by Michael S. Kaplan, published on 2007/06/15 23:05 -04:00, original URI: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/michkap/archive/2007/06/15/3328206.aspx
In what is probably the biggest 'make me stop and think about it' moment in recent blog comment history, Mikkin had a comment that began with the words:
+1 what Mihai said, only more so.
My first thought was to smile and wonder. You mean like maybe +2 or something like that? :-)
But I realized that just doesn't cover it. The whole "+1" idea here is really a way of saying "me too". You know like increasing the incidence count. And that doesn't work here unless there are several people there. And then you'd just say +#, where # would be filled in by the number of bodies of people in agreement.
Maybe what Mikkin was trying to say was that this particular incidence was a bit more substantial. You know, bigger on a dimension not usually covered when one is just trying to crunch numbers and figure out the body count.
But then this system doesn't really have additional dimensions like that. And there isn't an intuitive extension to it, either. Probably better to just leave it as is, or (if absolutely needed) word it differently.
Actually, it makes me wonder whether one still is in fact the loneliest number when one of these special ones is involved.
It is too bad that Harry Nilsson isn't available; he might have been able to shed light on this issue....
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igorsk on 16 Jun 2007 11:53 AM:
+1 is widely used in Russian blogs and such. Usually taken to mean "agree with the above".
It is rumored to come from "and I".
GregM on 16 Jun 2007 10:54 PM:
It is also used on Apache Foundation mailing lists as a "yes" vote, and more informally, "I agree". Its counterparts are -1, and +0/-0 (no/veto, and I'm not sure, but leaning towards +1/-1). For simple majority votes, you add up the +1 and -1 votes, and need to come up with at least +1 for the vote to pass.
Indicating "I agree, and more so" is usually ++1 or +++1, rather than +2 or +3.
Mikkin on 18 Jun 2007 2:39 PM:
This from someone who blogs two days later in defense of amusing titles! I thought it was a perfectly cromulent lead-in, meaning "I agree with Mihai's contribution and furthermore, without detracting in any way from its astuteness but rather to underscore it, I think there is even greater significance to the point."
Always glad to give a thoughtful person pause to think.
Michael S. Kaplan on 18 Jun 2007 2:59 PM:
:-)