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From: peter@sugar.UUCP (Peter da Silva)
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: Why make up names (was Re: Size of SysV "block" (really: byte != 8 bits))
Message-ID: <421@sugar.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 22-Jul-87 08:55:30 EDT
Article-I.D.: sugar.421
Posted: Wed Jul 22 08:55:30 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 26-Jul-87 21:11:20 EDT
References: <218@astra.necisa.oz> <142700010@tiger.UUCP> <2792@phri.UUCP> <9814@bu-cs.BU.EDU>
Organization: Sugar Land UNIX - Houston, TX
Lines: 17
Summary: I call it a 24-bit word, myself.

>Has anyone seen a good name used for three 8-bit bytes? I've been using
>"tri-byte", but could see it being shortened to "trite" or "tryte."

Or "three 8-bit bytes" (why do you say 8-bit bytes, if you want to use more
specific names?). If you really want a name for it, how about a "Version 7
disk block pointer"?

I tend to use "bit", "nybble" (or 4-bits), "byte", and "word".  The length
of a word is either obvious from context (you know how big the words are on
the computer being used) or spelled out. 9 bit bytes are almost always quarter
words on a mainframe, so just call them quarter words... like nybbles, they're
not individually adressable anyway (I guess they're inalienable bytes: "we
hold these bytes self-evident...". Must be checksummed.).

Or else use "char", "short", "int", and "long"...
-- 
-- Peter da Silva `-_-' ...!seismo!soma!uhnix1!sugar!peter (I said, NO PHOTOS!)