The Best Argument for Americanized Spelling I've Ever Seen

[Aggie]

Being a stubborn Canadian who hangs on to any cultural differences between us and our Big Brother to the south, I've steadfastly stuck to keeping the 'u' in words like colour and neighbour (and occasionally insert it in inappropriate places, like authour).  The infographic in the next post gives some details on how choices of fonts and spellings of words can have real-world implications, in aggregate.  It's the only argument I've seen for dropping the u that doesn't smack of pure laziness. 

Infographic to follow.

[Aggie]

[Bluenose]

I dislike Americanised   spellings.  Call me a fuddy-duddy, but there it is.  However, given that I hardly ever print out anything these days and stick to electronic versions, I think I'll stick to honour, colour and aluminium, despite the approaching ink-jet ink apocalypse.

[Griffin NoName]

The one American spelling I seem to have acquired is the "s" in Blue's post A "z" now looks wrong to me. I have no idea how this has happended. Perhaps an s takes less ink than a z and I may yet save the world from the aforementioned apocalypse.

It's a great infographic.

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

If you are the kind of person who prints a lot then you should use toner (ie, a laser printer) rather than use ink cartridges (see below):

http://www.theguardian.com/money/2013/mar/30/inkjet-or-laser-printing-cost-effective

If the problem is spelling use a smaller font. 

But the best thing you can do is to avoid printing altogether. 

[Aggie]

I think I'll stick to honour, colour and aluminium, despite the approaching ink-jet ink apocalypse.

We're actually a mixed bag up here. Most words are flexible, although I think in formal writing the u's are usually retained.  However, 'aluminium' is a totally foreign spelling and pronunciation to me.  I think there's a good case for the British version (it's a more beautiful pronunciation) based on the majority of element names.

Incidentally, why do we say/spell platinum instead of platinium? This seems to be the only other exception to the rule, and legitimizes aluminum somewhat.

Zed instead of ess still looks right to me in most cases, but either is preferable to using that bloody zee that the Yanks have.

[Swatopluk]

We use that precious metal without the um at all.
And don't ask for logic in chemical nomenclature.

[Bluenose]

...
However, 'aluminium' is a totally foreign spelling and pronunciation to me.
...

Evidence for those that think the correct alternate name for Kanuckistan is Some More United States.   

<runs away and hides under a bush>

[Griffin NoName]

Incidentally, why do we say/spell platinum instead of platinium? This seems to be the only other exception to the rule, and legitimizes aluminum somewhat.

No, does not legitimize it at all. English (as in proper English) relies on the "exception proves the rule."

[Bob in a quantum-state-of-faith]

Awww... Zono stole my thunder.

I was going to say, I side-step the whole issue, by using plastic powder instead of expensive ink. 

My venerable laser-jet printer uses carbon-infused polyester powder instead of ink, just like the old Xerox machines of yesterday.  It's pretty cheap stuff-- I can print 10,000 or more pages with a $30 toner cartridge. 

Which for me?  Means that printer has a literal lifetime supply of "ink"-- it'll break down and quit working long before it runs out of toner.

I love how it just sits there patently in the back room, waiting quietly until I issue the "print this" command.  Then?  It wakes up, spits out the page(s) and goes back to sleep for another month or three. 

If, for some god-forsaken reason I actually need color?  I take my print job down to the local quicky-print shop, and use their $10,000 color laser printer-- it does 100 times better than anything I could conceivably afford, and I never have to pay for printer mess-ups-- they just move to an alternate machine, and viola!  My job is done--better than I could ever hope to do myself. 

[Griffin NoName]

I use an all-in-one copy, scanner, printer. I use the copy most, and oocasionally the scanner. There are times when I use the  print function a lot and then fallow times. I'm not too bothered about colour, but it is nice to print photos occasionally. The quality of print for the photos is fine as my eyesight is not good, even with spectacles. So I don't have a laser printer. I buy ink-cartridges about every 10 months.

[Aggie]

I haven't had much use for a printer in the last few years, but prefer to use a laser printer by far, especially since the printings hold up to water damage.  I really have no use for printing in colour, so I agree with Bob....  take it to the copy centre or if it's a photo, use London Drugs' online service and pick it up in a few hours.

However, toner up here is ridiculously expensive in most cases...  I looked at replacing toner for my previous dead-basic Samsung laser printer (which was getting a bit cranky with age and probably dust) and it would cost $94 incl. tax (plus an eco fee on top) for a 2000 pg toner cartridge. That's still real money (about 5c) per page.  I ended up buying a comparable but much more compact Samsung model new and on sale for $74.41 incl. tax instead. That's the cheapest I've ever really seen a laser printer go for; inkjets can be had for as little as $30 on sale.  The cartridges for the new printer are a little cheaper - $78.38 tax in - but half the capacity.

It's still probably cheaper than ink cartridges on a per-page basis, and the quality is much better IMHO, but actually inexpensive? Not really. Obviously there are economies of scale that apply for office-size units, but those aren't really an option and the total outlay would still be higher.

I'm not refuting what Bob is saying; on the contrary, it highlights the massive tech-price gaps between Canada and the US.



**Side Note** Since this is the best argument for Merkinized spelling I've seen, I'm keeping the 'u's.

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

The other thing about toner is that you can find it from non-brand providers for a much more reasonable price with less chance of 'chip security' issues*. Another reason why I hate ink printers.

*the way brand providers use to screw customers by sending false empty readings or simply not working.

[Griffin NoName]

I never take any notice of software telling the ink is low/empty. I wait til nothing will print. Usually gives double the time.

.............it would cost $94 incl. tax (plus an eco fee on top) for a 2000 pg toner cartridge. That's still real money (about 5c) per page.  I ended up buying a comparable but much more compact Samsung model new and on sale for $74.41 incl. tax instead. That's the cheapest I've ever really seen a laser printer go for; inkjets can be had for as little as $30 on sale.  The cartridges for the new printer are a little cheaper - $78.38 tax in - but half the capacity.

But doesn't that mean it is cheaper to buy a new printer each time rather than new cartridges?

[Aggie]

Ayuh, although the cartridges shipped with printers usually have less toner/ink included, so it's not really cheaper on a per page basis.  It leads to a ridiculous amount of e-waste.  The idea is to make less money on the initial purchase, but to make more money once you're looped into a given brand on the cartridges, but quite often people will just buy a whole new unit because it feels like better value.

I'm sure there are non-brand toner options out there, but they are not easy to find nor off the shelf up here.  Online retail is way less convenient in Canada than in the US.

[Griffin NoName]

Online retail is way less convenient in Canada than in the US.

I'm intrigued. What are the differences??

[Sibling Zono (anon1mat0)]

It leads to a ridiculous amount of e-waste.  The idea is to make less money on the initial purchase, but to make more money once you're looped into a given brand on the cartridges, but quite often people will just buy a whole new unit because it feels like better value.

Not limited to printers, I use an electric toothbrush and the full thing is cheaper than the replacement heads, in fact cheap enough to compete with non-electric brushes.

[Aggie]

Online retail is way less convenient in Canada than in the US.

I'm intrigued. What are the differences??

Much, much lower population, a somewhat larger land mass (a fairly decentralized one in terms of population) and a much less competitive retail environment.  US retailers can rely on volume to make up for lower prices.    We can order most things from the US (although heavy shipping costs and sometimes duty will apply), so while they're technically available, they are not economical for the consumer.  Prospective retailers of some of these items are probably discouraged from starting a company, because of the lower population here and the fact that one could source them from Amrika (i.e. there is already a supplier to compete with).


@Zono: It most famously applies to razors; give away the handle with a couple of blades for relatively cheap, then charge for the replacement cartridges.  I may be switching back to disposable 1-piece razors, as the cartridges are ridiculously expensive - usually around $5 per cartridge, even if you buy the big pack.

[Bob in a quantum-state-of-faith]

There are ways to refill toner cartridges with just the black powder.  In a non-commercial use (such as what I do), the drum does not see appreciable wear, so refilling makes sense.  But not all are easy to do, and not all toner is the same--some of the knock-off stuff is pure junkware, and can ruin your whole day (and printer, too--not just the cartridge).

When my "test cartridge" ran out (the one the printer shipped with), I had a choice of two-- the difference was about 1/3 more, for far more than 2 times the expected print volume.  Since I do occasionally print for my work?  My boss kindly got me the larger one-- and I occasionally print out 8-10 pages for him, in lovely waterproof laser typeset. 

[Darlica]

Swedish schools generally teaches British English. Which is what I learned in School and therefore mostly uses. The Kids these days however uses a lot of American English due to consuming a lot of American culture...

I also prefer British English of a a couple of reasons: I live closer to UK than to USA. I simply like it better the pronunciation and the way the words looks written down. Also less homonyms hence less confusion.

In my twenties I went to a folk high school (education for adults that want complement their education in order to be able to go to university) for a year, amongst other things I studied a more advanced English than I did when I was younger.
I had a teacher who was very good but also very firm in her view of how to use Br. English and AM. English.
The very first class we had with her every one had to choose to use either Br. English or Am. English and then stick to it for the rest of the year in all her classes! If one had chosen Br.English and then used American spelling in a word (unless it was in a quote) it counted as a spelling error and of cause vice versa.
It was rather fun to watch the ones who chosen Am.English just  because they thought it was "cool" get an earful because they wasn't consistent in their spelling or pronunciation...
In the end only one student in my English classes did succeed using Am. English, she had been an exchange student in USA for a year plus worked as an Au Pair for two or three years also in USA.

The amount of English text I print is almost non existing, so the environmental bit is a non issue for me. And should of some reason the world deicide to completely switch over to Am. English I would cry.

[Griffin NoName]

I doubt the world will deliberately switch to US English but inevitably some terms get assimilated in all languages into other languages. So it may be more Brit. English augmented by some US stuff. We have a lot of French etc anyway. The s and the z are getting pretty much interchangeable in words like exercize/exercise. Hmmm. Long time since I saw it with a z. The Oxford English Dictionary (the Bible) often lists both spellings.

And remember, if you time travelled back a few hundred years, the language may be unrecognizable anyway.

[Darlica]

Well, every language change over time. If you would like to read Swedish documents from the 16th century you better be good at the German language... and a couple of centuries later it was French...

And we have English words too but those mainly did their entrée in the later part of the last century.

However, while we are assimilating new and forging words we stubbornly keep our ÅÄÖ and tricky spelling of "sch" sounds,