"Paul Rubin" <http://[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message news:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Terry Hancock <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: >> > > Very interesting. And rather sad that editors think the >> > > average Amermican reader too dim-witted to figure out >> > > (in context, even) that a "car park" is a "parking lot" >> > > and a "dustbin" is a "trash can." >> > > ... >> The real reason is that it was an expensively promoted >> book. Customizing it for an American audience was a way to >> suck money out of that flow into the pockets of the >> American publisher. In order to justify that expense, they >> have to have something to show for their efforts. > > I wouldn't have figured out that a "car park" was a parking lot. I > might have thought it was a park where you go to look at scenery from > inside your car. Sort of a cross between a normal park and a drive-in > movie
Just as another isolated data point, the first time I saw the expression "car park", I went and looked it up. Even though from the context the meaning seemed obvious, I was left with some doubts as to whether it might have some more specific connotations. For instance, it could have referred to a metered lot, or to a parking garage with time tickets, or even some kind of valet parking. Often, assuming that the "obvious" literal meaning is correct can have hilarious (or disastrous!) results. Roger ----== Posted via Newsfeeds.Com - Unlimited-Unrestricted-Secure Usenet News==---- http://www.newsfeeds.com The #1 Newsgroup Service in the World! >100,000 Newsgroups ---= East/West-Coast Server Farms - Total Privacy via Encryption =--- -- http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-list