Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Path: utzoo!henry From: henry@utzoo.UUCP (Henry Spencer) Newsgroups: net.news Subject: Re: Re: Re: Phone numbers Message-ID: <4869@utzoo.UUCP> Date: Sat, 5-Jan-85 23:03:16 EST Article-I.D.: utzoo.4869 Posted: Sat Jan 5 23:03:16 1985 Date-Received: Sat, 5-Jan-85 23:03:16 EST References: <1452@ritcv.UUCP>, <1585@qubix.UUCP> Organization: U of Toronto Zoology Lines: 17 > ... The international standard way of giving a North American > phone number, using my company's number as an example, is "+1 408 292 > 4000". The original posting (way back when...) asked us if would please quote phone numbers in the international-standard form rather than in the parochial North American "(408)292-4000" form. Unfortunately, the reason (apart from ignorance and unconcern) why we use the parochial form is simple: most of our audience is in North America, and those people are familiar with the North American form and quite unfamiliar with the international standard. The laudable goal of adhering to standards is incompatible with the equally-laudable goal of presenting information in the most understandable form. Faced with such a choice of evils, most of us opt for the familiar one. -- Henry Spencer @ U of Toronto Zoology {allegra,ihnp4,linus,decvax}!utzoo!henry