Ubuntu Desktop Unit Consistency (LP: #369525)

[Chan Chung Hang Christopher]

> "Mega" is also a problem because accessibility isn't just about the 
> ability to understand something, it's about the amount of mental effort 
> required.  Grab a non-technical friend or family member and ask them how 
> many million in a billion, then how many kilobytes in a megabyte. 
> You'll find they have to think longer and harder to answer the second 
> question, if they can do it at all.  I'm not clear what extra value 
> "mega" provides that's worth so many wasted cycles.
>
>   

Heh. Some favourite questions I hear from users.

How many files can I put on (mega|giga|uber)bytes?

So how large is (mega|giga|uber)bytes?


Yeah, yeah, you are following SI units and it makes it easier for the 
user but in the end it really does not mean anything to them except that 
their 250GB disk is really 250GB after formatting and some convenient 
rounding.


But whatever. Have fun changing age old conventions out of line. Other 
operating systems are 'also tending' to use is not enough. Get this into 
say the UNIX or POSIX standards first.