Sum of percentages versus percentage of sum

[Jay R. Ashworth]

On Wed, May 31, 2006 at 09:53:00AM -0400, Kenneth Brody wrote:
>   The tax on a $1.00 item is 8 cents.  (7.5 cents rounded up to 8.)
> 
>     The tax on ten $1.00 items is 75 cents if bought at the same time,
>     but 80 cents if bought one at a time.
> 
>   The tax on a $0.99 item is 7 cents.  (7.425 cents rounded down to 7.)
> 
>     The tax on 10 $0.99 items is 74 cents if bought at the same time,
>     but 70 cents if bought one at a time.
> 
> 
> Just something to consider if you have a similar situation.  As to which
> calculation is "right", talk to your accountant.

I guess this depends on whether you (or your accountant) took the red
pill, or the blue pill.

Cheers,
-- jr 'write your own joke' a
-- 
Jay R. Ashworth                                                jra at baylink.com
Designer                          Baylink                             RFC 2100
Ashworth & Associates        The Things I Think                        '87 e24
St Petersburg FL USA      http://baylink.pitas.com             +1 727 647 1274

     A: Because it messes up the order in which people normally read text.
     Q: Why is top-posting such a bad thing? 
     
     A: Top-posting.
     Q: What is the most annoying thing on Usenet and in e-mail?