Re: Off topic: Divided by a common language (WAS: API receiver variab lelimit)

[Jon.Paris@xxxxxx]

First comment - I (Jon Paris) _am_ a Brit - so trust me I know a lot about
the differences!  That's why I am surprised by your comment 'cos I thought
all of these terms were ones I'd first heard and used over 'ome!  Maybe
it's an age thing?  I'm rapidly qualifying for old-fartdom (too rapidly for
my taste).

So:

1) What's a boilerplate?

I'm sure this is an English term - according to the word detective:

Back in the days of "hot metal" typesetting, newspapers were printed from
metal plates of type, cast from mats created by typesetters in the
newspaper's composition room. Certain parts of the newspaper, however, such
as advertisements or syndicated columns, were supplied to the printers in
ready-to-use form as heavy iron prefabricated printing plates that were not
(and indeed could not be) modified before printing. These never-changed
plates came to be known in the late 19th century as "boilerplate" from
their resemblance to the plates used to construct boilers, and eventually
any part of the paper that rarely changed (such as the masthead) came to be
called "boilerplate."

2) Why do you call /COPY members "copy books"?

I think that is more commonly a COBOL term. Most RPGers think you mean CC
in SEU when you talk about copying things.  When I've got my brain fully
engaged I try to use the term /COPY member.

3) Why do you call DP departments and/or software houses "shops"?

Shop tends to be used to describe places of work (e.g. Sweat shop, Body
shop, etc.)  Again I thought that was an English term but then I've been
living and working in Canada and the US for over 20 years now and am
sometimes guilty of translating the correct word into the wrong one!

I have now reached the stage where I am not understood on either side of
the Atlantic.  Most Americans think I'm Australian, most Brits think I'm a
Yank!  In fact I live in Canada, spend about 16 weeks a year in the US and
love Australia!


Hope this helps.

PS.  If you want to _really_ understand the differences between the
languages check out www.effingpot.com.  Susan and I even contributed a few
definitions (see the one under "Marmite" for one of Susan's).  We send the
book to our English and American friends to help them communicate with us.

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