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<DIV>Thanks Mark for the update to my knowledge - re the Mebibyte. </DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>I am sufficiently old that the traditional definition of Megabyte as 2^20
bytes is the one that sticks in my mind. After all modern computers are
based on binary rather than decimal arithmetic. Have seen the IEC definition
referred to as "Japanese Megabyte" in some forums.</DIV>
<DIV> </DIV>
<DIV>Robert Hind<BR>Retired<BR>Ex Traralgon and Ashwood</DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV>
<DIV
style="FONT: 10pt arial; BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; font-color: black"><B>From:</B>
<A title=mark@vceit.com href="mailto:mark@vceit.com">Mark</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A title=sofdev@edulists.com.au
href="mailto:sofdev@edulists.com.au">Year 12 Software Development Teachers'
Mailing List</A> </DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Monday, November 17, 2014 5:05
PM</DIV>
<DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> [Year 12 SofDev] SD exam - C8 -
Megabyte, Mebibyte?</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV dir=ltr>Hello, commuters.
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>In the 2014 SD exam, section C, Q8, an innocuous question is asked about
'megabytes'. I wonder if the question realises the quandary it
creates...
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>The current 'official' IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission)
definition of a 'megabyte' is exactly 1,000,000 bytes, so the answer to C8 is
<B>6.0</B> and <B>20.0</B> respectively.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>But using the traditional (and industry standard) interpretation of a
'megabyte' - now charmingly known as a Mebibyte (MiB) - as being 1,048,576
bytes results in answers of <B>5.7</B> and <B>19.0</B>.</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Paula: what is VCAA's official stance on the definition of kilo, mega etc
in VCE IT exams? </DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Will the markers accept '19' as an answer to C8 part 2? </DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>P.S. According to <A
href="http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Mebibyte">urbandictionary.com</A>,
a Mebibyte is "A new, weird and unnecessary unit of data capacity, created by
some idiots of IEC and aggressively advertised on Wikipedia. 1 Mebibyte equals
0.9765625 Megabytes and serves no purpose other than confusing
people".<BR></DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Urbandictionary.com is right in its sentiment, but wrong in detail. A
<B>new</B> 'megabyte' is 1,000,000 bytes. The <B>old</B> megabyte is now
called a Mebibyte and is 1,048,576 bytes. That's what's confusing: IEC has
redefined an old, accepted unit, introduced a new unit that no-one wants to
use, and now chaos reigns because no-one now knows what someone means when
they say "megabyte".</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>
<DIV>Let the fun begin.<BR></DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>-- <BR></DIV>
<DIV class=gmail_signature>
<DIV dir=ltr>
<DIV dir=ltr>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Mark Kelly</DIV>
<DIV>mark AT vceit DOT com</DIV>
<DIV><A href="http://vceit.com" target=_blank>http://vceit.com</A></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV><I>I love the sound of people's voices after they stop talking.</I></DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV></DIV></DIV></DIV></DIV></DIV></DIV>
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