Intialise, criticise, realize ..

[nq:1]Hello. The Americans have made it simple. They spell all the words in the subject (and alike) with z. As ... than s by British authors. But who knows... Can you tell me a simple rule? Is there one, at all?[/nq]
There was no simple rule: the z-form was previously used quite extensively. But now, as America's moral standing in the world continues to plummet, we increasingly leave the z-for

[nq:1]Hello. The Americans have made it simple. They spell all the words in the subject (and alike) with z. As ... than s by British authors. But who knows... Can you tell me a simple rule? Is there one, at all?[/nq]
These days, Brits generally used "s" and Yanks use "z" but, at one time in Britain "s" was the Cambridge spelling while "z" was the Oxford spelling, at least for certain words suc

[nq:1]Can you tell me a simple rule? Is there one, at all?[/nq]
Etymologically, most -ise words derive from Greek -izein, with a zeta. So the z form would be truer to the origin. But 'z's are considered ugly in England, so have been quietly ushered out, like an alcoholic uncle at a wedding.
Paul Burke

[nq:2]Can you tell me a simple rule? Is there one, at all?[/nq]
[nq:1]Etymologically, most -ise words derive from Greek -izein, with a zeta. So the z form would be truer to the origin. But 'z's are considered ugly in England, so have been quietly ushered out, like an alcoholic uncle at a wedding.[/nq]
A funny enough comparison

[nq:1]And how about something like program/programme? Is the latter used exclusively or not?[/nq]
To me, programming a computer is an international activity, and I use 'program'. I also use 'disk' out of weariness, and 'analog' because I think the -ue form is silly.
For the TV or radio, I seldom write it down, but I think I would use 'programme' normally, in the hope that they would turn o

[nq:1]And how about something like program/programme? Is the latter used exclusively or not?[/nq]
To me, a computer program is something I run on a computer, and a computer programme is something I watch on TV about computers.

I remember discussing this very point with a colleague back in 1984, and he suggested there was actually an "official" distinction along these lines, but didn't

[nq:2]And how about something like program/programme? Is the latter used exclusively or not?[/nq]
[nq:1]To me, programming a computer is an international activity, and I use 'program'. I also use 'disk' out of weariness, and 'analog' because I think the -ue form is silly.[/nq]
But a CD-ROM (or DVD) is a 'disc' - the Americans having failed to invent it. And my laser disc player says "Laser

It's **** wise. I really think so. Thanks.

[nq:2]To me, programming a computer is an international activity, and ... and 'analog' because I think the -ue form is silly.[/nq]
[nq:1]But a CD-ROM (or DVD) is a 'disc' - the Americans having failed to invent it. And my laser disc player says "LaserDisc" on it :-)[/nq]
The distinction that was explained to me was "disk" for magnetic media and "disc" for optical media.
Cheers
Tony

[nq:1]Hello. The Americans have made it simple. They spell all the words in the subject (and alike) with z. As ... than s by British authors. But who knows... Can you tell me a simple rule? Is there one, at all?[/nq]
No. Chaos prevails in this respect.

Mike Stevens
narrowboat Felis Catus II
Web site www.mike-stevens.co.uk
No man is an island. So is Man.