> Ar 07:02 -0800 2000-03-13, scríobh Mark Davis:
> >The discussion on http://www.egt.ie/standards/capsmall.html is
> >not particularly convincing.
>
> Well there's no pleasing everyone. What WOULD be convincing, Mark? That
> little document is there to answer Markus' request for reasons for making
> the (arbitrary) choice instead of citing "traditional practice".
I said in the note what is convincing -- actual sorted data. The use of capitals and lowercase in outlines, for example, is simply irrelevant to the case of sorted data, and thus not convincing.
>There, different sources vary quite a bit. The Concise Oxford Dictionary
> >is not the only authority -- the English language does not (thank the
> >gods) depend on a centralized authority like the French Academy.
>
> What rhetoric. I have shown:
"rhetoric"? "shown"?
>
>
> 1. That tradition tends to prefer caps before smalls in a wide variety of
> dictionaries.
You have shown it in many dictionaries, but not, by any means, in a majority of dictionaries, nor sorted data in general.
>
>
> 2. That there are some logical reasons for making that choice, and
> apparently fewer for making the other.
The reasons you cite (like outlines) are irrelevant, not "logical"
>
>
> 3. That the stated editorial practice of Oxford is caps before smalls.
agreed
>
>
> 4. That the stated editorial practice of Webster is smalls before caps.
agreed
>
>
> Ken Whistler is right: implementations need to provide both options. All I
> can say is that the implementations need to make the ability to choose easy
> for the end user, or the tailorability is pointless.
Here we are in agreement, although I suspect that a large majority of end users will just not care either way.
>
>
> Michael Everson ** Everson Gunn Teoranta ** http://www.egt.ie
> 15 Port Chaeimhghein Íochtarach; Baile Átha Cliath 2; Éire/Ireland
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