Agfa developers...

[johndc]

This isn't really a question -- more of a general interest post.

 

I recently emailed Agfa enquiring about the use of the suffix "-al"

on all their film developers. Here is the response:

 

Dear Mr. de Cristofaro,

 

thanks for your request about the nomenclature of our BW developers.

 

Yes, it is correct that the ending "al" indicates an alkaline

developer. This might seem somewhat trivial in our days since all

silver halide developers in practical use operate under alkaline

conditions. But in the 19th century the range of developing agents in

use was much broader. Some of them had to be used in acidic

solutions, for example vanadium(II) salts, sulfite or sulfinic acids.

Please note that this nomenclature is only valid for Agfa´s film

developers. The BW paper developers typically end on "ol" like Neutol

or Agetol although they are alkaline too.

 

We hope, we could help you.

 

Best regards

 

Petra Thiele

[lex_jenkins]

Yeh, but what I really wanna know is whether it's pronounced like Auguste Rodin and rodent; or like the rod that punches holes in engine blocks? 'Cause I feel awful pretentious pronouncing it in the former manner, unless I'm wearing my beret.

[johndc]

hmm... i pronounce it "road-in-all"

 

i also say "atom-all" and "ref-in-all"

[group 11]

i pronounce it rô�dĭ�nәl, but only when wearing thong underwear and sipping some burgundy.

[lex_jenkins]

Oh, gack. Thanks for *that* image, Will. Pardon moi while I go wash out my brain with some cheap Texas merlot.

 

Rodent-all, hmm...?

[patric_dahl_n]

Rod-in-al, but the "a" sounds like the "ua" in "guard", and not like the "a" in "all" or the name "Al". I guess it takes a german, norwegian or a swede like me to pronounce Rodinal correctly. :-)

 

"Road-in-all", is not correct, but it sounds american. ;-)

 

Here in Sweden we use the letters "å" and "ä", and your word "all" sounds like "ål", and the name "Al" sounds like "Äl" in swedish.

 

There are no rodent juice in Rodinal. I've read that some people in Asia are making cat juice by cooking cats in pressure boilers. I don't think the juice can be used as a film developer though.

 

My father had his gall bladder removed earlier this year. That made me wonder if it's possible to make Pyrogallic acid from old (used) gall bladders by cremating them and use the ash. I also wondered about.. No, I better shut my mouth now. Sorry. :-/

[john_cook1]

On a similar matter, my European friends tell me that the proper pronunciation for Agfa begins with �Ahh� as in �open your mouth and say...�. Pronouncing the A in Agfa like �agriculture� or �farm aid� is an American anomaly.

 

Then again, as I am in Massachusetts, everything sounds funny up here. Wanna learn to talk like a Bostonian? Just limit your speech to two letters: b and d.

 

Can you say, �bee-dee-bee, dee-bee-dee-bee�?

[chris_waller]

It's pronounced 'road-in-al ('al' pronounced as in Al Lewis, the actor, (Pa Munster!)). But, being German, the 'r' should be rolled in the back of the throat. When pronounced correctly it sounds like you're trying to clear a throatful of dust.

[patric_dahl_n]

John Cook wrote: "On a similar matter, my European friends tell me that the proper pronunciation for Agfa begins with �Ahh� as in �open your mouth and say...�. Pronouncing the A in Agfa like �agriculture� or �farm aid� is an American anomaly."

 

Yes, that's correct. Like the "a" in "farm".

 

Chris, yes that's how most germans say "r". Here in northern Sweden we say "r" with the tip of the tongue. It sounds harder than the common german "r". But how you say "r" isn't important for pronouncing "Rodinal" correctly. There are many dialects in Germany.