9 ms·

Unicode (1889)

63 points by polm23 6y ago

gps0 6y ago
>To decipher this message refer to the Unicode . . . . . Unicode I wonder what the purpose of this cypher word is. So that if someone doesn't know about Unicode, they find out what it is by checking what each word means?
- usrusr 6y ago
  Remember all those little two-letter abbreviations when 140 character SMS were dominating all remote communication, and those messages were still expansive? "Code" like that quickly establishes itself in narrow text communication and apparently the desire to make a quick buck by selling a "reference manual" isn't new either. My guess (from looking no further than the title I have to admit) is that this is a legitimate predecessor to stuff like this https://www.amazon.com/Text-Message-Abbreviations-Reference-convenient-ebook/dp/B004L9L4LA https://www.amazon.com/Text-Message-Abbreviations-Reference-... or https://www.amazon.com/-/de/dp/1467999466 https://www.amazon.com/-/de/dp/1467999466 In this case, the author(s) sure had a hand for wording!
- kristopolous 6y ago
  Telegraphs charged by the word, a lot "In 1860, for example, a ten-word telegram sent from New York to New Orleans cost $2.70 (about $65 in 2012 currency). When the transcontinental telegraph opened, the cost was $7.40 for ten words (about $210), while a ten word transatlantic message to England cost $100 (about $2,600)." https://newatlas.com/last-telegraph-message/28314/ https://newatlas.com/last-telegraph-message/28314/ That's why in those old movies and plays everyone always looked dreadfully concerned about making sure someone got their telegraph message, that thing was pricey.
  - dTal 6y ago
    Incredible that it's cheaper now to physically travel across the Atlantic and deliver your 10 word message in person, all expenses paid, than it was to send it by wire.
patrec 6y ago
I wonder whether anyone ever used one of the many tasteful words-are-money-saving options under the Births Section (and if so, how the recipient felt about it): Confined this morning, Boy, both doing well -> Ampulla Confined this morning, Boy dead, Mother weak -> Amygdala [...] Confined to-day. Twins, one alive, a girl. Mother not expected to live -> Angina Confined to-day. Twins, both dead, Mother well -> Anguifer [...]
- _Microft 6y ago
  I would expect the sad answer is that these outcomes were common enough to warrant an entry in the list.
  - patrec 6y ago
    Is there any evidence this book ever saw widespread use or are we looking at the 19th century equivalent of one of these extremely money saving inventions of late 20th century tele-shopping? Even if general-audience coding schemes like this enjoyed some popularity (I do not know but am rather doubtful), it does not mean that everything in such a book saw usage. Did people employ a code word to save a fraction of a pound on placing a 4000 pound lay bet (another example) at presumably greatly increased risk of the bet getting cocked up completely or to concisely inform the family that whilst the mother was a goner but at least the female baby twin survived? It would be fascinating if they did, but maybe a bit of scepticism is in order.
    - acqq 6y ago
      I'm more interested what happened when some letters were falsely translated. How did they handle copy and transmission errors? The redundancy in our languages is an important characteristics which reduces the chance of false understanding.
      - jfk13 6y ago
        According to the Preface (see page v): > This compilation, however, has been made under the personal supervision of telegraphic experts of long experience, and it is claimed for it that the cypher words are from their telegraphic construction the least liable to erroneous transmission by the operators. Of course, I can't vouch for its success, but the issue was at least considered.
dash2 6y ago
Oh, this is fun. Nuribus natatio nitraria pacator filum!
- _Microft 6y ago
  That's ... a booty call with a bit of a back story?
  - _Microft 6y ago
    Here's the decoded text: Nuribus: "Mistake has been discovered and rectified." natatio: "Marriage has been postponed indefinitely." nitraria: "Can you meet me as suggested?" pacator: "This communication is strictly private." filum!: "Reserve a double-bedded room for tonight!"
dash2 6y ago
All the code words are Latin, which gives a bit of context for one of the famous one-word telegrams of the 19th century. After conquering the Indian province of Sindh, Charles Napier sent back "peccavi" (I have sinned).
- jfk13 6y ago
  Except that apparently he didn't actually send it, at least according to this account: http://www.historyworld.net/Articles/PlainTextArticles.asp?aid=zah&pid=937 http://www.historyworld.net/Articles/PlainTextArticles.asp?a...
  - gerikson 6y ago
    "Thanks" for exploding this myth, that I've thought true for decades....
    - jfk13 6y ago
      Yes, it was something of a disappointment to me, too.
Arcorann 6y ago
Looking at the "similar items" list gives us quite a number of competing schemes for coding words. The "Anglo-American telegraphic code" in particular seems to have gone all out -- it's 500 pages long, four times the length of "Unicode", with over 27000 code words.
kichik 6y ago
My grandfather also had a Unicode of his own back in the 1970s. It was a physics unifying language. http://www.lacikam.co.il/j/index.php/unicode/intro http://www.lacikam.co.il/j/index.php/unicode/intro http://www.lacikam.co.il/unicode/pub/patent/patent-book-OCR.pdf http://www.lacikam.co.il/unicode/pub/patent/patent-book-OCR.... The original book is in germany, but I think an English translation is available somewhere.

63 points by polm23 6y ago

gps0 6y ago

>To decipher this message refer to the Unicode . . . . . Unicode I wonder what the purpose of this cypher word is. So that if someone doesn't know about Unicode, they find out what it is by checking what each word means?

usrusr 6y ago
Remember all those little two-letter abbreviations when 140 character SMS were dominating all remote communication, and those messages were still expansive? "Code" like that quickly establishes itself in narrow text communication and apparently the desire to make a quick buck by selling a "reference manual" isn't new either. My guess (from looking no further than the title I have to admit) is that this is a legitimate predecessor to stuff like this https://www.amazon.com/Text-Message-Abbreviations-Reference-convenient-ebook/dp/B004L9L4LA https://www.amazon.com/Text-Message-Abbreviations-Reference-... or https://www.amazon.com/-/de/dp/1467999466 https://www.amazon.com/-/de/dp/1467999466 In this case, the author(s) sure had a hand for wording!
kristopolous 6y ago
Telegraphs charged by the word, a lot "In 1860, for example, a ten-word telegram sent from New York to New Orleans cost $2.70 (about $65 in 2012 currency). When the transcontinental telegraph opened, the cost was $7.40 for ten words (about $210), while a ten word transatlantic message to England cost $100 (about $2,600)." https://newatlas.com/last-telegraph-message/28314/ https://newatlas.com/last-telegraph-message/28314/ That's why in those old movies and plays everyone always looked dreadfully concerned about making sure someone got their telegraph message, that thing was pricey.
- dTal 6y ago
  Incredible that it's cheaper now to physically travel across the Atlantic and deliver your 10 word message in person, all expenses paid, than it was to send it by wire.

patrec 6y ago

I wonder whether anyone ever used one of the many tasteful words-are-money-saving options under the Births Section (and if so, how the recipient felt about it): Confined this morning, Boy, both doing well -> Ampulla Confined this morning, Boy dead, Mother weak -> Amygdala [...] Confined to-day. Twins, one alive, a girl. Mother not expected to live -> Angina Confined to-day. Twins, both dead, Mother well -> Anguifer [...]

_Microft 6y ago
I would expect the sad answer is that these outcomes were common enough to warrant an entry in the list.
- patrec 6y ago
  Is there any evidence this book ever saw widespread use or are we looking at the 19th century equivalent of one of these extremely money saving inventions of late 20th century tele-shopping? Even if general-audience coding schemes like this enjoyed some popularity (I do not know but am rather doubtful), it does not mean that everything in such a book saw usage. Did people employ a code word to save a fraction of a pound on placing a 4000 pound lay bet (another example) at presumably greatly increased risk of the bet getting cocked up completely or to concisely inform the family that whilst the mother was a goner but at least the female baby twin survived? It would be fascinating if they did, but maybe a bit of scepticism is in order.
  - acqq 6y ago
    I'm more interested what happened when some letters were falsely translated. How did they handle copy and transmission errors? The redundancy in our languages is an important characteristics which reduces the chance of false understanding.
    - jfk13 6y ago
      According to the Preface (see page v): > This compilation, however, has been made under the personal supervision of telegraphic experts of long experience, and it is claimed for it that the cypher words are from their telegraphic construction the least liable to erroneous transmission by the operators. Of course, I can't vouch for its success, but the issue was at least considered.

dash2 6y ago

Oh, this is fun. Nuribus natatio nitraria pacator filum!

_Microft 6y ago
That's ... a booty call with a bit of a back story?
- _Microft 6y ago
  Here's the decoded text: Nuribus: "Mistake has been discovered and rectified." natatio: "Marriage has been postponed indefinitely." nitraria: "Can you meet me as suggested?" pacator: "This communication is strictly private." filum!: "Reserve a double-bedded room for tonight!"

dash2 6y ago

All the code words are Latin, which gives a bit of context for one of the famous one-word telegrams of the 19th century. After conquering the Indian province of Sindh, Charles Napier sent back "peccavi" (I have sinned).

jfk13 6y ago
Except that apparently he didn't actually send it, at least according to this account: http://www.historyworld.net/Articles/PlainTextArticles.asp?aid=zah&pid=937 http://www.historyworld.net/Articles/PlainTextArticles.asp?a...
- gerikson 6y ago
  "Thanks" for exploding this myth, that I've thought true for decades....
  - jfk13 6y ago
    Yes, it was something of a disappointment to me, too.

Arcorann 6y ago

Looking at the "similar items" list gives us quite a number of competing schemes for coding words. The "Anglo-American telegraphic code" in particular seems to have gone all out -- it's 500 pages long, four times the length of "Unicode", with over 27000 code words.

kichik 6y ago

My grandfather also had a Unicode of his own back in the 1970s. It was a physics unifying language. http://www.lacikam.co.il/j/index.php/unicode/intro http://www.lacikam.co.il/j/index.php/unicode/intro http://www.lacikam.co.il/unicode/pub/patent/patent-book-OCR.pdf http://www.lacikam.co.il/unicode/pub/patent/patent-book-OCR.... The original book is in germany, but I think an English translation is available somewhere.