Subject: Re: [lojban] Date format (Re: Lojban / Most translated Web Page)

From: "Robert J. Chassell" <[email-masked]>
Date: Mon, 8 May 2000 07:45:45 -0400 (EDT)

Without entering the debate over date format, let me relay my recent
odd experience with date formats. I have ended up doing what I never
expected.

I use an Emacs Lisp function to insert the current date into a variety
of documents. This turns out to be very useful.

For example, here is how I keep track of changes to a shell script:

# for v4.72, 2000 Apr 27

# for v4.61, 1999 Dec 29

A year and a half, or so, ago, I changed the format from 

8 May 2000
to

2000 May 8

However, I still write dates for checks and letters in the format 

8 May 2000

Here is what happened: I found that I have a combined visual/auditory
mechanism for reading text. When I see a date written 

8 May 

I read it as the `Eighth of May', which takes quite a bit of time,
even if I don't move my lips. :-)

On the other, I read

May 8

as `May Eighth'. This flows better in my head.

Since I like the smooth flow of a month --> day sequence, and since I
also like to know the year at which I dated something, I found I
wanted a year --> month --> day sequence. When I actually read the
text, I usually do not pronounce to myself the year at all; I elide
it. So when I see `2000 May 8', I usually read it as `May Eighth'.

Also, with an argument, the date function prints the time and day of
week, like this:

Mon, 2000 May 8 11:39 GMT

and I like this sequence. (I use GMT, technically UTC, for time
stamps since it is less confusing than local time.)

On the other hand, as I said, I write addresses in letters and on
checks in the day month year format.

I must add that I used the day-month-year format for years (I have
never like the US civilian practice of writing month-day-year); and I
never expected I would change to the reverse format, but I have.

Most surprising.

-- 
Robert J. Chassell [email-masked]
Rattlesnake Enterprises http://www.rattlesnake.com