[Lowfer] RE: Lowfer digest, Vol 1 #293 - 20 msgs

[Ed Phillips]

W1EOF wrote:
> 
> > Ah don't be so persnickety. Just lay off of my
> > 185.3000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
> 
> LOL.... Reminds me of a guy I worked around 1977 or so, designing test
> instrumentation. He *NEVER* could get it in his head why we didn't add more
> digits to the display which in his mind just HAD to make the instrument more
> accurate. We had untold number of "resolution vs accuracy" talks, he just
> would sit there with his eyes glazed over, and then tell me how many more
> units he could sell If I'd just add the other digits. He probably also
> thought that NBS was a basketball league.  :-)
> 
> Mark W1EOF

	Are you sure he wasn't correct about the sales aspect?  A lot of people
still don't understand the difference, including engineers with whom I
work.  I guess I'd like to have one more digit than necessary, just for
comfort sake.  Since I first got a pocket calculator I've formed the
habit of recording answers to six digits even when the input data was
uncertain at the third digit or even the second; somehow it "makes me
feel better".  Just an idiosyncracy, of course......

Ed