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Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by irdc on Sunday January 22, 2023 @05:55AM (#34476150)
Quick, how many inches are in a yard?
Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by bliteben on Sunday January 22, 2023 @07:59AM (#34476922)
How many seconds are in a minute? How many hours are in a day?
Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by dontlaugh on Sunday January 22, 2023 @08:14AM (#34477037)
Minutes and hours are not SI.
Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by satiric on Sunday January 22, 2023 @01:20PM (#34480432)
As an American, the only time I use yards is with football fields. When am I going to use inches in that context?

It's not a simple conversion because it's not a common conversion. It's like converting between inches and meters. The imperial system is multiple systems smashed together, and it's optimized for the more common conversions.

Not saying it's a perfect system, or that metric isn't better, but it's absolutely useable. I'd much rather stick with imperial than half-ass a conversion to metric and be stuck between the two systems, like what's happened in Canada and the UK.

Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by Fatnino on Monday January 23, 2023 @01:44AM (#34486192)
Quick, how many mm in a dm?
Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by defrost on Monday January 23, 2023 @01:51AM (#34486218)
Trivial, but . . .

who actually seriously uses decimeter on a weekly basis and what for?

I've used metric for 50+ years and I'm in the field of sensors and measurement with application from remote sensing to minerals and energy .. and I've yet to use a decimeter unit (outside of a programming exercise).

The convential usage is pico, nano, milli, centi, and full metre (and upwards to kilo, etc).

Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by Fatnino on Monday January 23, 2023 @06:50AM (#34487756)
I know. But it's also a little weird because a foot is a very human size but metric in common usage just skips over that size range.
Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by defrost on Monday January 23, 2023 @07:05AM (#34487859)
A metre is very human sized also .. you can easily hold your hands a metre apart (it's ~3.3 feet (~3.28 if being picky)), about the same as a yard.

I mean, who uses feet anymore anyway?

I've just measured up a whole bunch of stuff making a parrot proof covering for a pear tree .. everything is jotted on the back side of a bit of board in mm (millimeters).

3230 mm is 3.2 metres and a bit .. a bit under 10 & a half feet (but, again, who even uses feet or thinks in them anyway? *)

* We do use yards for conveying to USAians what distance we shoot targets at on the farm; (eg from the next door neighbours youtube channel [1] 5023 yards 24" x 24" target ULR shooting)

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7owwTz7Z0OE

Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by Fatnino on Monday January 23, 2023 @03:56PM (#34494923)
Look, I'm pro doing things in metric. I think the US should get in line with the rest of the planet.

But doing things at yard scale in mm is not helping the cause. Who wants to be throwing around 4 digit numbers in their head?

Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by defrost on Monday January 23, 2023 @06:17PM (#34496501)
Carpenters, woodworkers, metalworkers, electricians, etc. who work at a 10 to 50 foot (for the central north americans that like that kind of retrograde unit) scale AND who want a good fit ...

Millimeter fit on cabinets is the fit you want, whether you work in metric, British Imperial, or US Common.

When you have a long kitchen counter you're looking at 3 metres or more ( ~10 ft ) with framing and doors that join with barely the width a fingernail between.

The measurements are 10 foot (two digits), 6 inches, (another digit) and then a bit (tenths or hundredths of an inch, or a fraction - depending which you prefer).

That's ~ 4 digits for each measurement on a common household task.

It's pretty simple doing this as 3245mm on paper .. tradies have been doing this here since the 1970s and nothing's fallen down yet.

Dunno about you, I'm primarily a mathematican doing applied work - but I've worked as a TA (trades assistent) in electrical, gas fitting, plumbing, heavy mechanical, rigging (multi sling heavy lifting), welding, etc. (too much exposure to minesites and cattle stations I guess) and there's an entire class of people that are comfortable working with measurements that span the length of a truck and are accurate to the millimetre (or tenth of an inch) - so, four digits? No worries.

Why do you struggle with that?

Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by Fatnino on Wednesday January 25, 2023 @11:54PM (#34527809)
I think we're solving different problems here.

You are doing precision work while I'm picturing loosy goosy mental estimations.

Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by somat on Monday January 23, 2023 @09:03AM (#34488805)
I have never thought about it but you are right it is not used.

Now I am curious as to why not. is it just in that spot where no one really needs a measurement? in the US we went the other way, the yard(the long human scale measurement) is almost never used and the foot(the short human scale measurement is much more common.while in metric land the meter(the yard equivalent) is much more common and the decimeter(the foot equivalent) is never used.

Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by abricot on Monday January 23, 2023 @01:46AM (#34486199)
100 mm
Re:230 years since British pirates robbed the US of the metr... by Fatnino on Monday January 23, 2023 @06:52AM (#34487772)
I too have 36 inches to a yard available at a moments notice. Also 39 to a meter.