# New guidelines on dates in thread titles (Cafe Society) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 20, 2010, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639 "2010-01-20T00:50:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2010, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/1 "2010-01-20T00:50:51Z")
After **scifisam2009** [raised the issue](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=548430) in ATMB, and discussed amongst the Mods, **Dex** has updated the [“please use descriptive thread titles”](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=6769973&postcount=6) section of the Cafe Society rules and guidelines. Since Yanks and Brits use different conventions in all-numeral date designations (month first for Yanks, date first for Brits), confusion can arise when using an all-numeral date in a thread title. Going forward, please make an effort to spell out the name of the month, or use a letter abbreviation for the month – Jan 18, not 1/18 or 18/1. We’re not going to start issuing warnings on this or anything, but appreciate your efforts to keep thread titles as helpful to your fellow Dopers as possible. Thanks, twickster, Cafe Society moderator ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/2 "2010-03-01T13:08:20Z")
Unsticking this, but of course please continue spelling out month names as a courtesy to others. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/3 "2010-03-01T15:03:59Z")
It was too much to ask for an American message board to adopt the American standard for dates? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/4 "2010-03-01T15:46:26Z")
Yep. everybody kept getting confused about what date 18/1 was. ---
**Author:** ![Gary\_T](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Gary\_T](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gary_T)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/5 "2010-03-01T15:50:13Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > It was too much to ask for an American message board to adopt the American standard for dates? To what end? There’s a lot of international participation here. There’s a lot more hassle in having a bunch of us wondering whether 2/3 is February 3rd or March 2nd, and in asking a fair number of Dopers to adopt a method that is directly opposite what they’re used to, than there is in having everyone type one or two more keystrokes in using a method that is familiar and clear to all. So yes, all things considered, that is too much too ask. Is it too much to ask that you accept that gracefully? ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/6 "2010-03-01T15:51:09Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Yep. everybody kept getting confused about what date 18/1 was. For some reason, this tiny American brain has a really hard time forcing itself to see that as a date. I feel like Tom Hanks’ Short Attention Span Guy on SNL. “18/1? What’s that? Oh - it’s a date! January 18!” \<2.7 seconds later…\> “18/1? What’s that?” ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/7 "2010-03-01T15:55:22Z")
Does anyone think that 9/11 happened on November 9th? ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/8 "2010-03-01T15:56:25Z")
> [@Gary\_T](#): > > To what end? There’s a lot of international participation here. “A lot” is being generous. I’d be stunned if the internatioinal participation were more than 5%. > [@](#): > > There’s a lot more hassle in having a bunch of us wondering whether 2/3 is February 3rd or March 2nd, and in asking a fair number of Dopers to adopt a method that is directly opposite what they’re used to, than there is in having everyone type one or two more keystrokes in using a method that is familiar and clear to all. So yes, all things considered, that is too much too ask. “Hassle” may not mean what you think it means. Asking 95% of the membership to change how they do things is more hassle than 5% being confused. And if it were made clear in the forum sticky that all dates in thread title will conform to American standard, it wouldn’t take that 5% very long to get acclimated. Instead, 100% of posters will now need to adopt a change. This really does seem to be a solution of most resistance. And it’s not that I’m not accepting the rule. I’m questioning the intelligence of the idea in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![tdn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/94ad74/32.png) [@tdn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tdn)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/9 "2010-03-01T16:01:11Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Yep. everybody kept getting confused about what date 18/1 was. Juntember 1st 2008, right? Not even a year ago. ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/10 "2010-03-01T16:05:29Z")
I’m an American working in an American office, for a global company headquartered in Europe. Long ago I made the decision to use the month abbreviation in all internal company emails, not numerals. Otherwise, confusion reigns. I think this decision by the mod is sensible. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/11 "2010-03-01T16:06:09Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > And if it were made clear in the forum sticky that all dates in thread title will conform to American standard I meant this to mean that mods would edit date formats in thread titles as needed as a courtesy to membership. I bet the use of most other forms of measurement – miles, gallons, mpg, fahrenheit, etc… – also confuses the international contingent but it doesn’t make sense to have the vast majority change their system to accomodate. This is an American board, and international participants should know going in that they need to take into consideration that we use different measurements. (Dates being a measurement of time.) If I went to an English or Australian board the absolute last thing I’d do is ask all of them to adopt a different date format so I wouldn’t get confused. > [@suranyi](#): > > I’m an American working in an American office, for a global company headquartered in Europe. Long ago I made the decision to use the month abbreviation in all internal company emails, not numerals. Otherwise, confusion reigns. I think this decision by the mod is sensible. If you worked for an American office that was headquartered in America and had one small affiliate in England, instructing everyone to adopt a different standard for the benefit of that one small affiliate would be counterproductive. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/12 "2010-03-01T16:11:40Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > I meant this to mean that mods would edit date formats in thread titles as needed as a courtesy to membership. > > I bet the use of most other forms of measurement – **miles, gallons, mpg, fahrenheit, etc** … – also confuses the international contingent but it doesn’t make sense to have the vast majority change their system to accomodate. This is an American board, and international participants should know going in that they need to take into consideration that we use different measurements. \*\*(Dates being a measurement of time.) \*\* But those specify the units being used. Notice the confusion when someone says it’s 40 degrees-is it 40F or is it 40C(104F)? Dates are not a measurement of time, they’re a type of coordinates. ---
**Author:** ![Astroboy14](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/df705f/32.png) [@Astroboy14](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Astroboy14)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/13 "2010-03-01T16:35:56Z")
> [@runner pat](#): > > But those specify the units being used. Notice the confusion when someone says it’s 40 degrees-is it 40F or is it 40C(104F)? That’s why I only use one temperature… -40! No confusion there. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/14 "2010-03-01T17:20:25Z")
Speaking as a translator, to English, I agree with the OP completely. I always spell out the months, even if the original text was all numerals. Who knows who’ll be reading it? Why risk confusion? ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 5:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/15 "2010-03-01T17:23:49Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Does anyone think that 9/11 happened on November 9th? Yes, and the government was behind it. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 5:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/16 "2010-03-01T17:31:18Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > I’m an American working in an American office, for a global company headquartered in Europe. Long ago I made the decision to use the month abbreviation in all internal company emails, not numerals. Otherwise, confusion reigns. I think this decision by the mod is sensible. As a former payment processor, I concur. Anybody who thinks date formats are standardized and no one has a problem with them is leading a woefully sheltered life. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![maladroit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@maladroit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maladroit)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/17 "2010-03-01T19:03:32Z")
Anything that improves communication and understanding is a boon. Why waste time and posts clarifying the date when there’s a perfectly simple way to make it clear to all? spelling hte month is a reasonable request, and they said it’s not a mandate, just good manners. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/18 "2010-03-01T19:09:58Z")
I’ve always thought it was a dumb idea to substitute a numeral for the month. The first of March or March first - is anyone confused? 1/3 or 3/1 - which one is today and which one is the third of January? ---
**Author:** ![suranyi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e36b37/32.png) [@suranyi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/suranyi)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/19 "2010-03-01T21:18:59Z")
> [@EllisDee](#): > > I meant this to mean that mods would edit date formats in thread titles as needed as a courtesy to membership. > > I bet the use of most other forms of measurement – miles, gallons, mpg, fahrenheit, etc… – also confuses the international contingent but it doesn’t make sense to have the vast majority change their system to accomodate. This is an American board, and international participants should know going in that they need to take into consideration that we use different measurements. (Dates being a measurement of time.) > > If I went to an English or Australian board the absolute last thing I’d do is ask all of them to adopt a different date format so I wouldn’t get confused.If you worked for an American office that was headquartered in America and had one small affiliate in England, instructing everyone to adopt a different standard for the benefit of that one small affiliate would be counterproductive. It’s not a matter of adopting a different standard. It’s spelling out the month (or using the abbreviation). I say today is Mar. 1, 2010. In Europe they say today is 1 Mar 2010. Different standard, but no confusion. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2010, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639/20 "2010-03-01T22:35:30Z")
> [@suranyi](#): > > It’s not a matter of adopting a different standard. It’s spelling out the month (or using the abbreviation). I say today is Mar. 1, 2010. In Europe they say today is 1 Mar 2010. Different standard, but no confusion. I’ve always denoted the date as Day Month Year; that way it’s smallest to largest. It makes sense in a possessive way too: First day _of_ March _of_ 2010. And I always spell out (or 3 letter abbreviate) the month. There’s never any confusion that way. I don’t see where this new guideline is difficult or onerous for anyone, not even for people in flyover country. Bo 1 March 2010 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/new-guidelines-on-dates-in-thread-titles-cafe-society/525639.md?page=2)