standard When an existing standard becomes almost impossible
to supersede because of the cost or logistical difficulties
involved in convincing all its users to switch something
The common implication is that the existing standard is
notably inferior to other comparable standards developed
before or since.
Things which have been accused of benefiting from lock-in in
the absence of being truly worthwhile include: the
QWERTYcurrently deployed formats for transmitting or storing data of
formats and nearly any file format).
networks,
Real World examples of lock-in include the current
spelling conventions for writing English (or French, Japanese,
Hebrew, Arabic, etc.); the design of American money; the
imperial (feet, inches, ounces, etc.) system of measurement;
and the various and anachronistic aspects of the internal
organisation of any government (e.g., the American Electoral
College).
(1998-01-15)