[sci.astro] Calendar Layout Around the World

terrell@cadnetix.COM (10/18/89)

Internationalization of Computer Software (CALENDARS)

A couple of months I started a discussion on the "internationalization"
of software.  I received numerous excellent suggestions about paper sizes, 
time and date formats, format of floating point numbers (and the radix
character), and some machine-specific tips (support full 8 bit character
sets, etc.)

I have another question, about calendars:  which day should be in the
leftmost column?  Is Sunday always in the leftmost column everywhere?  Is
Sunday always in the leftmost column in the USA?  If the answer is no -
which other day(s) should be in the leftmost column:  Monday? Just
Monday?

Thanks in advance,






Eric Terrell

robing@galadriel.bt.co.uk (Robin Gape) (10/19/89)

In article <9953@cadnetix.COM>, by terrell@cadnetix.COM:
> 
> Internationalization of Computer Software (CALENDARS)
> 
[deleted]
> 
> I have another question, about calendars:  which day should be in the
> leftmost column?  Is Sunday always in the leftmost column everywhere?  Is
> Sunday always in the leftmost column in the USA?  If the answer is no -
> which other day(s) should be in the leftmost column:  Monday? Just
> Monday?
> 
> Thanks in advance,
> 
> Eric Terrell

I've just looked at some U.K (England, Scotland, Wales & N. Ireland)
calendars. One has columns, leftmost Monday. The majority have ROWS
topmost Monday. The only one that starts on a Sunday is from
Motorola.

E.G (Jan 89)
M	2	9	16
T	3	10	17
W	4	11	18	...............

Hope this helps

Robin Gape

robing@uk.co.bt.galadriel

suhonen@tukki.jyu.fi (Timo Suhonen) (10/20/89)

In article <9953@cadnetix.COM> terrell@cadnetix.COM () writes:

>I have another question, about calendars:  which day should be in the
>leftmost column?  Is Sunday always in the leftmost column everywhere?  Is
>Sunday always in the leftmost column in the USA?  If the answer is no -
>which other day(s) should be in the leftmost column:  Monday? Just
>Monday?
Al least in Finland Monday is the leftmost column. 

Timo
-- 
Timo Suhonen                                           suhonen@tukki.jyu.fi
Disclaimer: The text above is from my left brain cell. The right one is for
          SeX and Drugs and Rock'n Roll. Al K. Hall has eaten the others...

ct@dde.dk (Claus Tondering) (10/24/89)

terrell@cadnetix.COM writes:

>I have another question, about calendars:  which day should be in the
>leftmost column?  Is Sunday always in the leftmost column everywhere?  Is
>Sunday always in the leftmost column in the USA?  If the answer is no -
>which other day(s) should be in the leftmost column:  Monday? Just
>Monday?

I believe there is an international standard (made some time in the
mid-1970s) stating that the first day of the week is Monday.

Very un-Biblical.

As usual, the English-speaking countries have decided not to follow
the international standard. :-) I don't blame them, this one is quite
silly.
-- 
Claus Tondering
Dansk Data Elektronik A/S, Herlev, Denmark
E-mail: ct@dde.dk    or    ...!uunet!mcvax!dkuug!dde!ct

schaper@pnet51.orb.mn.org (S Schaper) (10/25/89)

Actually it is a variant of certain Protestant views that since Sunday is the
new Sabbath, then Monday should be the first day of the week. I remember
seeing in my childhood a few calendars that started that way. I don't know
precisely which groups promote that view.

UUCP: {amdahl!bungia, uunet!rosevax, chinet, killer}!orbit!pnet51!schaper
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INET: schaper@pnet51.cts.com

griesel@umn-cs.CS.UMN.EDU (Curtis W. Griesel) (10/25/89)

In article <716@Aragorn.dde.dk> ct@dde.dk (Claus Tondering) writes:
>terrell@cadnetix.COM writes:

>I have another question, about calendars:  which day should be in the
>leftmost column?  Is Sunday always in the leftmost column everywhere?  Is
>Sunday always in the leftmost column in the USA?  If the answer is no -
>which other day(s) should be in the leftmost column:  Monday? Just
>Monday?

There may be international standards around, but if you want your software
to be _culturally_ acceptable, you'll find a lot of variability.  
Generally, Europe puts Monday first, U.S. puts Sunday first, the 
Middle East put Saturday first.  There are probably other variations; I
would imagine that Asian cultures would have a different outlook on things.

Monday is first; in the U.S., its us

-- 
Curtis W. Griesel
EQUAL Project (EQuipment for Universal Access to Learning), U of Minnesota
Internet: griesel@umn-cs.cs.umn.edu; Voice: 612/625-9081; TDD: 612/626-1346
U S Mail: 4-192 EE/CSci Building; 200 Union Street SE; Minneapolis, MN 55455

steve@arc.UUCP (Steve Savitzky) (10/26/89)

All the calendar programs I write make the starting day of the week
optional, but the default is Monday.  I find this convenient because
it puts the entire weekend together (at the end of the line!); this
means that activities that take up an entire weekend don't get split
up. 

-- 
  Steve Savitzky     | steve@arc.uucp | apple.com!arc!steve 
  ADVANsoft Research Corp.    |  (408) 727-3357(w) / 294-6492(h)
  4301 Great America Parkway  |  #include<disclaimer.h>
  Santa Clara, CA  95054      |  May the Source be with you!

torkil@psivax.UUCP (Torkil Hammer) (10/27/89)

European countries have a standard which make the week begin with Monday.
Years ago the standard was to begin on Sunday.  There was a designated
week with 2 Sundays when the change took place - which was in the 1970's
around a New Year if memory serves me right.

They still don't agree on week numbering, though.