12 or 24 hour

12 or 24 hour

  • 12

    Votes: 8 47.1%

  • 24

    Votes: 9 52.9%
  • Total voters
    17
Yeah, agree with Hunga, I use the 24 hour clock, but not in language. I've never said "oh it's 18:15", I just say "oh it's a quarter past six."
 
nightshade said:
What difference does it make? I wouldn't say it's 18:55 or 5 to 19, I'd say it's 6:55 or more likely say it's 5 to 7 (current time here)
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The issue is more one of documentation. I have people get upset if I use it in emails, etc., and work has told us time needs to be documented in 12 hour format.
 
Dear November, you stated that you rely on such items to let you know the date, I rely on the 12 hour clock to let me know if it is a.m. or p.m. It is a sad life I lead.
 
ILLYRIAN said:
Dear November, you stated that you rely on such items to let you know the date, I rely on the 12 hour clock to let me know if it is a.m. or p.m. It is a sad life I lead.
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Mine is probably sadder. Im quite good at knowing the time despite not having a clock nearby. If the sun is coming through the bedroom window -it early morning. When it's over the roof of the house its midday, and when its sunny out the back - its afternoon! Simples 😁

The school siren also lets me know when to bring the dogs inside for the afternoon, before the kids walk past to stir them up.

And the blonde dog will never let me forget dinner time.
 
November said:
Yeah my laptop and phone were automatically on 12 hour and I am not bothered enough to change them. It is easier to just read the time on the screen. Although I mostly look for the date because I can never remember that!


Another trick is to subtract 2 from the second number. So 1400 - minus 2 from the 4 = 2.00pm or 18:55 - minus 2 from the 8 = 6.55pm, 2300 - minus 2 from the 3 = 11pm. Hope I have explained that so it makes sense!




I agree, 5 to 7. I always say this kind of thing, quarter to or quarter past, twenty to or twenty past, half past etc, but I have had a lot of younger people look at me pure puzzled.
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That's a useful shortcut, I guess, though subtracting 2 isn't that much faster than 12. I was just meaning that why have to do arithmetic at all. If you're going to talk in 12 hour format anyway, and that's what your mind intuitively thinks of and grasps time of day better with, what's the point of 24 hour?


The "5 to 7" or "quarter to" / "quarter past" stuff is also normal and common over here.
 
From a U.S. citizen standpoint, the 12-hour clock is much more common where I live. But I learned about speaking with other people from different countries who are accustomed to the 24-hour clock. 12-hour or 24-hour. Fahrenheit or Celsius. Imperial or metric. So many ways of doing things differently. But I would choose the 24-hour clock.
 
The analogue clock at the Chinese has 24 hour on it. The outside ring of numbers is 1 to 12 then it has an inside ring with 13 to 00
 
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