Confusing 1000 and 1024 (or other powers of 2 and 10 close in magnitude) -- for example, describing a memory in units of 500K or 524K instead of 512K -- is a sure sign of the [marketroid]. One example of this: it is common to refer to the capacity of 3.5" [microfloppies] as `1.44 MB' In fact, this is a completely [bogus] number. The correct size is 1440 KB, that is, 1440 * 1024 = 1474560 bytes. So the `mega' in `1.44 MB' is compounded of two `kilos', one of which is 1024 and the other of which is 1000. The correct number of megabytes would of course be 1440 / 1024 = 1.40625. Alas, this fine point is probably lost on the world forever.
[1993 update: hacker Morgan Burke has proposed, to general approval on Usenet, the following additional prefixes:
groucho 10^(-30) harpo 10^(-27) harpi 10^(27) grouchi 10^(30)
We observe that this would leave the prefixes zeppo-, gummo-, and chico- available for future expansion. Sadly, there is little immediate prospect that Mr. Burke's eminently sensible proposal will be ratified.]
[1999 upate: there is an [ IEC proposal] for binary multipliers, but no evidence that any of its proposals are in live use.]
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