Condition: improving

[justben]

I've decided to try a half-day at the office today, and an hour or two in I've not yet died. I'm a bit tired but surviving.

In only marginally-related news, I've decided that I'll no longer refer to computer integer byte orders as little-endian and big-endian, but rather as Lilliputian and Blefuscudian whenever the opportunity allows and the

Comments

[justben]

Didn't read the Wikipedia links, huh? Tsk, tsk ;-)

The Brobdingagians were the big contrast to the small Lilliputians, but the Lilliputians were only half of their story. The other half of their story were the Blefuscudians, a race of men similar in size to the Lilliputians. The actual story of the Lilliputians and the Blefuscudians was not, however, that they were small.

Their story is that their islands were forever at violent, horrible war over the proper way to eat a boiled egg. The Lilliputians were certain that the proper way to eat a boiled egg was to start at the little end. The Blefuscudians were just as certain that in fact the proper way to eat a boiled egg was to start at the big end. The supporters of these different and starkly-contrasting views took to calling each other "Little-endians" and "Big-endians".

This is the origin of the entry of the terms into the bytesex holy war. For a fine read, google "On holy wars and a plea for peace", from Danny Cohen in 1980.

(LJ Spellchecker Genius of the... erm... reply: bytesex -> bodices. Because it was too good to pass up.)

[starlancer]

Ah, actually I read about the first paragraph and thought, "yeahyeah, I remember Lilliput and Brobdingnag, forgot about these other fellows but ok, ok..."

So, I read too little of it. Half or maybe one third of it. Half to two thirds of a mea culpa. "Mea c" perhaps.

[justben]

Uh, and I didn't even click the one on big endian and little endian because, well, I thought I knew what those meant. I didn't realize they came from Guliver. So add a few more letters, I guess.

[starlancer]

Crap. That other response was me. I answered the first in the email form, using Netscape mail, which opened a Netscape browser window, and forgot I log in only in Firefox so I then added the after thought in Netscape...Argh.

I'm a bit sleepy but not drunk yet, believe it or not. Just a night for weird half measure screw ups on my part. I should quit while I'm behind.

Uh, and I didn't even click the one on big endian and little endian because, well, I thought I knew what those meant. I didn't realize they came from Guliver. So add a few more letters, I guess.