chad--background info from C. Jensen

[Bruce Dykes]

-----Original Message-----
From: Frank Abate <abatefr at earthlink.net>
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Date: Saturday, January 06, 2001 1:07 PM
Subject: Fw: chad--background info from C. Jensen


chad--background info from C. JensenMore on "chip(s)", following up on G
Cohen's quote of Jensen below.  The inventor who testified in the Bush v.
Gore Florida trial about voting machines (I forget his name) made a point of
saying that he called the waste matter "chips", not "chads".  He was in the
industry, and clearly very familiar with punch cards and their use.  His
invention of those voting machines dates back to the 1970s at least -- I
came across one of his patents in searching the US patent site.

This and what Jensen says below suggests that in the IBM-centered punch-card
community, "chips" was the word for the waste from the cards.
------------------------------

One noteworthy consideration, IBM (their computer division at least)
historically disregarded many industry standard terms and usages in favor of
their own coinings.

Whether that's true in this case or not, I can't say, but it is something to
keep in mind...

bkd