HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: mcramm@dct.ac.uk (McRamm)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: 29 Feb 2000?
Date: 17 Nov 92 12:11:55 GMT
Organization: Dundee Institute of Technology

In article <721949208snz@muir.demon.co.uk>, malcolm@muir.demon.co.uk ("Malcolm S. Muir") writes:
> 
> Next argument - I say the first year of the 21st. century is 2001, not 2000
> which is the last year of the 20th. century.

Correct. There was no year 0AD or 0BC since only Computing types start couting
from 0 under normal circumstances. Hence decades don't begin until the year
ends in a one. (years ending in 0 being the 10th of the previous decade)

Would someone please tell the Hogmanay/New Year's eve programme makers this, so
we won't have a load of ill-informed drunks shouting happy new Millenium at
Midnight on Dec. 31 1999.


> 
> 
> -- 
> =============================================================================
> Malcolm S. Muir                              EMAIL: malcolm@muir.demon.co.uk
> Sunderland                                   CIX: mmuir BIX: mmuir
> England                                      CSERVE: 100012,31
> ======================= PGP 2.0 Public Key Available ========================
-- 
 Angus M. Marshall, MCRAMM@UK.AC.DCT,amarshal@uk.ac.dund.mcs, (+44 382) 308600
Member, UK Pedants Association.
From: bob@black.ox.ac.uk (Bob Douglas)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Was: Re: 29 Feb 2000?, Now: 2000/2001
Date: 18 Nov 92 10:38:30 GMT
Organization: Oxford University Computing Service, 13 Banbury Rd, Oxford, U
Originator: bob@black

In article <CC.92Nov17175024@arran.dcs.ed.ac.uk> cc@dcs.ed.ac.uk (Chris Cooke) writes:
>2000 Anno Domini ought to mean that it's 2000 years since Jesus Christ was
>born.  When he was born, it was no *years* since he was born, therefore his
>first year of life was spent in AD 0, surely?  His second year of life was
>therefore AD 1, and so on - so 2000 AD ought to be the start of the 21st century.

But there was no year AD 0. The year following 1 BC was AD 1.

-- 
Bob Douglas              Computing Services, University of Oxford
Internet:                bob@oxford.ac.uk
Address:                 13 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 6NN, UK
Telephone:               +44-865-273211
From: rob@liciren.li.co.uk (Rob Clive)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: uPVC doors and Windows
Date: 17 Nov 92 14:17:08 GMT
Organization: Lucas Powertrain Systems, Electronic Control Group, UK

In article <1992Nov16.131457.2638@lsl.co.uk> snail@lsl.co.uk writes:
>In article <1992Nov13.142514.721@axion.bt.co.uk>, Sukhvinder Aujla writes:
>> If a hole is made in the metal through the uPVC then:
>> (1) the steel salesman says the aluminum will turn to powder over a
>> period of time.
>
>One of the most useful properties of Aluminium is that once the surface is
>oxidised, the oxidisation stops. The outer layer prevents any further
>deterioration occuring. This is not true with steel.

>Disclaimer. I'm not metal expert of Chemist. I remembered the Aluminium bit
>from an O Level exam I sat a long time ago.

I seem to remember (probably from A level) that aluminium oxide is
relatively inert but susceptible to attack by mercury.  This gave rise
to visions of creeping out in the dead of night to the nearest
electricity pylon armed with a pot of mercury and bringing down the
national grid.  Wouldn't be any good now though 'cause they all seem to
move around a lot :-)
----------
Rob Clive.			           Most nets:	rob@liciren.li.co.uk
Lucas Powertrain Systems, Cirencester		UUCP:	...!uknet!lucifer!rob
Gloucestershire, GL7 1QG, UK.				      Now read on....
Newsgroups: uk.misc
From: ian@eonsw.demon.co.uk (Ian Leonard)
Subject: Re: uPVC doors and Windows
Organization: EON Software, Oxford, UK
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 1992 10:24:44 GMT

In article <1992Nov16.131457.2638@lsl.co.uk> snail@lsl.co.uk writes:
>In article <1992Nov13.142514.721@axion.bt.co.uk>, saujla@flamingo.axion.bt.co.uk (Sukhvinder Aujla) writes:
>> If a hole is made in the metal through the uPVC then:
>> (1) the steel salesman says the aluminum will turn to powder over a
>> period of time.
>
>One of the most useful properties of Aluminium is that once the surface is
>oxidised, the oxidisation stops. The outer layer prevents any further
>deterioration occuring. This is not true with steel.
>
>> (2) the aluminum salesman says the steel will rust.
>
>It probably will.
>
>Disclaimer. I'm not metal expert of Chemist. I remembered the Aluminium bit
>from an O Level exam I sat a long time ago.
I remember this one as well. I also remember a lot of little things that 
turned out to not be true.

>
>Apologies for the multiple group followup.
>I just used the addresses that came with the message.
>-- 
>snail@lsl.co.uk      
>
>You Have To Remember, You Need To Beleive,
>The Time Has Past, Dust In The Leaves.


-- 
Ian

Ian Leonard                        ian@eonsw.demon.co.uk
EON Software                       +44 (0)865 741452
From: sw@network-analysis-ltd.co.uk (Sak Wathanasin)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Coventry vs. London/etc (was Re: humor in England)
Date: 19 Nov 92 15:31:49 GMT
Reply-To: sw@network-analysis-ltd.co.uk
Distribution: uk
Organization: Network Analysis Ltd
X-Mailer: uAccess - Macintosh Release: 1.6v1


In article <BxyH0o.9Ms@fulcrum.co.uk> (uk.misc), davidw@fulcrum.co.uk (David Wilkinson) writes:

> I can think of many places I hate driving much more than Coventry ring road.

The main problem with it, I think, is that people treat it as a 2-lane
highway instead of a ring road. They should be using the left lane for
entry/exit and the right lane for continuing on the ring road (think of
it as a giant roundabout), but of course if you try to do that the X3is
will give you the finger.


Sak Wathanasin
Network Analysis Limited
178 Wainbody Ave South, Coventry CV3 6BX, UK

uucp:      ...!uknet!nan!sw  Phone: (+44) 203 419996
AppleLink: NAN.LTD           Internet: sw@network-analysis-ltd.co.uk
From: bocmunro@bnr.co.uk (Bruce Munro)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: humor in England
Date: 17 Nov 1992 16:43:31 GMT
Organization: BNR Europe, New Southgate, London.
NNTP-Posting-Host: bnsgs179.bnr.co.uk

In article <BxtE7J.Kuw@cck.coventry.ac.uk> apj003@cck.coventry.ac.uk (James W Bottomley) writes:
>In article <3213@ucl-cs.uucp> G.Joly@cs.ucl.ac.uk (Gordon Joly) writes:

Not Gordon, but me actually.

>
>>
>><< It's you that's sad! Parsley liquor on your pie and mash is bloody
>><< lovely and I won't hear a word said against it. All this from a bloke
>><< who's moved to a dump like Coventry, the only place I know that makes M1
>><< service stations look attractive! More concrete than you could shake a
>><< stick at.
>
>It can't be worse than central London! Sleezy streets full of degenerates...

You talking about me or what? Anyway, sounds like a fun place to be to
me. Each to his own.

>people with accents that sound like they stepped out of one of those 30's
>movies about cheeky cockney chappies and jolly good toffs.. rubbish piled 
>everywhere... wall-to-wall Iranians and other shady arabs trying to rob you
> of your parking place... nowhere to park and a fight to the death to buy
>a bag of sweets or a newspaper from bad tempered illiterate foreign illegals.

If you take your car into Central London that's your look out. Use the
Underground, far more convenient, and full of friendly people.

>Not that I'm biased or anything, but I reckon England starts at Watford Gap.
>Heading north.

Aye, where slag heaps, steelworks and dark satanic mills are the order
of the day.

It's grim up North!

-- 
Bruce Munro.  <B.Munro@bnr.co.uk> || ...!mcsun!uknet!bnruk!B.Munro
BNR Europe Ltd, Oakleigh Rd South, London N11 1HB. | Note the change
Phone : +44 81 945 2174 or +44 81 945 4000 x2174   | of e-mail address.
"There are no strangers, only friends we don't recognise" - Hank Wangford
From: malcolmr@westminster.ac.uk (Malcolm Ray)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: 29 Feb 2000?
Date: 18 Nov 92 13:11:25 GMT
Organization: University of Westminster

In article <BxwprH.J0M@newcastle.ac.uk> J.W.Harley@newcastle.ac.uk (Jon Harley) writes:
[millennial stuff deleted]
>The romans had no zero (thinks: how did they indicate correct termination
>of their C programs?:-) so the first year of the first century AD must have
>been year 1.

Hmm yes, and what did their stdio.h #define NVLL as?

Followups to uk.anorak.
-- 
JANET: M.G.Ray@uk.ac.westminster   Most of the rest: M.G.Ray@westminster.ac.uk
       malcolmr@uk.ac.pcl.sun                        malcolmr@sun.pcl.ac.uk
     University of Westminster - 80th out of 96 universities - The Times
From: froud@SunLab41.sx.ac.uk (Froud D D M)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: 29 Feb 2000?
Date: 19 Nov 92 21:06:25 GMT
	<11581@scott.ed.ac.uk> <CC.92Nov19092817@arran.dcs.ed.ac.uk>
	<1992Nov19.095709.13507@infodev.cam.ac.uk>
Organization: Balanced binary trees

In article <1992Nov19.095709.13507@infodev.cam.ac.uk> gdb15@grebe.cl.cam.ac.uk (Guy Barry) writes:

> Completely ambiguous!  "Twenty one" is short for 1921 or 2021 -- it can't
>be used for 2001 as well.  (And "Twenty One -- A Space Odyssey" just
>doesn't have the right ring to it...)

Yes, but in the year 2001...when someone says "Twenty one" what do you think 
they will mean? It's not likely that they'll mean 1921 or 2021 will they!
It's a huge gap of 20/80 years!

> --
>Guy Barry, University of Cambridge | Phone: +44 (0)223 334757 
>Computer Laboratory                | Fax: +44 (0)223 334678
>New Museums Site, Pembroke Street  | JANET: Guy.Barry@uk.ac.cam.cl 
>Cambridge CB2 3QG, England, UK     | Internet: Guy.Barry@cl.cam.ac.uk 
--
Name: Dom. Species: Spod. Breed: 2nd year. Body: long
Other features: ugly, boring, funny eye, says 'barf' a lot.
For more information: email the address above. " <- a quote
Xref: sparky uk.misc:594 soc.culture.celtic:7456
From: skaamjm@ucl.ac.uk (Matthew Moore)
Newsgroups: uk.misc,soc.culture.celtic
Subject: Re: humor in England
Date: 23 Nov 92 10:33:27 GMT
Organization: Bloomsbury Computing Consortium

smckinty@sunicnc.France.Sun.COM (Steve McKinty - Sun ICNC) writes:

>In article <1992Nov19.124012.1601@rdg.dec.com>, cockburn@edieng.enet.dec.com (Craig Cockburn) writes:

>> 
>> I have never seen Pakora in an Indian restaurant in England, and I've been
>> to quite a few including Southall probably the Curry Capital of Britain!
>> Pakora is, however, available in supermarkets.
>> 
>> Pakora is available in virtually every Indian restaurant/take-away in 
>> Scotland. Does anyone know why there is this difference?
>> 
>> Craig

Craig is looking in the wrong place really. Pakora is to be found in
snack bars takeaways and 'sweet marts' rather than restaurants. 
Newsgroups: uk.misc
From: johnk@harlqn.co.uk (John Kamp)
Subject: Off Site Tape Storage
Organization: Harlequin Ltd, Cambridge, UK
Distribution: uk
Date: Mon, 23 Nov 1992 12:45:28 GMT

I am currently looking into storing computer tapes off site for
disaster prevention. I am looking into all areas of storage; from
storing tapes at peoples houses, bank safety deposit boxs,
professional computer media storage etc..

I am curious to know what other people are doing to store computer
tapes off site. Do you use another office within the company, take
things home? What sort of cycle period do you use? I will summarize
any results on the net.

For those in the UK:

Basically I am having trouble finding people who provide a full
archived storage system and who can keep track of all that goes in/out
and can provide transport. Is there anyone out there that use's such a
company? The only one I can track down is Group 4 Securitas who
provide environmentally controlled storage, security, pickup/delivery
etc...

We are based in Barrington, about 7 miles out of Cambridge, so
somewhere local would be useful, but any information or contacts for
such a service anywhere in the UK would be much appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

John Kamp
-- 
  _/~~\     Real: John Kamp                 Title   : Systems Administrator
 /.    \    Post: Harlequin LTD (UK)        Internet: johnk@harlqn.co.uk
 |~\___/    Barrington Hall, Barrington     Phone   : +44 223 872 522
 |   _|     Cambridge CB2 5RG, England      FAX     : +44 223 872 519
From: guy@cogsci.ed.ac.uk (Guy Barry)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: 29 Feb 2000?
Date: 18 Nov 92 08:48:14 GMT
Organization: Centre for Cognitive Science, Edinburgh, UK

imcneill@mccomp.demon.co.uk (imcneill) writes:

>I think you've all missed out one important side effect, Barry Norman's film
>program will be called film 00  (pronounced "film nought").

>Will Barry Norman still be hosting it........and why not ?

Yes, I've wondered about how the years of the next decade will be
pronounced.  By analogy with "nineteen hundred", "nineteen oh one",
"nineteen oh two", ... we ought to have "twenty hundred", "twenty oh
one", "twenty oh two", ... but I've never heard anything but "two
thousand" (or "the year two thousand"), "two thousand and one", "two
thousand and two", ... .  By the time it gets to 2020, though, people
start talking about "twenty twenty", so where's the mysterious point
where the naming scheme changes?

Also, we can currently talk about '90, '91, '92, ... for short, and
refer to the entire decade as "the nineties", but how are we going to
pronounce '00, '01, '02, and what on earth will we call the decade?
Even the one after that isn't obvious: "the teens" maybe?  Does anyone
know what happened at the beginning of this century?
-- 
Guy Barry | Computer Laboratory     | Centre for Cognitive Science
          | University of Cambridge | University of Edinburgh
          | Guy.Barry@cl.cam.ac.uk  | guy@cogsci.ed.ac.uk
          | +44 (0)223 334757       | +44 (0)31 650 4413
From: d_smith@csd.uwe.ac.uk (Dylan Smith)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: uPVC doors and Windows
Date: 23 Nov 92 13:58:21 GMT
Organization: University of the West of England, Bristol

In article <2237@snap> paj@uk.co.gec-mrc (Paul Johnson) writes:

>Yup.  I don't know the exact reaction, but airline companies get very
>nervous about shipping mercury around.  Even mercury thermometers are
>dangerous.

I think it strips the oxide off, and aluminium with no oxide layer 
reacts very readily with air (I was demonstrated this whilst doing
A-level Chemistry - aluminium with no oxide layer reacts with water
quite vigorously). Either that or it actually dissolves the
aluminium (like sodium can be dissolved in mercury making sodium
amalgam.)
-- 
Email : JANET  dylan@uwe.hal | Everywhere else : dylan@hal.uwe.ac.uk
             d_smith@uwe.csd |                 d_smith@csd.uwe.ac.uk
From: fletcher@rtf.bt.co.uk (Catherine Fletcher)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: humor in England
Date: 18 Nov 92 12:55:55 GMT
Organization: BT Customer Systems, Brighton, UK

apj003@cck.coventry.ac.uk (James W Bottomley) writes:
> 
> It can't be worse than central London! Sleezy streets full of degenerates...
> people with accents that sound like they stepped out of one of those 30's
> movies about cheeky cockney chappies and jolly good toffs.. rubbish piled 
> everywhere... wall-to-wall Iranians and other shady arabs trying to rob you
>  of your parking place... nowhere to park and a fight to the death to buy
> a bag of sweets or a newspaper from bad tempered illiterate foreign illegals.
> 
> Not that I'm biased or anything, but I reckon England starts at Watford Gap.
> Heading north.

OK nobody can argue that London hasn't got a terrible traffic/parking problem.
But what about the wonderful architecture in the city, I mean it's a treasure
house of well kept buildings from the 17th century onwards, with some of the
best in state of the art design too.  Coventry's got a pretty good cathedral,
but the rest of it inspires suicidal feelings.

Many citys in England have a rubbish problem, and Brighton, from my experience 
(albeit a town) has got far more evidence of homeless people, relatively. The
fantastic availability and variety of arts, culture, entertainment, food
and *excitement* in London makes up for the more visible evidence of urban 
decay (something that makes me want to *act* rather than escape to "nicer" 
place).

As for your comments about the accents and "foreigners"...  Are you 
prejudiced or what?  Do you object to the large Indian community in
Coventry?

-- 
 Catherine 
 _____________________________________________________________________________

    "Anyone who calls a spade a spade should be compelled to use one"
    Oscar Wilde
 _____________________________________________________________________________
From: zlsiida@fs1.mcc.ac.uk (dave budd)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Was: Re: 29 Feb 2000?, Now: 2000/2001
Date: 20 Nov 92 11:59:39 GMT
Organization: Manchester Computing Centre

In article <1992Nov17.193646.27817@infodev.cam.ac.uk> gdb15@grebe.cl.cam.ac.uk (Guy Barry) writes:

>In article <CC.92Nov17175024@arran.dcs.ed.ac.uk> cc@dcs.ed.ac.uk (Chris Cooke) writes:
>>
>>   In <721949208snz@muir.demon.co.uk> malcolm@muir.demon.co.uk ("Malcolm S. Muir") writes:
>>
>>2000 Anno Domini ought to mean that it's 2000 years since Jesus Christ was
>>born.  When he was born, it was no *years* since he was born, therefore his
>>first year of life was spent in AD 0, surely?  His second year of life was
>>therefore AD 1, and so on - so 2000 AD ought to be the start of the 21st century.

>No, Anno Domini 2000 means "in the year of our Lord 2000".  Thus AD 1 was
>the first year of our Lord, AD 2 was the second and so on -- except of
>course that Christ was actually born around 5 BC, making the whole thing
>meaningless...

And we are indebted to M Palin for revealing that Ethiopia is 7 years and 8 
months out from the rest of us.....the 486 processor hasn't been invented 
yet, there.

  From the UK phone book Yellow Pages:  BORING - see Civil Engineers   

  Dave Budd, MCC, Oxford Rd, Manchester, England   (44|0)61-275-6033  
  D.Budd@mcc.ac.uk                                          fax 6040
From: martin@microware.co.uk (Martin Long)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Satellite Dishes
Date: 17 Nov 92 16:29:33 GMT
Organization: Microware Systems (UK) Ltd., Winchester, UK.

I believe that it would be correct to assume that roof tiles, glass etc
would not have an effect on the signal reception providing that they do
not contain any water, nor ever get wet (which they do of course).  I
THINK it's the conductivity of the water which is the problem, not the
non-conducting materials such as tile and glass.

For many years I had a TV aerial in the loft, with perfect reception at
all times except for during a downpour.  I would imagine that the same
would be true of a satellite dish, except that this would be FAR more
prone to problems in the wet, due to disruptions in the focus of a small
signal.  Even outside, our dish has minor reception problems in
instances of dense, rain filled cloud or an electric storm. 

Martin
-- 
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Martin Long                          | Microware Systems (UK) Ltd
                                     | Leylands Farm, Colden Common,
INET:  martin@microware.co.uk        | WINCHESTER, Hants, UK, SO21 1TH.
UUCP:  ...!mcsun!uknet!mwuk!martin   | Tel: 0703 601990   Fax: 0703 601991
All comments and opinions are my own and do not necessarily reflect or
            agree with those of Microware Systems Inc.
Newsgroups: uk.misc
From: gdb15@grebe.cl.cam.ac.uk (Guy Barry)
Subject: Re: 29 Feb 2000?
Reply-To: gdb15@cl.cam.ac.uk (Guy Barry)
Organization: U of Cambridge Computer Lab, UK
Date: Fri, 20 Nov 1992 19:37:04 GMT

In article <By0y7A.Dq@cck.coventry.ac.uk> apj003@cck.coventry.ac.uk (James W Bottomley) writes:
>In article <11581@scott.ed.ac.uk> guy@cogsci.ed.ac.uk (Guy Barry) writes:
>
>>Yes, I've wondered about how the years of the next decade will be
>>pronounced.  By analogy with "nineteen hundred", "nineteen oh one",
>>"nineteen oh two", ... we ought to have "twenty hundred", "twenty oh
>>one", "twenty oh two", ... but I've never heard anything but "two
>>thousand" (or "the year two thousand"), "two thousand and one", "two
>>thousand and two", ... .  By the time it gets to 2020, though, people
>>start talking about "twenty twenty", so where's the mysterious point
>>where the naming scheme changes?
>
>2010.

How can you be so sure?  I've heard both "twenty ten" and "two
thousand and ten".

--
Guy Barry, University of Cambridge | Phone: +44 (0)223 334757 
Computer Laboratory                | Fax: +44 (0)223 334678
New Museums Site, Pembroke Street  | JANET: Guy.Barry@uk.ac.cam.cl 
Cambridge CB2 3QG, England, UK     | Internet: Guy.Barry@cl.cam.ac.uk
From: gsmcd09@castle.ed.ac.uk (K Franklin)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: 29 Feb 2000?
Date: 23 Nov 92 14:03:20 GMT
Organization: Edinburgh University

D.Pidcock@bradford.ac.uk (Danny Pidcock) writes:
|>Guy Barry (gdb15@grebe.cl.cam.ac.uk) wrote:
|>: In article <By0y7A.Dq@cck.coventry.ac.uk> apj003@cck.coventry.ac.uk (James W Bottomley) writes:
|>: >In article <11581@scott.ed.ac.uk> guy@cogsci.ed.ac.uk (Guy Barry) writes:
|>: >2010.
|>: How can you be so sure?  I've heard both "twenty ten" and "two
|>: thousand and ten".
|>But Twenty eleven sounds odd (say it out loud - your colleagues will probably
|>think you've gone mad ;-) )

I've always though that "10 past eight"  sounded a lot better.

KCF
From: J.W.Harley@newcastle.ac.uk (Jon Harley)
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: 29 Feb 2000?
Date: 18 Nov 92 10:14:04 GMT
Organization: University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, NE1 7RU

malcolm@muir.demon.co.uk ("Malcolm S. Muir") writes:

>>peter@serv2.essex.ac.uk (Peter Allott) writes:
>>>Will there be a 29 Feb 2000?
>>>
>>>The cal program thinks so!

>If a year is divisable by 100, it is only a leap year if it is divisable
>by 400.

That's what I understood the rule to be, too.

>Next argument - I say the first year of the 21st. century is 2001, not 2000
>which is the last year of the 20th. century.

I don't see how anyone could argue with this.

The romans had no zero (thinks: how did they indicate correct termination
of their C programs?:-) so the first year of the first century AD must have
been year 1.

Therefore, the first year of the second century must have been 101, the
first year of the third century 201... and so on to the first year of the
twenty-first century, 2001.


/jon (hoping this article gets off-site... this time)
   ___________________ ____ ________________________________________
  / -- Jonathan Harley \  /_   Could be an ever opening flower...  //    //  //
 / J.W.Harley@ncl.ac.uk \/ /  It's the beginning of               // // //////
/_Phone:UK 091 222 8504__\/__a new love inside________________///////////  //
From: wilcox@vax.oxford.ac.uk
Newsgroups: uk.misc
Subject: Re: Gas inspection cover
Date: 17 Nov 92 17:10:11 GMT
Distribution: uk
Organization: Oxford University VAX 6620

In article <JC.92Nov16145544@mr-potter-t-crosser-i-dotter.fulcrum.co.uk>, jc@fulcrum.co.uk (John Callingham) writes:
> The inspection cover to my gas meter is on the outside of my house and
> has recently come off. British Gas have said that they will charge me
> to repair it. Is this reasonable given that;-
> 1. The cover appears to be the property of BG as it has their name on
> it.
> 2. I do not have a key to the cover.
> 3. The cover has only ever been opened by BG employees.
> 4. The cover is protecting BG equipment, i.e the meter.
Of course it's not reasonable, but that doesn't stop BG doing it,
unfortunately. Since they basically have a monopoly on gas supplies and are
only answerable to their tiny number of shareholders they can do what they damn
well like: you can either pay up or stop using gas.

-- 

Stephen Wilcox             |   For Sale: Posts in British Government. Suit
wilcox@vax.oxford.ac.uk    |   outgoing American. Highest bids accepted.