13 Dec
2001
13 Dec
'01
3:55 p.m.
I bought a
CGA-compatible video cards a few years back
(80s), that had an incompatible hi-res mode in addition
to the CGA, and a mouse interface.
The manual kept referring to "the connector of the ten ways".
This sounded *SO* Zen that I was sure than once I had it
figured it, it'd be the secret to life.
Finally dawned on me that this was "10-pin connector".
In the UK (I have no idea if the expression is used in the States), the
term n-way connector is common. It means (of course) an connector with n
indepedant connections. It's often used for things like jack plugs ('phone
plugs' in the States) which don't really have pins. Calling the plug on
the end of a pair of stereo headphones a '3 pin plug' seems strange...