Re: [Leica] Re: another dumb question

[Mark Rabiner <mrabiner@concentric.net>]

> > "Noel H. Charchuk" wrote:
> > > Alex asked:
> > > What does the 'f' in f-stop stand for?
> > ><snip>
> > > According to the Ilford Manual of Photography, relative aperture is the
> > > relationship of the focal length of the lens divided by the diameter of
> > > the effective aperture. N=f/d. "The numerical value of relative aperture
> > > is usually prefixed by the letter f and an oblique stroke, eg f/8. The
> > > letter f and the stroke serve as a reminder of the relation between
> > > relative aperture, effective aperture and focal length. The relative
> > > aperture of a lens is commonly referred to as its f-number"
> > ><snip>
> >
> > In other words: you don't know!
> > Mark :-) Rabiner
> 
> WTH you talkin', man? I thought he done good!
> 
> --
> Roger

Was kidding. ":-)"
Your discription was so precise their would be no question. 
Although later on in the thread I was reminded that F stood for focal length
which I knew once but those brain cells are long gone.
The most important and interesting thing about your description for me is the
emphases on the slash "/" which as you state represents a "relationship." 
I imagine a T stop would not represent a relationship but a fixed diameter.
I now understand this issue for the first time. 
The idea that F stood for Focal length never sunk in because it did not compute;
length and width being not the same thing. It is the "/" that counts. 
Mark Rabiner