[OT] Re: [mythtv-users] Recording Bitrates fpr PVR 350

Michael T. Dean mtdean at thirdcontact.com
Fri Dec 23 12:09:36 EST 2005


Scott Alfter wrote:

>Michael T. Dean wrote:
>  
>
>>Scott Alfter wrote:
>>    
>>
>>>Disk space is cheap. I just record everything at 6 Mbps and call it a day.
>>> With ~340 GB (real gigabytes, not "salesman's gigabytes") across three 
>>>drives, I've never run out of space.
>>>
>>1 gigabyte = 1GB = 1,000,000,000 bytes
>>1 gibibyte = 1GiB = 1,073,741,824 bytes
>>    
>>
>So because the hard-drive manufacturers weren't honest with their labeling,
>we're supposed to use some nut's ghey alternative name?  A gigabyte is 2^30
>bytes.  It always has been and always will be, and if that sounds like I'm
>having a 40-rods-to-the-hogshead moment, so be it.
>
Actually, the problem isn't the hard drive manufacturers.  The problem 
is with the first people to call 2^10 bytes = 1024 bytes a "kilobyte," 
because--believe it or not--kilo meant 1000 long before the kilobyte.  
Ask any of those people who live in any of those countries with the 
funny base-10 measuring system (think kilogram, kilometer (or is that 
kilometre ;), ... ).

Just because the first word you heard to describe 1024 bytes was a 
kilobyte doesn't mean it's right.  I guess the International 
Electrotechnical Commision, in trying to decide on a way to 
unambiguously describe both 2^30 bytes and 10^9 bytes, decided that 
"gibibyte" and "gigabyte" sounded better than "gigabyte" and "salesman's 
gigabyte."  And, since the IEC coined these terms, other standards 
bodies--including the IEEE and NIST--have adopted them.

Mike


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