[LEAPSECS] presentations from AAS Future of Time sessions

[Brooks Harris]

On 2014-01-12 02:58 AM, Poul-Henning Kamp wrote:

> In message <52D257B6.6090900 at edlmax.com>, Brooks Harris writes:

>

>>> But time_t has always been UTC, because it was meant to be UTC.

>> Oh, I see what you're saying. Of course - UTC in the historical non-Leap

>> Second period existed, and they intended time_t to reflect it.

> Nice try to twist things to your own viewpoint, but you are wrong.


That's not fair. I am most certainly not trying to twist anything. I'm 
on this list because I'm trying to understand the point of view of other 
experts and other industries and hopefully find common ground. I have no 
commercial affiliation except my own small software and consulting 
company. My motivation is primarily to do a good job in my role on 
standards bodies.

My intention is to learn how time-keeping can best be understood and 
discussed generally, how other people and industries discuss and view 
the issues, and maybe, just maybe, help to improve the field.


>

> They meant UTC to be UTC.

>

> They had absolutely no opinion on leapseconds.

>

> Leapseconds, UT, UT1, UT2 or for that matter astronomers or their

> opinions about time, played absolutely no role in the decision

> making process.

I think I understand you. You are saying that UTC as a term for the 
adjusted timescale existed as the process of time-keeping in computers 
began and they intended computers to reflect "civil time" even if the 
details of exactly how to do that hadn't been worked out. "Modern" UTC, 
UTC with Leap Seconds after 1972, hadn't yet started, so it wasn't 
considered.

Later, momentum of the installed base carried the day in standards, 
leading away from proper use of Leap Seconds.

Is that characterization wrong? How would you describe it?


>

> Bell Labs were a telco-sidekick and the telco business used UTC

> to isolate local timezones and DST issues to a presentation issue.

>

> Do I need to remind you that it was telcos caused UTC to be CCITT

> business in the first place ?

>

> Appearantly the only computing person outside timelabs who cared

> about leapseconds prior to 1985 was Dave Mills.

>