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I say disc, you say disk...

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Which is correct? ...both? ...only one, all the time?

Is your OS CD/DVD
...a gray disc?
...a gray disk?
...or, is it grey?

Is your hard drive
...a disc?
...a disk?
Am I driving you crazy yet?

What about
...a floppy disc?
...or floppy disk?
Does it matter?

Let the discussion begin...
 
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Which is correct?
Okay.
Is your OS CD/DVD
...a gray disc?
...a gray disk?
Disc.
Is your hard drive
...a disc?
...a disk?
Disk.
What about
...a floppy disc?
...or floppy disk?
Disk.
Does it matter?
Yes, it does.
Let the discussion begin...
No need for a discussion when there is a definitive answer.

What's the difference between a "disc" and a "disk?"

Oh, and it's "gray" if you're American and "grey" if you're English.
 
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I'm American, but I still have enough class to spell grey the correct way. Also I spell colour with a u.

Also, good work on the disc vs disk. If it's magnetic, it's a disk. If it's optical, it's a disc.
 
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bobtomay

,
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:) harry was just backin' ya up there
 
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I'm American, but I still have enough class to spell grey the correct way. Also I spell colour with a u.

Also, good work on the disc vs disk. If it's magnetic, it's a disk. If it's optical, it's a disc.

Oh please. :Not-Amused:
 
OP
toMACsh
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Yeah, I figured someone would cut to the chase and spill the beans. (or is it beanes?)
Oh well, no fun it that.
 
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An easy way to remember is that the "c" in disc is curved, much like a CD or DVD. Once you know which one a disc is, it's easy to deduce that a hard drive would be the other one.
 

cwa107


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I always thought that "disc" referred to the shape of optical media, whereas disk was a shortened form of "diskette". Of course, that doesn't account for "hard disk". I wonder what the actual origin of the word "disk" is.

The local newspaper used to run a regular column by an automotive journalist, and it used to drive me nuts when he referred to disc brakes as "disk brakes". I was even tempted to write him, now I'm glad I didn't. Apparently there is a completely arbitrary designation for certain disc-shaped objects.
 
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huh... I never payed attention to this difference.

Learned something new here, ;D
 
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Well, laser disc movies and compact discs existed long before that 1997 toast manual. :p And CWA, I'd imagine diskette was a lengthened version of disk, not the other way around? Then again, who knows.

Oh please. :Not-Amused:

You're right. God forbid I uphold some sort of continuity with the language that I choose to speak in.
 
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D3v1L80Y answered this quite definitavely. I'm surprised the Moderaters have not closed this already.

Oh, and it's "gray" if you're American and "grey" if you're English.
English or Australian :)
 

vansmith

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English or Australian :)
...or Canadian ;).

Without actually knowing the semantics behind with word disk/c, I always tended to use disc for optical media and disk for hard disks. I've just always see it spelled that way so had assumed it wasn't even an issue.
 
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toMACsh
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huh... I never payed attention to this difference.

Learned something new here,

No need to thank me for bringing this up, just knowing you learned something means your debt of gratitude is paid in full. ;)
 
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I'm American, but I still have enough class to spell grey the correct way. Also I spell colour with a u.

I think the contention was over this comment - "gray" is simply the American spelling, it has nothing to do with class, but geographical preference.

On that note, proximity to Canada (Ithaca) makes it more acceptable to use the English variation than using it in, for example, Texas.

Although, spelling Texas "Tejas" while in San Antonio is more acceptable than using it in New York.

¿Sabes? ;)
 
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Always wondered what the difference was :p

Nice post!
 
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Oddly, I work in storage.. and it simply doesn't bother me.

Their, There and They're though.... now THAT gets me going. So does 'alot'.
 
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Oddly, I work in storage.. and it simply doesn't bother me.

Their, There and They're though.... now THAT gets me going. So does 'alot'.
And don't forget the dreaded "you're" and "your" mix up.
...or the addition of an apostrophe when someone really means a plural (eg. "I own many Mac's")

...I could go on, but I would make myself ill ranting about the horrendous lack of grammar in today's society.
 

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