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A comment on Paper Sizes and Formats Explained: The Difference Between A4 and Letter. Parent comment

Re:Paper Sizes and Formats Explained: The Difference Between... by wongarsu on Friday January 05, 2024 @03:43AM (#38877032)
A foot being 12 inches makes fractions work really well in US units (as well as a mile being 8 x 10 x 11 x 6 foot). And with it working so well, many people don't seem to be able to imagine to work without them.

In metric a meter isn't as nicely divisible. Of course we get around that by subdividing 1.2m or 1.5m instead (or 0.8, kitchens and lots of furniture is designed in outer dimensions that are fractions and multiplies of 0.8 meters). But that only works well if you write them out add decimals, because saying "this cupboard is 1/2 0.8 meter wide" is just silly

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Re:Paper Sizes and Formats Explained: The Difference Between... by 8A51C on Friday January 05, 2024 @04:40AM (#38877300)
The metre is not used for everything. The standard for construction and manufacturing is the millimetre. In the UK a standard kitchen unit is a 600(mm), with 300 and 900 varients. Appliances come in 500, 600 and 900 widths, that being the gap or unit they (should!) fit into. It would feel unatural to me to say 0.6 etc for a unit. These common dimensions are used like nouns, "You need 3, 600s" rather than "You need 3 units 600mm wide" tying them more closely to language and perhaps then harder to change.
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