Linn Forums

SaltyDog · 2012-03-30, 00:06

Thanks for the link Briain. I wondered the other day when you spoke of the automobile's bonnet if that was above the engine all the time or if it was at the leading end all the time. Wink

Briain · (This post was last modified: 2012-03-30 00:20 by Briain.)

Ha ha; well spotted sir! I wondered if you would chance upon that discrete bonnet/hood comment! Big Grin

Briain · (This post was last modified: 2012-03-30 00:29 by Briain.)

PS Maybe I should have said that bonnet is the big plate that straddles the motorcar equivalent of the gunnels (or are they called something else over there)? Big Grin

SaltyDog · 2012-03-30, 00:28

Let me be more specific in my question. Which is the bonnet on a Porsche 911? Above the front tyres or above the rear tires?

Briain · (This post was last modified: 2012-03-30 00:45 by Briain.)

That's a good question! So for example, would you say the 911 has an air-cooled engine under the hood, or under the trunk (and would that change if reversing)? I always think of it as having the engine in the boot! Smile

Edit: I guess it would be 'in the trunk'? Next we'll have to sort out the pronunciation of router and router (and the disambiguation of the packet switching box and wood carving tool) Big Grin

SaltyDog · 2012-03-30, 00:42

I worked for the owner of THIS place in 1982 back when he lived in a mobile home so he could get his repair shop up a going while sending his two boys to private kindergarten and 1st grade. He used to call the rear hatch the "engine cover" and front thing the hood. He now calls one son the team engineer and the other son one of the team drivers.

Briain · (This post was last modified: 2012-03-30 01:22 by Briain.)

I do rather like that solution; calling it an 'engine cover' does resolve the issue very well! Can you run the UK/USA router pronunciation by them and see if we can sort that one out as well; it's a very complex and somewhat hazardous issue that could result in international IT engineers accidentally loosing all their fingers (and international joiners getting really crap broadband download speeds)! Big Grin

Edit: Just noticed that 'this' was a link; I'll go have a look! One of my friends and myself got into Lotus Élans back in the early 80's and I remember a class moment when he turned up at Russ Andrews HiFi (with his LP12) and the owner (David Watson) noticed him getting out of his Elan with supermarket carrier bags wrapped and taped round his knees. He commented 'I see you have the same car as Briain' as he knew I also had the issue of an unwelcome waterfall over the knees (from rain water flooding in behind the dashboard and draining over your legs when cornering swiftly; I can still acutely remember the utter hellish shock of that occurring in the winter season)! All true! Big Grin

SaltyDog · 2012-03-30, 01:15

I just know the big powerful ones are shapers. (But this forum's spell check disagrees.) Wooden you know. Big Grin

Briain · (This post was last modified: 2012-03-30 02:01 by Briain.)

Another fun one was from 1979 (we were still at school at the time) when one of our friends returned from spending a year in California and we all decided to build one of these new-fangled computer type things. We spent absolutely ages hand-wrapping the [somewhat massive] backplane (assisted by strong alcohol) but it all got a tad fractious when the CPU was discussed: We reckoned the Z80 was called a 'zed 80', but he reckoned it was called a 'zee 80'; we eventually conceded the latter as his argument (it was invented in the USA and thus they have the rights on the pronounciation) seemed pretty plausible. That said, I've never quite settled that one in my own mind and still have plans to loan him my high-rate 'router' to help finally settle that linguistic dispute (it's the wood shaping and finger removing version). Smile

Let's not even think about discussing the international disputes over the pronounciation of 'tomato'; that could start world war three!! Big Grin