>I'd have to ask why there is a distinction. I.e. why is it http:// but \\myserver\ ? Why not allow either, or enforce the same direction slash for both circumstances? AFAIK backslash has no other function in written language.


That would be a terrific idea if we were starting with a clean sheet of paper. I suspect the reason is that both kinds of slashes are so inherent to their respective domains that it would require radical code changes to support either-or. Backslashes are at the core of Unix/DOS/Windows addressing models, as are (forward) slashes on the web.

I don't find keeping the distinction straight to be difficult, but then I'm a gearhead. I know it confuses many users all the time. In fact just this afternoon I was helping a user at work connect to a network share using \\ and she looked at me like I had just landed from Mars.