>Maybe I'm alone in this, maybe too touchy, but hearing URLs pronounced, on radio or TV, with 'forward slash' in them drives me nuts. As far as I know, the back-slash was invented for PC pathnames and is used for nothing else. It didn't appear on old typewriters and for all internet addresses, only SLASH is used. It's always been called 'slash' (or more accurately, pre-computers jargeon, 'solidus', 'stroke' or 'oblique'), so why do presenters, when giving you their URL, insist on saying 'forward slash'?

Yep, I agree. I think it sounds hokey when I hear someone say 'forward slash' in that context, like the person doesn't really know what they're talking about, or maybe assumes the listener doesn't know anything.

>And while they're at it, would they stop wasting even more of my listening time by saying 'double-u, double-u, double-u' every time! They're practically ALL "www", we all know that by now, and who types that in anyway! Or at least can't it be abbreviated to 'wee-wee-wee' or something (like exclamation point became 'shriek').

I hear 'triple-dub' or 'dub-dub-dub' a lot over here. Do you hear either of those where you live? An exclamation point is sometimes pronounced 'bang', and a slash is 'whack' (which leads to back-whack, I suppose).

>There! I'm calm now! :-)

Good. Go get a pint and relax. < s >