Xmas Ornament

NW Mailing List nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org
Tue Dec 9 21:26:00 EST 2014


Abbreviation was encouraged by telegraphy, but carving in stone encouraged it first!

Jeff Cornelius

> On Dec 9, 2014, at 8:34 PM, NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> wrote:
> 
> Actually, the abbreviation of Christmas is older than computers. I remember it from my childhood.
> 
> Jim Nichols
> 
> 
> On Tuesday, December 9, 2014 1:19 PM, NW Mailing List <nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org> wrote:
> 
> 
> Blame it on computers.  The early computers had limited memory and very small storage areas.   Today, even in phones there are MegaBytes (millions) and GigaBytes (billions) or more, whereas back in the early days of computing a user or programmer was lucky to have 20 or 30 kb (kiloBytes, 20,000 to 30,000).  The early programs were also stored on TTY paper-tape (I know as I had to use that medium).  Teletypes with a paper-tape reader/writer  was the usual console for computers way back then.
>  
> With limited space everything was shortened, Christmas, was one of the first words that was shortened in the late 50’s and early 60’s. If you remember all the noise about Y2K and how everything run by computers was going stop on January 1, 2000, that was because the early computers used six digits to record all dates.  All because of those electronic things some people cannot do without these days, so blame it on computers.
>  
> Merry Christmas to All
>  
> George Weber
>  
>  
> From: NW-Mailing-List [mailto:nw-mailing-list-bounces at nwhs.org] On Behalf Of NW Mailing List
> Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2014 12:03 PM
> To: NW Mailing List
> Subject: Re: Xmas Ornament
>  
> Jimmy- I know what it goes back to, and I’m older-fashioned than that.  I’ve never been in too much of a hurry to spell out the proper name, but I guess others are.
>  
> EdK
>  
> From: NW Mailing List
> Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2014 9:47 AM
> To: NW Mailing List
> Subject: Re: Xmas Ornament
>  
> 
> 
> What, pray tell, is Xmas?
>  
> Ed King
> 
> Ed, 
> It seems to go back to a time older than you and doesn't necessarily mean what you or I may have thought.
> Read about it here:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xmas
> 
> Jimmy Lisle
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