From owner-freebsd-questions@FreeBSD.ORG Mon Oct 26 17:48:57 2009 Return-Path: Delivered-To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Received: from mx1.freebsd.org (mx1.freebsd.org [IPv6:2001:4f8:fff6::34]) by hub.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id C10D9106566C for ; Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:48:57 +0000 (UTC) (envelope-from fbsdlists@gmail.com) Received: from mail-pz0-f202.google.com (mail-pz0-f202.google.com [209.85.222.202]) by mx1.freebsd.org (Postfix) with ESMTP id 9BB738FC14 for ; Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:48:57 +0000 (UTC) Received: by pzk40 with SMTP id 40so7697052pzk.7 for ; Mon, 26 Oct 2009 10:48:57 -0700 (PDT) DKIM-Signature: v=1; a=rsa-sha256; c=relaxed/relaxed; d=gmail.com; s=gamma; h=domainkey-signature:mime-version:received:date:message-id:subject :from:to:content-type; bh=Zw1fRZXWUEgrJ7H3dBFmFnipLZXfsPt2bySxEMdaUW8=; b=ToSzV8Y5oB8Q+aOSKg3IUREi3gdjC+cAFMe3tftYEmzsDj5xeb7TGnWE+9l/yMq7gW W9Jm+Ex+P4M5cEMK5jPzWzyo9FadACMbIJnApesBu2VUP8UlvzT4USKgK9BxTV/Lba2b KvGyZ1+fqAUFcxJfJAVmlWXsPl7zDHuxeuSEs= DomainKey-Signature: a=rsa-sha1; c=nofws; d=gmail.com; s=gamma; h=mime-version:date:message-id:subject:from:to:content-type; b=RtwOvuO9A6SjPZLUzNCcdXe2sHn+t7vLyyZpaTirUR5RXJKEjnEov2iapLxGBWZh1T CGzzBjVrpZUJWkgwkfcUQnByQ9JIuzaomDzetByH+ZmLx9PNJZ3aG2MZAjlXIyHW0Iij l2ACXIc8mgNHf/W5NpCnXkFH5oUDTE88/i8Ok= MIME-Version: 1.0 Received: by 10.142.118.3 with SMTP id q3mr1194641wfc.248.1256579337315; Mon, 26 Oct 2009 10:48:57 -0700 (PDT) Date: Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:48:57 -0400 Message-ID: <54db43990910261048k8a5d644q2950d4d5e5cb3b01@mail.gmail.com> From: Bob Johnson To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Subject: Re: Disk vs Disc (was: WD External Disc Drive) X-BeenThere: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.5 Precedence: list List-Id: User questions List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Mon, 26 Oct 2009 17:48:57 -0000 On 10/26/09, Polytropon wrote: > On Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:07:45 +0000, Arthur Chance > wrote: >> The distinction you make is one >> I've not come across before, and I've worked with computers for nearly >> 40 years. > Same here. I've always been told they were completely interchangeable. I do recall that when floppy drives appeared for personal computers in the late '70s and early '80s, there was some argument about the correct spelling. The claim was that "disc" was correct, and that some ignorant hobbyist at a new computer company had misspelled it as "disk" and it stuck. But IBM used the "disk" spelling long before that, so I don't think that was really what happened. Looking in the OED, I find that "disk" was the original spelling, and in the late 1800s "disc" became popular, then around 1950 "disk" started regaining popularity, largely in the computer industry. - Bob -- -- Bob Johnson fbsdlists@gmail.com