2002-02-14

No! No!  By calling the units British, troy, or avoirdupoid, or some other
foreign sounding adjective, we give FFU a more international flare.  FFU
must not appear to be used by only Americans, or a system only for
Americans.  FFU must be advertised as being a system for all of mankind.
Normal and natural.

John



> -----Original Message-----
> From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On
> Behalf Of Han Maenen
> Sent: Wednesday, 2002-02-13 03:01
> To: U.S. Metric Association
> Subject: [USMA:18195] Musical ifp? Was:Re: Re: Typographic units
>
>
> Since when is it a requirement for a system of units to be musical? These
> ifp goons are incredible. This nonsense also figures on either one of the
> BWMA sites or the Inch Perfect one.
> Shostakova's 7th Symphony in Fahrenheit? H�ndel's Messiah in slinch? I
> wonder on what ifp units pop music is based, the BTU, the slug, the US
> gallon or the Imperial pint?
> Of course, the metrics of poetry has also nothing at all to do with SI or
> FFU for that matter.
> However, I suspect that the industry that makes musical instruments is
> overwhelmingly ifp.
>
> Han
>
> P.S. I think that the BTU should in fact be called ATU now,
> American Thermal
> Unit, as it is much more an American unit than a British one today.
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Louis JOURDAN" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> To: "U.S. Metric Association" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> Sent: Tuesday, 2002-02-12 11:17
> Subject: [USMA:18165] Re: Typographic units
>
>
>  At 9:11 -0800 02/02/11, John Hudson wrote:
> Salut M. Jourdan,
>
> Sharon Irving at the ATypI secretariat forwarded to me your
> letter regarding
> typographic measurement, about which I have a few points to make
> (excuse the
> pun).
>
>  Thanks for your message, M. Hudson.
>
> I am not at all familiar with 'Q', and would like to know where you heard
> about this.
>
>  On the Internet (I am not a specialist in typographic matters!). See for
> example http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~mgk25/metric-typo.html
> and note the reference to the German standard DIN 16507-2.
>
> (music, by the way, should be included in your exceptions to SI, with the
> added note that the metric system is inherently unmusical).*
>
>  Here you surprise me ! How a measurement system could be musical ?
>
> One of the most common calculations in determining the harmonious
> relationship of text block to page n traditional typography is
> division by 3
> or by multiples of 3.
>
>  I appreciate, but is that a golden rule ?
>
> It is worth remembering that international standard paper sizes (A4, etc)
> while useful to the paper manufacturing industry are not based on any
> harmonious system of proportion.
>
>  The standard paper sizes (A series) are not, strictly speaking, based on
> the metric system, but on a ratio height/width = square root of 2 : this
> allows a magnification or reduction of a text, image, etc.
> with the same occupation of the relative area of the sheet. Now it is true
> that the A0 size has been determined by the ISO 216 standard with
> a surface
> of 1 square meter. See for example
>  http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~mgk25/iso-paper.html
>
> PS. I think you overstate the use of the metric system in some
> parts of the
> world.
>
>  I am well aware of that. It is indeed the matter of a book I have just
> written. I have to confess that I don't see much justification to
> thatresistance...
>
> Regards
>
>  Louis Jourdan
>
>

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