Re: abbreviations

Mike Clark and I (Mark Brader) wrote:
>>> Can anybody point me to a hard and fast rule or reference source
>>> on the abbreviation of square metres....

>> I didn't expect to be posting this link twice in one day, but the
>> definitive reference on metric unit symbols is the official standard
>> where the units are technically defined...

> Thanks ..... would you say that sq.m. and sq.ft. (the latter appears in
> several dictionaries) are incorrect?

I would say that "sq.m." is incorrect. It clearly fails to conform
to the standard (which I cited), and the main reason to use SI (the
modern metric system) rather than some other form of measure is supposed
to be that everyone uses it the same way.

I could see some people taking a different point of view, and as I said,
"sq.m." might be an acceptable practical compromise if you don't have
superscripts available *and* need to repeat the unit many times. But
you should at least feel icky about having to use it.

Feet are outside of the SI altogether and therefore the SI standard
is irrelevant. I would not be surprised to see square feet written
as ft² in a context such as conversion to or from metric units like
cm² and m², or if they ever occur in a scientific context. Just about
anywhere else, though, "sq.ft." is what I'd expect, and it certainly
can't be called wrong. It's still the normal style. (In Britain,
where many people have become allergic to punctuation, they might
spell it "sq ft" or "sqft" rather than "sq.ft.")
--
Mark Brader, Toronto | "It is one thing to praise discipline, and another
msb@xxxxxxx | to submit to it." -- Miguel de Cervantes, 1613

My text in this article is in the public domain.
.

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