Happy 7-8-9!

wrote in message
...
On Wed, 8 Jul 2009 21:33:12 -0600, "Dawne Peterson"
wrote:


"Bruce Fletcher wrote
Dawne Peterson wrote:
"Bruce Fletcher wrote
But in the UK it won't be 7-8-9 for another month, today is 8-7-9 g
--
That's the date in my world too--but it puts me in a definite minority,
along with putting a comma before "and" in a list of things and making
a
line through the number 7.


Ah, the Oxford comma...
--
Yes. I have no explanation for why exactly, but at some point during my
four years at geek school, each of these became The Thing We Must Do.
Dawne


I have always crossed my sevens, I was told it was an 'accounting'
thing to do so that 1s were never mistaken for 7s if written hastily.

Like some people crossing Z's, which I think is a European habit. I do
sometimes do that when I write something important to assure that my name
isn't misspelled.

Lucille Z

wrote:
On Wed, 8 Jul 2009 21:33:12 -0600, "Dawne Peterson"
wrote:

"Bruce Fletcher wrote
Dawne Peterson wrote:
"Bruce Fletcher wrote
But in the UK it won't be 7-8-9 for another month, today is 8-7-9 g
--
That's the date in my world too--but it puts me in a definite minority,
along with putting a comma before "and" in a list of things and making a
line through the number 7.

Ah, the Oxford comma...
--
Yes. I have no explanation for why exactly, but at some point during my
four years at geek school, each of these became The Thing We Must Do.
Dawne


I have always crossed my sevens, I was told it was an 'accounting'
thing to do so that 1s were never mistaken for 7s if written hastily.

Crossing sevens is a "continental habit" and rarely seen in the UK.
Diverting slightly - when I was a morse operator in the RAF and in the
civil service we always wrote letters on the line but figures were
written just below the line thus avoiding confusion between "1" and "l",
"0" and "O", "5" and "s", "6" and "b", etc
--
Bruce Fletcher
Stronsay, Orkney UK
"Pieces of 9! pieces of 9!" Parrotty error

On Jul 9, 8:03�am, wrote:
On Thu, 9 Jul 2009 07:41:43 -0400, "Lucille"
wrote:



Like some people crossing Z's, which I think is a European �habit. � I do
sometimes do that when I write something important to assure that my name
isn't misspelled.

Lucille �Z

I usually saw that done Switzerland and have a feeling it is a
Teutonic thing.

For me it was a "math" habit. Not sure where it came from.
Probably to differeniate from 2's. I still want to cross Z's.

Nancy

Nancy wrote:
On Jul 9, 8:03�am, wrote:
On Thu, 9 Jul 2009 07:41:43 -0400, "Lucille"
wrote:



Like some people crossing Z's, which I think is a European �habit. � I do
sometimes do that when I write something important to assure that my name
isn't misspelled.
Lucille �Z
I usually saw that done Switzerland and have a feeling it is a
Teutonic thing.

For me it was a "math" habit. Not sure where it came from.
Probably to differeniate from 2's. I still want to cross Z's.

Nancy

All is revealed at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_numerals
--
Bruce Fletcher
Stronsay, Orkney UK
"Pieces of 9! pieces of 9!" Parrotty error

Nancy wrote:
On Jul 9, 8:03�am, wrote:
On Thu, 9 Jul 2009 07:41:43 -0400, "Lucille"
wrote:



Like some people crossing Z's, which I think is a European �habit. � I do
sometimes do that when I write something important to assure that my name
isn't misspelled.
Lucille �Z
I usually saw that done Switzerland and have a feeling it is a
Teutonic thing.

For me it was a "math" habit. Not sure where it came from.
Probably to differeniate from 2's. I still want to cross Z's.

Nancy

I've always crossed my 7's and my z's...don't know when I started.
Probably in high school. Now it's second nature to me and hard to NOT do it.

sue


--
Susan Hartman/Dirty Linen
The Magazine of Folk and World Music
www.dirtylinen.com

Bruce Fletcher (remove dentures to reply) wrote:
Dawne Peterson wrote:
"Bruce Fletcher wrote
But in the UK it won't be 7-8-9 for another month, today is 8-7-9 g
--
That's the date in my world too--but it puts me in a definite
minority, along with putting a comma before "and" in a list of things
and making a line through the number 7.


Ah, the Oxford comma...

On this side of the pond, it's called "The Harvard comma."

sue (a firm believer in its use)

--
Susan Hartman/Dirty Linen
The Magazine of Folk and World Music
www.dirtylinen.com

"Lucille" wrote:


Like some people crossing Z's, which I think is a European habit.

Or anybody who did drafting/mechanical drawing or lettering by hand--
in the 'correct' form of lettering, a 2 and a Z are differentiated
only by the cross bar on the Z. (after all, one finds 2s far more
often than Zs when putting measurements on schematics and 3-plane
views.)

1s are single straight lines, capital Is have top and bottom bars, 7s
have slanted "verticals", and lower case is never used.

jenn

--
Jenn Ridley :
WIP: Poppies (Art-Stitch), two knitted tops, Oriental Butterfly
Most recently Finished: Floral Sampler, Insect Sampler

Jenn Ridley wrote:
"Lucille" wrote:


Like some people crossing Z's, which I think is a European habit.

Or anybody who did drafting/mechanical drawing or lettering by hand--
in the 'correct' form of lettering, a 2 and a Z are differentiated
only by the cross bar on the Z. (after all, one finds 2s far more
often than Zs when putting measurements on schematics and 3-plane
views.)

1s are single straight lines, capital Is have top and bottom bars, 7s
have slanted "verticals", and lower case is never used.

jenn

--
Jenn Ridley :
WIP: Poppies (Art-Stitch), two knitted tops, Oriental Butterfly
Most recently Finished: Floral Sampler, Insect Sampler
In a similar vein, I find myself almost always putting a diagonal line
through my zeros after so many years of working with computers - helps
to differentiate it from the letter O.
MelissaD

On 7/9/09 7:32 AM, " wrote:

On Wed, 8 Jul 2009 21:33:12 -0600, "Dawne Peterson"
wrote:


"Bruce Fletcher wrote
Dawne Peterson wrote:
"Bruce Fletcher wrote
But in the UK it won't be 7-8-9 for another month, today is 8-7-9 g
--
That's the date in my world too--but it puts me in a definite minority,
along with putting a comma before "and" in a list of things and making a
line through the number 7.


Ah, the Oxford comma...
--
Yes. I have no explanation for why exactly, but at some point during my
four years at geek school, each of these became The Thing We Must Do.
Dawne


I have always crossed my sevens, I was told it was an 'accounting'
thing to do so that 1s were never mistaken for 7s if written hastily.

I think the crossed 7 is a common engineering/science/math/programming
thing. I also tend to slash 0s, and when writing things will do the little
symbol for a blank space - kind of a small b with a slash thru it. Plus, I
also slash Zs - which I'm sure is to avoid confusion with 2s.

ellice

ellice wrote:
On 7/9/09 7:32 AM, " wrote:


On Wed, 8 Jul 2009 21:33:12 -0600, "Dawne Peterson"
wrote:


"Bruce Fletcher wrote

Dawne Peterson wrote:

"Bruce Fletcher wrote

But in the UK it won't be 7-8-9 for another month, today is 8-7-9 g
--

That's the date in my world too--but it puts me in a definite minority,
along with putting a comma before "and" in a list of things and making a
line through the number 7.


Ah, the Oxford comma...
--

Yes. I have no explanation for why exactly, but at some point during my
four years at geek school, each of these became The Thing We Must Do.
Dawne


I have always crossed my sevens, I was told it was an 'accounting'
thing to do so that 1s were never mistaken for 7s if written hastily.


I think the crossed 7 is a common engineering/science/math/programming
thing. I also tend to slash 0s, and when writing things will do the little
symbol for a blank space - kind of a small b with a slash thru it. Plus, I
also slash Zs - which I'm sure is to avoid confusion with 2s.

ellice


OTOH, I checked with my dh, who is a retired naval architect, trained in
England in the days when they spent three months of their apprenticeship
learning how to "letter" things. He has never, ever, crossed 4s or 7s
or 0s. He is, however, still a very, very neat printer.

I guess it all depends on where and when you were trained.

Olwyn Mary in New Orleans.