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Cc: Bitcoin Development <bitcoin-development@lists.sourceforge.net>
Subject: Re: [Bitcoin-development] "bits": Unit of account
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bit has a lot of meanings to geeks, so what.

bit means for average people:
- something very small, that 100 satoshi is.=20
- part of the name Bitcoin
- easy to get conversion 1 coin =3D 1 million bits =3D 1 Bitcoin

Regards,

Tamas Blummer
Founder, CEO
http://bitsofproof.com

On 03.05.2014, at 18:02, slush <slush@centrum.cz> wrote:

> Excellent points Christophe!
>=20
> Although moving to 1e-6 units is fine for me and I see advantages of =
doing this, I don't get that people on this mailing list are fine with =
calling such unit "bit". It's geeky as hell, ambiguous and confusing.=20
>=20
> slush
>=20
>=20
> On Sat, May 3, 2014 at 5:48 PM, Christophe Biocca =
<christophe.biocca@gmail.com> wrote:
> Context as a disambiguator works fine when the interlocutors
> understand the topics they're talking about.
> Not a day goes by without me seeing "neurotypical people" get horribly
> confused between RAM and Hard Drive sizes, because they share the same
> units (not that that can be helped, as the units are supposed to be
> the same, base 1000 vs 1024 notwithstanding).
>=20
> Bit (as a unit) is already really confusing for anyone who doesn't
> deal with it on a regular basis. I think people who don't see an issue
> are making an assumption based on their own lack of confusion. We
> understand computer science AND Bitcoin. Most people have zero
> understanding of either.
>=20
> Bitcoin already has a ton of issues with terrible names for things:
>=20
> - Mining (for transaction validation).
> - Addresses (which are meant to be one-time use, and don't even really
> exist at the network level).
> - Wallets (which don't hold your bitcoins, can be copied, and all
> backups can be stolen from equally).
>=20
> I end up having to make the distinctions obvious every time I explain
> Bitcoin to someone new to it. There's an acceptable tradeoff here,
> because there were arguably no better words to assign to these
> concepts (although I'd argue mining is a really awful metaphor, and is
> the one that prompts the most questions from people). Then add to the
> pile a bunch of third parties naming themselves after parts of the
> protocol (Coinbase,Blockchain.info). Not blaming them for it, but I've
> definitiely seen average people get confused between "the blockchain"
> and "blockchain.info" (not so much Coinbase, because that name doesn't
> come up in beginner explanations).
>=20
> It seems downright masochistic to add
> yet-another-word-that-doesn't-mean-what-you-think-it-means to the pile
> for no reason other than aesthetics. Are we actively trying to confuse
> people?
>=20
> On Sat, May 3, 2014 at 1:41 AM, Aaron Voisine <voisine@gmail.com> =
wrote:
> > I have to agree with Mike. Human language is surprisingly tolerant =
of
> > overloading and inference from context. Neurotypical people have no
> > problem with it and perceive a software engineer's aversion to it as
> > being pedantic and strange. Note that "bits" was a term for a unit =
of
> > money long before the invention of digital computers.
> >
> > Aaron
> >
> > There's no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole
> > government working for you -- Will Rodgers
> >
> >
> > On Fri, May 2, 2014 at 7:06 PM, Gordon Mohr <gojomo@gmail.com> =
wrote:
> >> [resend - apologies if duplicate]
> >>
> >> Microbitcoin is a good-sized unit, workable for everyday =
transaction
> >> values, with room-to-grow, and a nice relationship to satoshis as =
'cents'.
> >>
> >> But "bits" has problems as a unit name.
> >>
> >> "Bits" will be especially problematic whenever people try to =
graduate
> >> from informal use to understanding the system internals - that is, =
when
> >> the real "bits" of key sizes, hash sizes, and storage/bandwidth =
needs
> >> become important. The "bit" as "binary digit" was important enough =
that
> >> Satoshi named the system after it; that homage gets lost if the =
word is
> >> muddied with a new retconned meaning that's quite different.
> >>
> >> Some examples of possible problems:
> >>
> >> * If "bit" equals "100 satoshis", then the natural-language =
unpacking of
> >> "bit-coin" is "100 satoshi coin", which runs against all prior =
usage.
> >>
> >> * If people are informed that a "256-bit private key" is what =
ultimately
> >> controls their balances, it could prompt confusion like, "if each =
key
> >> has 256-bits, will I need 40 keys to hold 10,000.00 bits?"
> >>
> >> * When people learn that there are 8 bits to a byte, they may =
think,
> >> "OK, my wallet holding my 80,000.00 bits will then take up 10 =
kilobytes".
> >>
> >> * When people naturally extend "bit" into "kilobits" to mean "1000
> >> bits", then the new coinage "kilobits" will mean the exact same =
amount
> >> (100,000 satoshi) as many have already been calling "millibits".
> >>
> >> I believe it'd be best to pick a new made-up single-syllable word =
as a
> >> synonym for "microbitcoin", and I've laid out the case for "zib" as =
that
> >> word at <http://zibcoin.org>.
> >>
> >> 'Zib' also lends itself to an expressive unicode symbol, '=C6=B5'
> >> (Z-with-stroke), that remains distinctive even if it loses its =
stroke or
> >> gets case-reversed. (Comparatively, all 'b'-derived symbols for
> >> data-bits, bitcoins, or '100 satoshi bits' risk collision in =
contexts
> >> where subtleties of casing/stroking are lost.)
> >>
> >> (There's summary of more problems with "bit" in the zibcoin.org FAQ =
 at:
> >> <http://zibcoin.org/faq#why-not-bits-to-mean-microbitcoins>.)
> >>
> >> - Gordon
> >>
> >> On 5/1/14, 3:35 PM, Aaron Voisine wrote:
> >>> I'm also a big fan of standardizing on microBTC as the standard =
unit.
> >>> I didn't like the name "bits" at first, but the more I think about =
it,
> >>> the more I like it. The main thing going for it is the fact that =
it's
> >>> part of the name bitcoin. If Bitcoin is the protocol and network, =
bits
> >>> are an obvious choice for the currency unit.
> >>>
> >>> I would like to propose using Unicode character U+0180, lowercase =
b
> >>> with stroke, as the symbol to represent the microBTC denomination,
> >>> whether we call bits or something else:
> >>>   http://www.fileformat.info/info/unicode/char/0180/index.htm
> >>>
> >>> Another candidate is Unicode character U+2422, the blank symbol, =
but I
> >>> prefer stroke b.
> >>> http://www.fileformat.info/info/unicode/char/2422/index.htm
> >>>
> >>> Aaron
> >>>
> >>> There's no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole
> >>> government working for you -- Will Rodgers
> >>>
> >>>> On Apr 21, 2014 5:41 AM, "Pieter Wuille" <pieter.wuille@gm...> =
wrote:
> >>>>
> >>>>> On Apr 21, 2014 3:37 AM, "Un Ix" <slashdevnull@...> wrote:
> >>>>>
> >>>>> Something tells me this would be reduced to a single syllable in =
common
> >>>>> usage I.e. bit.
> >>>>
> >>>> What units will be called colloquially is not something =
developers will
> >>>> determine. It will vary, depend on language and culture, and is =
not
> >>>> relevant to this discussion in my opinion.
> >>>>
> >>>> It may well be that people in some geographic or language area =
will end up
> >>>> (or for a while) calling 1e-06 BTC "bits". That's fine, but using =
that as
> >>>> "official" name in software would be very strange and potentially =
confusing
> >>>> in my opinion. As mentioned by others, that would seem to me like =
calling
> >>>> dollars "bucks" in bank software. Nobody seems to have a problem =
with
> >>>> having colloquial names, but "US dollar" or "euro" are far less =
ambiguous
> >>>> than "bit". I think we need a more distinctive name.
> >>>>
> >>>> --
> >>>> Pieter
> >>>
> >>> =
--------------------------------------------------------------------------=
----
> >>> "Accelerate Dev Cycles with Automated Cross-Browser Testing - For =
FREE
> >>> Instantly run your Selenium tests across 300+ browser/OS combos.  =
Get
> >>> unparalleled scalability from the best Selenium testing platform =
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> >>> Simple to use. Nothing to install. Get started now for free."
> >>> http://p.sf.net/sfu/SauceLabs
> >>> _______________________________________________
> >>> Bitcoin-development mailing list
> >>> Bitcoin-development@lists.sourceforge.net
> >>> https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/bitcoin-development
> >>>
> >>
> >> =
--------------------------------------------------------------------------=
----
> >> "Accelerate Dev Cycles with Automated Cross-Browser Testing - For =
FREE
> >> Instantly run your Selenium tests across 300+ browser/OS combos.  =
Get
> >> unparalleled scalability from the best Selenium testing platform =
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> >> Simple to use. Nothing to install. Get started now for free."
> >> http://p.sf.net/sfu/SauceLabs
> >> _______________________________________________
> >> Bitcoin-development mailing list
> >> Bitcoin-development@lists.sourceforge.net
> >> https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/bitcoin-development
> >
> > =
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----
> > "Accelerate Dev Cycles with Automated Cross-Browser Testing - For =
FREE
> > Instantly run your Selenium tests across 300+ browser/OS combos.  =
Get
> > unparalleled scalability from the best Selenium testing platform =
available.
> > Simple to use. Nothing to install. Get started now for free."
> > http://p.sf.net/sfu/SauceLabs
> > _______________________________________________
> > Bitcoin-development mailing list
> > Bitcoin-development@lists.sourceforge.net
> > https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/bitcoin-development
>=20
> =
--------------------------------------------------------------------------=
----
> "Accelerate Dev Cycles with Automated Cross-Browser Testing - For FREE
> Instantly run your Selenium tests across 300+ browser/OS combos.  Get
> unparalleled scalability from the best Selenium testing platform =
available.
> Simple to use. Nothing to install. Get started now for free."
> http://p.sf.net/sfu/SauceLabs
> _______________________________________________
> Bitcoin-development mailing list
> Bitcoin-development@lists.sourceforge.net
> https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/bitcoin-development
>=20
> =
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> Instantly run your Selenium tests across 300+ browser/OS combos.  Get=20=

> unparalleled scalability from the best Selenium testing platform =
available.
> Simple to use. Nothing to install. Get started now for free."
> =
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<html><head><meta http-equiv=3D"Content-Type" content=3D"text/html =
charset=3Dutf-8"></head><body style=3D"word-wrap: break-word; =
-webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space;">bit =
has a lot of meanings to geeks, so what.<br><div =
apple-content-edited=3D"true"><br></div><div =
apple-content-edited=3D"true">
bit means for average people:</div><div apple-content-edited=3D"true">- =
something very small, that 100 satoshi is.&nbsp;</div><div =
apple-content-edited=3D"true">- part of the name Bitcoin</div><div =
apple-content-edited=3D"true">- easy to get conversion 1 coin =3D 1 =
million bits =3D 1 Bitcoin<br style=3D"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: =
Helvetica; font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; =
font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; =
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orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><br style=3D"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: =
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text-align: -webkit-auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; =
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orphans: 2; widows: 2;"><span style=3D"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: =
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white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; =
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!important;">Regards,</span><br style=3D"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); =
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style=3D"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 12px; =
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letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: -webkit-auto; =
text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; =
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2;"><span style=3D"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; =
font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: =
normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: =
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normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; orphans: 2; =
widows: 2; float: none; display: inline !important;">Tamas =
Blummer</span><br style=3D"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; =
font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: =
normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: =
-webkit-auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: =
normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; orphans: 2; =
widows: 2;"><span style=3D"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; =
font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: =
normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: =
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normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; orphans: 2; =
widows: 2; float: none; display: inline !important;">Founder, =
CEO</span><span style=3D"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; =
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normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: auto; =
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normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: =
0px;"><br style=3D"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; =
font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: =
normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: =
-webkit-auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: =
normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; orphans: 2; =
widows: 2;"><span style=3D"color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Helvetica; =
font-size: 12px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: =
normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; text-align: =
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normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; orphans: 2; =
widows: 2; float: none; display: inline !important;"><a =
href=3D"http://bitsofproof.com">http://bitsofproof.com</a></span>
</span></div>
<br><div><div>On 03.05.2014, at 18:02, slush &lt;<a =
href=3D"mailto:slush@centrum.cz">slush@centrum.cz</a>&gt; =
wrote:</div><br class=3D"Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote =
type=3D"cite"><div dir=3D"ltr">Excellent points =
Christophe!<div><br></div><div>Although moving to 1e-6 units is fine for =
me and I see advantages of doing this, I don't get that people on this =
mailing list are fine with calling such unit "bit". It's geeky as hell, =
ambiguous and confusing.&nbsp;</div>

<div><br></div><div>slush</div></div><div =
class=3D"gmail_extra"><br><br><div class=3D"gmail_quote">On Sat, May 3, =
2014 at 5:48 PM, Christophe Biocca <span dir=3D"ltr">&lt;<a =
href=3D"mailto:christophe.biocca@gmail.com" =
target=3D"_blank">christophe.biocca@gmail.com</a>&gt;</span> wrote:<br>

<blockquote class=3D"gmail_quote" style=3D"margin:0 0 0 =
.8ex;border-left:1px #ccc solid;padding-left:1ex">Context as a =
disambiguator works fine when the interlocutors<br>
understand the topics they're talking about.<br>
Not a day goes by without me seeing "neurotypical people" get =
horribly<br>
confused between RAM and Hard Drive sizes, because they share the =
same<br>
units (not that that can be helped, as the units are supposed to be<br>
the same, base 1000 vs 1024 notwithstanding).<br>
<br>
Bit (as a unit) is already really confusing for anyone who doesn't<br>
deal with it on a regular basis. I think people who don't see an =
issue<br>
are making an assumption based on their own lack of confusion. We<br>
understand computer science AND Bitcoin. Most people have zero<br>
understanding of either.<br>
<br>
Bitcoin already has a ton of issues with terrible names for things:<br>
<br>
- Mining (for transaction validation).<br>
- Addresses (which are meant to be one-time use, and don't even =
really<br>
exist at the network level).<br>
- Wallets (which don't hold your bitcoins, can be copied, and all<br>
backups can be stolen from equally).<br>
<br>
I end up having to make the distinctions obvious every time I =
explain<br>
Bitcoin to someone new to it. There's an acceptable tradeoff here,<br>
because there were arguably no better words to assign to these<br>
concepts (although I'd argue mining is a really awful metaphor, and =
is<br>
the one that prompts the most questions from people). Then add to =
the<br>
pile a bunch of third parties naming themselves after parts of the<br>
protocol (Coinbase,Blockchain.info). Not blaming them for it, but =
I've<br>
definitiely seen average people get confused between "the =
blockchain"<br>
and "<a href=3D"http://blockchain.info/" =
target=3D"_blank">blockchain.info</a>" (not so much Coinbase, because =
that name doesn't<br>
come up in beginner explanations).<br>
<br>
It seems downright masochistic to add<br>
yet-another-word-that-doesn't-mean-what-you-think-it-means to the =
pile<br>
for no reason other than aesthetics. Are we actively trying to =
confuse<br>
people?<br>
<div class=3D"HOEnZb"><div class=3D"h5"><br>
On Sat, May 3, 2014 at 1:41 AM, Aaron Voisine &lt;<a =
href=3D"mailto:voisine@gmail.com">voisine@gmail.com</a>&gt; wrote:<br>
&gt; I have to agree with Mike. Human language is surprisingly tolerant =
of<br>
&gt; overloading and inference from context. Neurotypical people have =
no<br>
&gt; problem with it and perceive a software engineer's aversion to it =
as<br>
&gt; being pedantic and strange. Note that "bits" was a term for a unit =
of<br>
&gt; money long before the invention of digital computers.<br>
&gt;<br>
&gt; Aaron<br>
&gt;<br>
&gt; There's no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole<br>
&gt; government working for you -- Will Rodgers<br>
&gt;<br>
&gt;<br>
&gt; On Fri, May 2, 2014 at 7:06 PM, Gordon Mohr &lt;<a =
href=3D"mailto:gojomo@gmail.com">gojomo@gmail.com</a>&gt; wrote:<br>
&gt;&gt; [resend - apologies if duplicate]<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; Microbitcoin is a good-sized unit, workable for everyday =
transaction<br>
&gt;&gt; values, with room-to-grow, and a nice relationship to satoshis =
as 'cents'.<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; But "bits" has problems as a unit name.<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; "Bits" will be especially problematic whenever people try to =
graduate<br>
&gt;&gt; from informal use to understanding the system internals - that =
is, when<br>
&gt;&gt; the real "bits" of key sizes, hash sizes, and storage/bandwidth =
needs<br>
&gt;&gt; become important. The "bit" as "binary digit" was important =
enough that<br>
&gt;&gt; Satoshi named the system after it; that homage gets lost if the =
word is<br>
&gt;&gt; muddied with a new retconned meaning that's quite =
different.<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; Some examples of possible problems:<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; * If "bit" equals "100 satoshis", then the natural-language =
unpacking of<br>
&gt;&gt; "bit-coin" is "100 satoshi coin", which runs against all prior =
usage.<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; * If people are informed that a "256-bit private key" is what =
ultimately<br>
&gt;&gt; controls their balances, it could prompt confusion like, "if =
each key<br>
&gt;&gt; has 256-bits, will I need 40 keys to hold 10,000.00 bits?"<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; * When people learn that there are 8 bits to a byte, they may =
think,<br>
&gt;&gt; "OK, my wallet holding my 80,000.00 bits will then take up 10 =
kilobytes".<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; * When people naturally extend "bit" into "kilobits" to mean =
"1000<br>
&gt;&gt; bits", then the new coinage "kilobits" will mean the exact same =
amount<br>
&gt;&gt; (100,000 satoshi) as many have already been calling =
"millibits".<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; I believe it'd be best to pick a new made-up single-syllable =
word as a<br>
&gt;&gt; synonym for "microbitcoin", and I've laid out the case for =
"zib" as that<br>
&gt;&gt; word at &lt;<a href=3D"http://zibcoin.org/" =
target=3D"_blank">http://zibcoin.org</a>&gt;.<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; 'Zib' also lends itself to an expressive unicode symbol, =
'=C6=B5'<br>
&gt;&gt; (Z-with-stroke), that remains distinctive even if it loses its =
stroke or<br>
&gt;&gt; gets case-reversed. (Comparatively, all 'b'-derived symbols =
for<br>
&gt;&gt; data-bits, bitcoins, or '100 satoshi bits' risk collision in =
contexts<br>
&gt;&gt; where subtleties of casing/stroking are lost.)<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; (There's summary of more problems with "bit" in the <a =
href=3D"http://zibcoin.org/" target=3D"_blank">zibcoin.org</a> FAQ =
&nbsp;at:<br>
&gt;&gt; &lt;<a =
href=3D"http://zibcoin.org/faq#why-not-bits-to-mean-microbitcoins" =
target=3D"_blank">http://zibcoin.org/faq#why-not-bits-to-mean-microbitcoin=
s</a>&gt;.)<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; - Gordon<br>
&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt; On 5/1/14, 3:35 PM, Aaron Voisine wrote:<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; I'm also a big fan of standardizing on microBTC as the =
standard unit.<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; I didn't like the name "bits" at first, but the more I =
think about it,<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; the more I like it. The main thing going for it is the fact =
that it's<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; part of the name bitcoin. If Bitcoin is the protocol and =
network, bits<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; are an obvious choice for the currency unit.<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; I would like to propose using Unicode character U+0180, =
lowercase b<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; with stroke, as the symbol to represent the microBTC =
denomination,<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; whether we call bits or something else:<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; &nbsp; <a =
href=3D"http://www.fileformat.info/info/unicode/char/0180/index.htm" =
target=3D"_blank">http://www.fileformat.info/info/unicode/char/0180/index.=
htm</a><br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; Another candidate is Unicode character U+2422, the blank =
symbol, but I<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; prefer stroke b.<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; <a =
href=3D"http://www.fileformat.info/info/unicode/char/2422/index.htm" =
target=3D"_blank">http://www.fileformat.info/info/unicode/char/2422/index.=
htm</a><br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; Aaron<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; There's no trick to being a humorist when you have the =
whole<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; government working for you -- Will Rodgers<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; On Apr 21, 2014 5:41 AM, "Pieter Wuille" =
&lt;pieter.wuille@gm...&gt; wrote:<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; On Apr 21, 2014 3:37 AM, "Un Ix" =
&lt;slashdevnull@...&gt; wrote:<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; Something tells me this would be reduced to a =
single syllable in common<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; usage I.e. bit.<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; What units will be called colloquially is not something =
developers will<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; determine. It will vary, depend on language and =
culture, and is not<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; relevant to this discussion in my opinion.<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; It may well be that people in some geographic or =
language area will end up<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; (or for a while) calling 1e-06 BTC "bits". That's fine, =
but using that as<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; "official" name in software would be very strange and =
potentially confusing<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; in my opinion. As mentioned by others, that would seem =
to me like calling<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; dollars "bucks" in bank software. Nobody seems to have =
a problem with<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; having colloquial names, but "US dollar" or "euro" are =
far less ambiguous<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; than "bit". I think we need a more distinctive =
name.<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; --<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt; Pieter<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt;<br>
&gt;&gt;&gt; =
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&gt;&gt;&gt; _______________________________________________<br>
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&gt;&gt;&gt; <a =
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