• Inductor@feddit.de
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    1 year ago

    I always remember that port and left both are the shorter word, and have the same number of letters.

    • Stamets@startrek.websiteOP
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      1 year ago

      Honestly, yeah. That’s what I relied on as well and what was taught to me. Also what I then taught to the people under me. I have no other real way of understanding it. I know why we use port/starboard but I’ve never looked into why port/starboard are the words we’ve stuck with.

      • WarmSoda@lemm.ee
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        1 year ago

        That’s easy. We use ‘port’ because that’s the left side, and ‘starboard’ because that’s the other side of the boat.

        No, no. No need to thank me. I’m just one humble man trading information gleaned from a long life of learning.

      • aulin@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        IIRC, it was because the tiller for the rudder (with which you steer) was on the right side. (Styrbord in Swedish = steer board) As to why you have port in English, I have no idea. It’s babord in Swedish, from bakbord (back board) as when steering, the left side was behind you.

        Edit: Apparently it’s port because you’d dock with the left side to the port as otherwise you’d crush the rudder, which again was on the right.

    • rob64@startrek.website
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      1 year ago

      My grandfather was a bomber pilot and he always remembered it by picturing himself flying north along the east coast, where all the ports would be on the left.

    • Kind@lemm.ee
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      1 year ago

      and even, as in even numbers.

      Port, left, even…all words an even number of letters Starboard, right, odd…all words are an odd number of letters.

    • Stamets@startrek.websiteOP
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      1 year ago

      Left and Right rely on the orientation of the person. So if I’m looking ahead at you, and you’re looking at me, my left is different than yours. However, port and starboard don’t change based on position of the viewer but the position of the vessel. Cuts out any ambiguity.

      • snooggums@kbin.social
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        1 year ago

        Like driver’s side and passenger side on a car. It doesn’t even matter where it was made and it will work out as long as they look for the steering wheel.

        *Except the McLaren F1 and probably a few others.

      • XbSuper@lemmy.world
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        1 year ago

        Still doesn’t seem necessary. Your orientation doesn’t matter if you always take the direction as if you were in the drivers seat (captains chair). It’s the same with cars, left side is drivers side, right side is passenger (unless you’re in one of those backwards countries, then left would be passenger, right would be driver, but it’s still the same side of the vehicle).

        • Stamets@startrek.websiteOP
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          1 year ago

          Your orientation doesn’t matter if you always take the direction as if you were in the drivers seat

          Correct. And you would refer to that as something specific because if you just said left people might think that you are talking about your personal left. So you come up with short hand to mean the left when facing the front of the ship, and right when facing the front of the ship. The words that were agreed upon for this purpose? Port and starboard.

          On a ship people will not be facing the same direction at all times. This is why the shorthand was invented. As someone who actually spent time on boats and where this was important, trust me. It’s necessary.

        • brygphilomena@lemmy.world
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          1 year ago

          It’s the ship version of stage left and stage right for theatre. Or drivers side and passenger side for cars.

          We use these types of phrases all the time to avoid any ambiguity.

          • XbSuper@lemmy.world
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            1 year ago

            Left is left, right is right. If you’re basing it off how you or others are facing, you’re a moron. The orientation is based off where it would be if you were in the drivers seat. It’s really not hard.

            • Coreidan@lemmy.world
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              1 year ago

              You’re just demonstrating why using left/right is just confusing and why separate terms were invented to remove the ambiguity

            • chingadera@lemmy.world
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              1 year ago

              Morons exist, you may not have time to clarify my right or your right. When relying on critical timing, you want to cut that out. If you have ever heard someone say “my right or your right” when you’ve said right, concede the argument. There is a reason and if there was not they wouldn’t have been created.

    • 7lbmonkey@kbin.social
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      1 year ago

      Left and right are referenced to yourself, or relative. Port and starboard are referenced to the ship, or absolute.
      It’s the same reason people who work in theater say “stage right” and “stage left” instead of just “right” and “left.”
      Imagine being on a boat for weeks, in the middle of the ocean, with no land in sight; it makes a lot of sense that you would think of locations in terms of the ship, as that is your only reference point.

    • Depress_Mode@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Historically, boats had rudders (or “steer boards”) along the side of the ship instead of in the middle like we’d see them today. It was always on the right side of the boat, so to avoid smashing your rudder into the dock, you’d dock your ship on the other side. That means it was always the left side that literally faced the port, while starboard faced out into open water to protect that side from damage.

    • elscallr@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Then you have to say something like “your left or mine?” This removes any ambiguity, and that might matter when one is at sea.

    • Peppycito@sh.itjust.works
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      1 year ago

      Also, port is red and Starboard is green. Usually boats will colour the sheets to match. It helps to identify the lines when someone tells you to ease the port sheet.

  • PissinSelfNdriveway@sh.itjust.works
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    1 year ago

    I remember being young taking my boaters safety course and having to take this section over three times. Why does left and right stop existing once you are on a floating pos?

    • joejoe87577@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      Because left and right can be interpreted as direction from your point of view. Port and starboard are always understood as left and right of the vessel you are currently in.

      • TheOakTree@lemm.ee
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        1 year ago

        In performance arts, stage left and stage right perform the same function as well. “Stage” directions are always from the perspective of a performer, so that referring to right/left is absolute.

    • Stamets@startrek.websiteOP
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      1 year ago

      Nah, but we did live on an island where sailing and fishing is very important. Our boat was trash but we did have a boat.