > >I need to refer to the punctation used in numbers, eg., > > 3.141,592,653 > >in a language-independant fashion. Specifically to >* the "decimal separator" ("." or centered dot in English, "," in French) >* the "digit-triple separator" ("," in English, "." in French) First, I don't know of any widespread style that puts commas *after* the decimal point. Second, in 234,123.33 the comma is a "thousands separator", in my vocabulary anyway. ISO Handbook 1, /Units of Measurement/, calls the separator between the whole and fractional parts a "decimal sign". Microsloth Windows calls them "digit grouping symbol" and "decimal symbol". The preferred decimal sign is the comma, and the preferred thousands separator is a thin space. The American way is a period and a comma, respectively. -- Stan Brown, Oak Road Systems, Cleveland, Ohio, USA http://www.mindspring.com/~brahms/ alt.usage.English intro and FAQs: http://go.to/aue WWWebster online dictionary: http://www.m-w.com/mw/netdict.htm more FAQs: http://www.mindspring.com/~brahms/faqget.htm From: "Bruce McIntyre" Subject: Re: Punctuation of numbers Newsgroups: alt.usage.english Date: Wed, 15 Mar 2000 02:20:53 GMT Organization: @Home Network Canada Xref: news.shef.ac.uk alt.usage.english:416159 "Stan Brown" wrote in message news:MPG.13386f363c85ff8298adbe@news.mindspring.com... | Said ap1jjg@gold.cics.shef.ac.uk (john green) in | alt.usage.english: | | Second, in 234,123.33 the comma is a "thousands separator", in my | vocabulary anyway. ISO Handbook 1, /Units of Measurement/, calls | the separator between the whole and fractional parts a "decimal | sign". Microsloth Windows calls them "digit grouping symbol" and | "decimal symbol". | | The preferred decimal sign is the comma, and the preferred | thousands separator is a thin space. The American way is a period | and a comma, respectively. | I like the thin space as a thousands separator where possible. In newsgroups, which most of us read in monospaced text (and if you don't you probably should), I think the comma is a reasonable second choice. My sense of logic says that if the comma is going to be sometimes used as a thousands separator, it should never be used as a decimal symbol, as is commonly done in Europe (and perhaps elsewhere). Probably the reason Windows calls it a digit grouping symbol is that sometimes long decimals are separated, as in "1 Plekka = 0.000 276 4 Euros." (Don't ask me what a Plekka is; I made it up.) It's easier to see from this that 27,640 Plekka make 1 Euro. I know, it's easier to write "27,640 Plekka = 1 Euro" but not if it's part of a list... I agree that commas/periods should never be used as decimal separators. -- .-------------.----------------------------------------. | McBruce | Note new email: mcbruce1@home.com | | ICQ 6797517 | Now surfing UseNet via cable modem! | }-------------^----------------------------------------{ | Bruce McIntyre, 6636 Dow Ave., #203 | | 604/438-9735 Burnaby BC, Canada V5H 3C9 | `------------------------------------------------------' Date: Tue, 14 Mar 2000 18:04:35 +0100 (MET) From: Arndt Jonasson To: ap1jjg@gold.shef.ac.uk In article you write: >Hello all > >I need to refer to the punctation used in numbers, eg., > > 3.141,592,653 > >in a language-independant fashion. Specifically to >* the "decimal separator" ("." or centered dot in English, "," in French) >* the "digit-triple separator" ("," in English, "." in French) > >Would anyone have any suggestions or references? I don't know good names for them, but note that a blank is sometimes used as a "digit-triple separator", and that in Japanese, they separate digit-quadruples instead. Maybe "digit-group separator" is a better term. -- Arndt Jonasson Ericsson Utvecklings AB arndt@erix.ericsson.se ÄT2/UAB/F/P +46 8 719 75 87 126 25 Stockholm