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Re: To utilize or not to utilize

Subject: Re: To utilize or not to utilize
From: Bruce Byfield <bbyfield -at- axionet -dot- com>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Tue, 04 Sep 2001 11:06:58 -0700

Stegall, Sarah wrote:

Upcoming wrangle with my PM over the phrase "Bandwidth Utilization". I
maintain that "Use" or "Usage" would be more consistent with proper English,
*and* save our GUI developer space on his page.


It's not a case of "proper English". That mythical creature doesn't exist; a word is only more or less acceptable depending on its context.

In this case, I can think of two reasons to prefer "use":

1.) People process shorter words faster than long ones.

2.) It saves space (as you say) without changing the meaning.

I might be inclined to listen to the argument of Industry Standards in many cases, but not this one. So far as I can see, the difference between "use" and "utilize" is simply in the number of letters. The two words don't even have different shades of meaning; so far as I can see, the meanings are virtually identical. And, because the meanings are so close, nobody should have any trouble with the change, even if "utilize" really is industry-standard - which is debatable.

--
Bruce Byfield 604.421.7177 bbyfield -at- axionet -dot- com

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And up and down this coast
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To utilize or not to utilize: From: Stegall, Sarah

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